The #ReadingMyLibrary Challenge is run by Stefani of Caught Read Handed and Amy of Read What I Like. Sign-ups closed on April 15, so you'll just have to enjoy my posts about it instead. Speaking of those, here are my updates from Week 1 and Week 2.

Based on my last post, it probably goes without saying that I have not read any new library books since my Week 2 update. Adding insult to injury, I had to return every single one of my physical library books yesterday. Damn you librarians and your three-renewal-maximum! (Just kidding, I love you. Please don't take away my free books.) It all comes down to Week 4. More library books will be read, guys, especially if you help me out by participating in my poll at the end of the post!

Source: epl.org

This week, Stephanie and Amy want to know why I love libraries or being a librarian. I like to pretend I'm a librarian, but I don't think that's the question here.

I got my start in libraries early, when my grandmother used to take me to a local branch on the weekend. I was young, easily between preschool and mid-elementary school. I still remember the lobby of that library being enormous, though it was most likely a perspective issue (everything's big when you're tiny!). I broke up with libraries briefly in middle and high school when Barnes & Noble became my jam, but the love was rekindled when I discovered the Evanston Public Library, just a couple of blocks away from my college campus. It was huge and beautiful, and it had an amazing hanging art piece in its grand stairway (see left). EPL was one of my favorite havens from the stress of school, and I spent hours in the children's section more than once, hogging all the bean bags as I read. Let's not think about how gross those bean bags probably were. Fast forward to today,  and you all know how much I love my local library.

As an anxious person, nothing calms me down more effectively than setting aside a few minutes to peruse the new books section or wander among the fiction stacks. Not only is nearly any book at my beck and call, but it's an entire place dedicated to both a love for books and a love for the community that books (and sharing them) can provide. Book stores are similar, but I think the point about community is unique to libraries, as you don't have to return to a book store once you've made your purchase.

It isn't uncommon to hear someone ask what the "point" of a physical library is in the digital age. I've got a handful of answers: libraries offer tranquility to the stressed; they offer safe spaces for those with nowhere else to go; they offer resources, whether you're trying to write a paper for a class, update your résumé for a job application, or something else entirely; and, finally, they offer worlds upon worlds of information, adventures, and ideas that they can't wait to share, all at the cost of having a library card. These are the reasons I love libraries.

BONUS READATHON POLL

I'm in the process of building my stack for my second-ever Dewey's readathon, and I'm doing pretty well so far. (Our Endless Numbered Days is right at the tippy-top.) I'm hoping to make a pilgrimage to my library to round out my final list, but I'm at a loss for what to get. Here's where you come in!

Make your suggestions in the box below—all I ask is that they be 1. somewhat short (300 pages or less is ideal) and 2. not brand-new, so I have hope of finding them in the library!

Submit your responses here, book-pushers. Multiple suggestions highly encouraged.