105. Hennepin County, Washburn Library

The kids' area is to the left inside the door. There are large windows on three sides,  plenty of big tables and chairs by the windows, and at least four laminated kid-size tables with "can you find?" and "I spy alphabet" challenges. The northwest corner has an arc of bench seats beneath the windows and a mural in the "dome"--see the pointed structure in the photo below. An interesting series of photos of toddlers learning to use blocks seems to be a documentation by a teacher at a Reggio Amelia-inspired school, and brochures were available. A quotation with these pictures says, "Relationships are at the core of learning." So true!

For the size of the library, there seemed to be relatively few computers; in this neighborhood, it may be that most patrons have computer access at home. All the computers I saw seemed to be busy.

The adult area is to the right inside the door. It has a nice rounded window area for browsing, and even a large jigsaw puzzle, partially assembled, on a table. I haven't seen that in a library before, and as a jigsaw fan, I think it is a neat idea.

There was a place to create magnetic poetry, a display called "Washburn reads" that the staff person I spoke to seemed to agree was composed of recommendations from patrons to patrons (a nice idea), and a National Book Festival display.

8/24/12, bus

104. Hennepin County, Sumner Library

Another Carnegie gem, with appropriate additions. This one, built in 1915, is the third library built in Minneapolis--and it is still going strong. Very strong. It was most recently expanded in 2004.

I like the features that mark a Carnegie library: the tall windows, the classic architecture, the handsome fireplace, the cushioned window seats. One of the new sections has soaring, curved, laminated-wood beams with iron tie-rods.  A feature in the center of the oldest part, five sides of an octagonal structure with seating inside, was the original service desk; it was nice to see it still there.

If I had an award for "best use of small, odd spaces," I'd nominate the tiny space called the Book Nook. It's next to the picture book room, which is lined with books and has a room-sized rug with nursery rhyme themed pictures around the edge.

A staff person, Natalie, asked me if I needed help finding anything--a rare occurrence on my visits. She explained the "Sudduth collections" that I had seen in every part of the library: kids, adults, fiction, non-fiction. These collections are thanks to a Mr. Gary N. Sudduth, a former Mineapolis Library Board member. You can look him up on the Hennepin County Library website. Natalie described the library as "a true neighborhood library, an extension of people's living rooms." She said that many people spend many hours a day there. Indeed, though I had missed the preschool story hour, the library was busy at 10:45, with many chairs and most computers in use.

8/24/12, bus

102. Hennepin County, Northeast Branch

There has been a library in this area for many years; I went to a writers' workshop in one in the 80s. This building, however, is only a year old. It makes the most of space for windows on three sides. One wall of windows has a shelf/counter the whole length with outlets for laptops.

The world language section includes Hindi, Somali, and Spanish, that I noticed. The periodicals rack has several copies of a sign pointing out that "It's against the law to cut articles...etc." and reminding patrons that a copy machine is available.

Panels between computers are very attractive, with gray-scale reproductions of early photos from the neighborhood. In many cases, as here, libraries are the repositories of local history and memory.

The kids' area has a variety of table and seating options, and a structure a bit like a playhouse; I didn't get a very good look, because two girls, age 10 or so, were ensconced inside, engrossed in books, and I didn't want to bother them. A window in this area looks out on a small area of plants in front of the library.

I like the use of brick on the walls and wood on the ceiling. The ceiling is complemented by occasional rustic tables of natural wood. And I found a really good treat at a bakery located between the library and my bus stop.

By the way, this was "library 100" in my quest to visit all the MELSA libraries this summer.

8/22/12

101. Hennepin County, Pierre Bouttineau

A very unusual building; I would pair it with St. Bonifacius for the "unusual architecture" and "not what I expected" awards. I talked to staff quite a bit here, but somehow didn't ask much about the building's history--or anything at all about Pierre B. I know you have the blog address--come on in and give some details, please! One woman on the staff was very helpful when I tried to use a computer to find the information to solve my camera problem. The other comes to Shoreview library sometimes, and we think we sort of recognized each other.

I really like the long row of easy chairs by the windows; I think RCL and SV should have a look at these nice chairs. There are some classic-looking metalwork signs marking different areas of the library, and special metal frames for signs on the ends of shelves.

The Children's Book Illustrator's Guild of Minnesota has a display in the children's area through September. This area included a very nice "two chairs, a table, a lamp" for reading to kids, just like home. There's a wonderful large window on the end wall, up high, and a desk for a children's librarian. A long row of low coat hooks shows that the site is ready for plenty of kids to show up for cold-weather programs.

8/22/12

Note that I don't as a rule take pictures inside; the fourth picture here was taken inside, but looking out, to see if the camera problem had been solved. Fortunately, it had.

100. Hennepin County, North Regional Library

This is a big building! I immediately noticed three large (3-4 feet long, a couple of feet high?) wooden sculptures of leaves. They looked large enough to serve as benches, but I don't know if that's allowed. Adult fiction and periodicals are in a room with windows on three sides. One side of a large kiosk is dedicated to language learning materials. There is a separate area for job search activities, with a bunch of computers, and other computers are available for adult use.

The teen and kids area has tall windows on two sides and a glass-enclosed room for meetings and programs. One unique item is a two-sided desk with sloped sides, kid-sized, with a wide slot at the top to hold books. Picture Bob Cratchit's desk with the legs drastically shortened--and wide enough for three kids to sit at, on each side. Another is a fantastic tall chair at the side of a bright rug; I have to believe, and I should have asked, that this would be used for story-telling. It would certainly create an aura of "listen to the story and you will hear something special."

There is a hard-to-describe set of three quasi-rooms in a row, in the middle of the floor, with unusual reading spaces. I hope someone from this branch will get in here and leave a comment about these. They are very unusual.

I saw a big binder of Read Write Draw papers. Six computers for kids were keeping 10 youngsters quietly occupied, and all eight teen computers were busy.

8/22/12, bus

I thought of going in and asking permission to take a picture of the leaf-like sculptures--but the library was closed, so I settled for taking two pictures from the car.

88. Hennepin County, East Lake branch, Minneapolis

With large windows facing north to Lake St., and to the east and south, this spacious, open branch is full of natural light. Numbers, both numerals and words, lead in at the door from the parking lot. A scattering of shapes with words in them brightens the floor in the children's area, for example, the word "moon" written in an orange diamond. This could lead to all sorts of learning games. I like the attractive framed signs on the end of each shelf, describing the contents of that shelf. The children's seemed to be roughly a long triangle, with windows on two sides. Padded benches and bookshelves run under these windows; in one place, the view is of plants and a large stone sculpture. Perhaps the best, most unusual, item in the kids' area is a round table with phrases from a Shel Silverstein poem laminated like the spokes of a wheel. It's an "endless poem," so you could go around and around the table reading it. Very cool.

Picture books are shelved on low shelves with markers indicating the first one or two letters of authors' names--like the often-seen picture book bins, but with shelves. A sign advises that "Books are roughly organized so don't worry about putting one back in the wrong place." I discussed this with someone on staff and we talked of the pros (easier for patrons, easier shelving) and cons (harder to find requested books).

Two quiet study areas are available, one to each side of the door to Lake Street. In one, a counselor from Goodwill Industries was standing by to talk to job seekers. He's there one day a week, and sometimes, I was told, he has many patrons; he didn't happen to when I was there. The library opened in 2007, and is always very busy, as it was today.

This is the first place where, when I said "I'm visiting MELSA libraries..." the response was "Oh, are you Ellen?" That was pretty cool.

8/14/12  light rail, walking, then home by bus

87. Hennepin County, Franklin branch, Minneapolis

I was happy to learn that my hunch was right--this is another Carnegie library. Not only that, it is looking ahead to its centennial in 2014! Here's a tip I learned: if you look for Franklin Library on page 42 in the book Libraries of Minnesota--well, that's not it! Instead, look at pages 68 and 69 in Carnegie Libraries of Minnesota for some handsome photos, including closeups of architectural details.

The children's area has a small "Storybook Room" reserved for kids 8 and under and their caregivers. Neat idea; when I looked in, a small girl was happily looking at books while her caregiver seemed to be napping. The regular children's area is sort of a "room within a room" that is hard to describe, but very nice to see, so you'll just have to go take a look. The inside of the "room" is lined with shelves of fiction, readers, and Spanish books; picture books and non-fiction are outside.

In the adult areas there are two handsome fireplaces. The area to the east houses an American Indian collection and has a colorful mosaic, "Red Lake" above the fireplace. To the west is the world languages collection and a mosaic "World Language." The contemporary glass mosaics, added during renovation in 2005, fit wonderfully with the classical Carnegie library look.

The library was busy, with computers in use in every available space; there is also a learning center on the lower level. There is a special collection on local history, and at one time this library housed the largest collection of Somali-language books in the country. (The person I was speaking to is not sure this is still the case.) It is clear that this branch is serving the needs of its population.

8/14/12 light rail, bus, walking

84. Hennepin County, Roosevelt

This branch closed in March, 2012, for remodeling. It will reopen in the summer of 2013, according to the sign out front.

8/10/12, walk and bus from Nokomis

83. Hennepin County, Nokomis

This branch is rightfully proud of the environmentally sustainable features incorporated in its renovation, documented on the poster inside the door. DVD reserves are clustered at the beginning of the regular reserve shelves, where they are visible from the service desk. In addition to the security advantage, it would be easier to shelve "like with like."

The teen section has lots of windows overlooking a fairly busy corner. Nice curved bench with round tables looks very inviting.

There's a handsome fireplace made with local stone (a sustainability feature). The meeting room looked especially flexible; it has a window wall to outside and a folding wall of windows separating it from the kids' area. It was being used for an adult meeting when I was there. I could see it being used, either open or closed, for children's programing, as well.

Someone has put a lot of work into a corrugated cardboard "castle," and I like the language prompts on the window by the castle, with questions like, "If you had a castle, how big would it be?" There was also a trunk of dress-up clothes. The wooden chairs in the kids' area are the cutest I've seen, with their animal-shaped backs. The interactive toys are cool. The magnetic letters are pretty standard, but the "Early literature" sign that explains their importance, and the "Look, I can spell my name!" sign are neat. Bookawocky Read, Write, Draw papers filled a thick 3-ring binder.

8/10/12, bus, light rail, and walk

69. Hennepin County, Walker, Minneapolis

I remember when this was built. It's a strange building, mostly underground, and it's the next on the Hennepin list for replacement. There is a pay phone in the lobby, not something you see very often these days. Although it's underground, the adult browsing area has windows onto a sunken garden. Kids' area does not have natural light, but is bright and spacious with a good collection and a terrific fairy tale mural on one wall. There is curved 2-tier seating. There were NO kids in the library at 2:30 pm, which seemed strange and lonely. A sign I haven't seen before: "Do you have concerns about the privacy of your library records? Talk to a librarian." Outside there is a grassy rooftop reading garden with huge 3D metal letters LIBRARY. I discovered a few days later, on a bus from a different direction, that it would have been nice to take the picture from the west, not the southeast. Oh, well.

7/27/12, bus

68. Hennepin, Hosmer branch, Minneapolis

You can tell this is a Carnegie library even before you step inside. The addition on the back blends very nicely. Woodwork, tall windows, some stained glass. I liked the fact that every shelf had a book displayed on a stand; it made the books so appealing, I almost took out more than I cared to carry. (Instead, I made a list, and I will request them later.) There is a separate section for language-learning tools. Lots of J non-fiction in its own area. A separate room for the little kids, with couches and shelves/bins of picture books. A kite is inlaid in the floor outside this room, with the tail leading to the door. Directly inside the door, to the left, is the media collection; to the right, fiction and periodicals and chairs for browsers. A community room is downstairs. What did I miss?

7/27/12, bus

18. Hennepin County, Southeast branch, Minneapolis

This small branch is adjacent to the University of MN East Bank campus. I've seen day care kids arriving with their classes, so I know there is some children's programming. This branch seems a bit unusual in ways I can't quite pinpoint, probably because of being so close to campus. Students don't usually get to do a lot of recreational reading. Perhaps someone on staff will see this and add some details.

7/3/2012, bus and walking

16. Hennepin County, Linden Hills, Minneapolis

Obviously some exterior work is going on. It's a small branch, but seems to use every nook and cranny as well as possible. And it has lots of nooks and crannies! I liked the signs that prompted kids to count steps, books, etc.

7/3/2012, bus

9. Hennepin County, Minneapolis Central Library

This library on Nicollet Mall is almost my home away from home. I take classes at the U of M, and Minneapolis Central is the midpoint of my trip by bus when I take the #61. It's also where I can find books I just can't find anywhere else. Extensive stacks, and I believe something like 95% of the collection is available to the public. The Hennepin Ave. lobby has kept me warm while I waited for my bus on cold winter nights, and the Dunn Bros. coffee shop in the lobby did the same when I missed the 8:09 and had to wait another hour.

The building is huge. I like the interactive wall features as you enter the children's area, and the under-floor feature in the J non-fiction area. There's a great program room for the kids.

Many, many public computers, almost always busy. The staff throughout have always been helpful. I love going into the compressed stacks and making the shelves move in order to locate some obscure volume I've read about somewhere and just have to see.

6/26/2012, bus