Libraries typically have more resources available to share than you imagine. As well as books and thoughtful, trained librarians and staff, many also offer access to a range of things including sewing machines, podcasting facilities, laser and 3D printers, VR headsets, ukeleles, tools, hiking backpacks, national park day passes, artwork and telescopes.
That’s not even getting into all the free digital materials they offer on apps like Libby, Kanopy and hoopla: audiobooks, e-books, streaming music and movies, newspapers and more.
What does your local branch have to offer? Stop by, ask and get yourself a card if you don’t have one. (And if you’re feeling it, let the library team know you appreciate them, especially these days when librarians – librarians! – could use a reminder that most people love and appreciate the work they do.)
The other day I learned that not only could I check out a book from a local branch, but I could buy a slice of pepperoni pizza, too. Last Friday, Oct. 20, the Altadena Library District put a book vending machine out in front of the local Prime Pizza.
“The addition of these vending machines is the next step in our plan to expand our footprint and reach areas of the community where we didn’t have a presence before,” Nikki Winslow, director for the Altadena Library District, told me via email. “They will help us provide continuity of service as we move toward closing and renovating our buildings over the next few years. They will help free up our staff to plan events and partner with local organizations.
“But the best part, our patrons can access library materials – like books, movies, hotspots and more – at their own convenience, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.”
These vending machines aren’t a new thing; libraries in Rancho Cucamonga, Anaheim, Fullerton and other places have had them. I suppose I could have checked one of those out, but as we’ve already ascertained, this one is pizza-adjacent.
So I gave it a test run. It’s simple to use (though the afternoon sun made it a little hard to read the screen) and only requires a library card. It’s got a varied but not unlimited supply of books; I took a chance on “The Reading Adventure” (having not carefully read its subhead: “100 Books to Check Out Before You’re 12” but it was still a fine choice). The book came out easily, and I didn’t have to shake the machine the way you do when you can’t get your bag of chips to drop down.
Maybe it seems a little gimmicky, but it was also fun and will get more use during the planned renovations Winslow mentioned. Plus, you can imagine these modern wonders would be welcome by parks or schools or playgrounds (not all of us want to play tetherball!).
Or, sure, just keep putting them near pizza parlors. I got a slice and an order for home and left thinking: Maybe, in the spirit of reciprocity, library branches could start serving pizza? We can dream.
Have you used one of these machines? What did you think about them? And real talk: Are there better foods to eat while reading?
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Pressing business
On Saturday, my favorite letterpress printer and I headed down to the International Printing Museum in Carson for its 15th Annual Printers Fair and, if you’ve never been, it’s a fun event with hands-on demonstrations, artists’ booths and food and drinks. There are more cards and posters than books, but you could also get some on-the-spot poetry typed up for you from The Typin’ Pint or buy yourself some printing equipment if you had a hankering for a pica stick, an empty type case or several thousand pounds of printing press (depending on what’s on hand).
Meeting and talking to the range of creators is also pretty great, and we checked out books and broadsides from Jessica Spring at Springtide Press, H.A. Peters of Society of Hermits and Carolee Campbell of Ninja Press (some of whom I’d met before through my wife, full disclosure). I’m also always drawn to the colorful work of Melissa & James Buchanan, who are the folks behind The Little Friends of Print Making, who I interviewed in 2017 at Comic-Con, and the legendary posters of Hatch Show Print.
I also met and got a demonstration on how to make prints with a tiny desktop press from Alex Yun of Altadena’s AXIllustration. We looked into the Museum’s Book Arts Institute, which offers classes in letterpress printing, bookbinding and paper arts. Inside, the shop cat jumped up onto a sink and meowed at me to turn on the faucet so she could get a drink, so, all in all, it was a successful day.
Check out printmuseum.org for more information about upcoming events.
Reader Mail
I’ve noticed that a frequent interview question you ask is, “Do you have any favorite book covers?” Have you asked readers? Here are mine from this year and one from last: “Starter Villain” by John Scalzi; “The Vegan” by Andrew Lipstein; “The Shamshine Blind” by Paz Pardo; and “Olga Dies Dreaming” by Xochitl Gonzalez – Eileen Ferris
Hi Erik. Glad to be on The Book Pages. To reply to your query about what I have been reading, it’s “Tom Jones” by Henry Fielding, “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire” by Edward Gibbon, and “The Secret Pilgrim” by John Le Carré, the three concurrently. Well, you asked. – Jimmy Sukeshwala
I am currently reading “The Woods” by Harlan Coben, and I will then be moving on to “The Hiding Place” by C.J. Tudor. … I have been seeking out mysteries, crime thrillers and other books with great plot points to get lost in. When I was small, I took a little longer, I think, to learn how to read. Once I got it down well, I was off and running. I read various genres of books constantly. By 11, I was reading classics like “A Tale of Two Cities” and other Dickens books. It was a lovely way to drop down into another world. I still read at 49 years old for the very same reason. – Beth
And finally, Peter Coogan wrote in to let me know that the story I did on Gerry Fialka and the Finnegans Wake reading group reaching the final page after 28 years has traveled the world, ending up in outlets from Paris and Prague to Pretoria and Poznan, Poland.
Coogan, a longtime member of the group who first alerted me to it, also let me know that the group will be meeting again from 6-8 p.m. on November 7. Go to Fialka’s webpage for more info.
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Read any good books – or seen any great covers – that you want to tell people about? Email me at epedersen@scng.com with “ERIK’S BOOK PAGES” in the subject line and I may include your comments in an upcoming newsletter.
And if you enjoy this free newsletter, please consider sharing it with someone who likes books or getting a digital subscription to support local coverage.
Thanks, as always, for reading.
‘House of Doors’ author Tan Twan Eng read ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’ as a child
Born and raised in Malaysia, Tan Twan Eng is an internationally recognized writer of historical fiction. His latest book, “The House of Doors,” is just out from Bloomsbury. Contributor Diya Chacko talked to the author, and here he responds to the Book Pages Q&A.
Q. What was the first book that made an impression on you?
That would probably be “Lady Chatterley’s Lover” by D.H. Lawrence. I was seven or eight when I found it in a book sale. It was very cheap, because I could buy it with my pocket money. I was so proud. I showed it to my parents – and they were horrified. But they did end up letting me read it, and ask them questions if I didn’t understand something.
Q. Is there a person who made an impact on your reading life?
I would say my parents, because of their hands-off attitude to what I was reading. They bought books for me, and there were always books lying around the house. I could read anything I wanted. If I saw something interesting, I could read it. I was lucky that I had parents who let me read anything I wanted. That’s one of the main reasons why I hate banned books and censorship. I find it repugnant.
My father was a banker, and never read any fiction. He would read textbooks on economics and banking, and he found that very enjoyable. I thought that was awful. My mother used to be a computer programmer in the early days, you know, when they had punch cards? She only started reading when I started making her read. I would get books that I thought she might be interested in, like family sagas, and I would tell her, “Come on, just read, read.”
Q. What are you reading now?
I am reading “Number9Dream” by David Mitchell, who wrote “Cloud Atlas.” This is one of his early books. I found it recently in a bookshop, and I realized I hadn’t read it, so I picked it up. He’s an excellent writer. He’s just so talented – I’m sick with jealousy, you know?
Q. Is there a book you’d recommend to others?
There’s this book called “Moon Tiger” by Penelope Lively which I tell everybody to read. She’s amazing; she should be more widely known. Excellent writing. I sometimes reread bits of this book when I just want something to cleanse my mind, to see what good writing is like.
There’s one more that I read last year, that I think people should read: Alison MacLeod’s “Tenderness” It’s a book about D.H. Lawrence and how he came to write “Lady Chatterley’s Lover,” and what happened afterwards with the obscenity trial. She’s a supremely talented writer; you must read it. It’s really an impressive achievement.
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Next on ‘Bookish’
The next installment is Nov. 17 at 5 p.m. as authors Sarah Blakley-Cartwright, Tess Gerritsen and David Ulin join host Sandra Tsing Loh and Samantha Dunn to talk about books. Sign up for free now.
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