85. St. Paul, Hayden Heights branch

The first feature that struck me here was: auto repair manuals! Two walls of them, floor to ceiling, everything you can imagine, at least back to the mid-60s! Before I left I talked to staff about them, and learned that they have a back room with all sorts of other repair manuals for items electrical and mechanical. They have a computer dedicated to Mitchell's Auto Repair; and if you come in looking for a manual they don't have, they will find it and buy it for the collection. So far as I know, this is unique in MELSA. Kudos to Hayden Heights!

They are also a neighborhood library, of course, and have everything you would expect in fiction, non-fiction, reference. There is a coin-op copier with a note that it is "turned off 15 minutes before closing." Good idea; closing can be difficult enough without someone trying to copy a bunch of pages at the last minute.

The feature of the kids' area is a "reading cart" that looks like an open-air truck. There's a steering wheel, of course; on the back there is "produce" of various types and a cash register. This reminded me of the children's "market" at the Hopkins library. There are lots of E and J books on shelves.

There are a couple of meeting rooms and a sign mentioning a "quiet study room."

I have one regret: I was having such a good time talking to staff, I forgot my rule about "take out at least one book" and left without any. This one time, I forgive myself the lapse.

8/13/12, bus