Noise in the Bangor Public Library

In the comments to the recent LibQual survey, some library patrons voiced a frustration with the noise level at the library. Many people come to the library for quiet research or reading, finding instead that they are sitting nearby to someone engaging in a loud cell phone conversation or a group of people who don’t know the meaning of “inside voices.” People who get upset with the noise level not only are agitated with the perpetrators of the disruption, but also at the perceived library staff approval of a noisy library.

Addressing this issue is a sensitive and complex undertaking. One needs to strike a balance between the needs and personality of one individual with those same traits in others, while at the same time attempting to be a fair judge of what are normal & acceptable behaviors & expectations.

But, before tackling any issues of public decorum, first some informal historical perspective on libraries & our culture. Libraries traditionally have been places of tranquil quietude, spaces venerably reserved for scholarship, reflection, relaxation, and escape. Librarians customarily have been regarded as the protectors of this peace, using everything from a frown to lists of rules to the occasional “Shh!” in the pursuit of silence.

Times & libraries have changed, though. Computers are in the library. Many people walk around with cell phones in their pocket or purse or book bag, ready to ring at any moment.

Because of these and other factors, libraries have become much more social settings. The person ten years ago who sat quietly next to you in the library reading a magazine now could have a cell phone to answer. While you are using a public computer to produce your resume, the person next to you could be listening to loud music on headphones while playing an online video game. [An irony of this is that we are often becoming closer to others in the physical space around us while we work on computers to go far away mentally from that same physical space].

Today, noise is everywhere. Many of our public spaces (banks, malls, restaurants) are inundated with a constant hum of a radio or a television. A walk down the street or even sitting on your own lawn often has the background noise of a passing car’s radio or a television from a nearby apartment or home.

Believe me, I understand the frustration. You don’t want to have to go far outinto the woods or far from land to escape humanity’s constant activity. You want some place where silence is held in reverence. You want the library to be that place.

We at Bangor Public Library want the library to be that place, too. We, however, know this desire has inherent limitations. Knowing the prevalence of noise in our society, one must understand the difficulty in making the library exempt from the cultural norm.

Also, placing upon librarians’ the role of noise arbiter is a precarious endeavor. We are informed by & participants in the same culture of constant sound as our library customers. One librarian’s idea noise is another librarian’s perception of a normal volume level. The same variance of interpretation also exists among the hundreds of people who visit the library daily.

This gray area makes being proactive or preemptive in monitoring the sound levels at the library a difficult proposition. For this reason, the library does not have a formal written policy for relegating behavior while in the library. Not having a policy allows library patrons the feel of a socially open environment in the library. Not having a policy also frees library staff from feeling we must be actively monitoring all behavior.

Now, are we saying if you don’t like the noise that that’s just too bad? That’s it’s something you’re just going to have to deal with? Are we exonerating ourselves from any responsibility for the behaviors that occur in the building? The answer to each of these is no, certainly not.

If you feel uncomfortable at the library, it is possible the library staff is not aware of the disturbance. We understand that our library patrons may not feel at ease in asking those around them to be quieter while in the building. In this case, please do not hesitate to approach a staff member with your concern. Staff members have the right & obligation to ask someone to lower his/her voice or otherwise modify behavior if another patron makes us aware of behavior that endangers the ability of others to use the library.

We strive to make the Bangor Public Library a welcoming, safe learning & leisure atmosphere. Please let the library staff know if more can be done to make this aim more suitable to your needs.

Blogger, Google, the Bangor Public Library Blog & You

A few people have asked why the blog is set up using Blogger, a Google operated blog publishing service. Further, people have wondered they will not be able to leave comments because they do not have Google accounts. Below, I have addressed a few of these concerns.

This blog is using Blogger for publication for a number of reasons. For one, Blogger is -- one of the greatest of all things -- free.

There are many other blog publishers, but many of the others require the placement of advertisements on all blogs created. Blogger allows ads to be placed on blogs, but does not demand all bloggers do so.

Blogger is also relatively easy to use & modify by blog authors. I am not a computer novice, but I'm also not an expert. I wanted to open up this type of forum for our library patrons, but did not want to be limited by an interface that demanded more time of me, making it more prohibitive of my time at work.

Still, Blogger is not a perfect system. Since it is owned by Google, users of Blogger are required to create a Google account. However, from my experience, the account only requires a user name & password. No one is required to leave a real name, email address, or other identifying information to create an account with Blogger.

You will also not be asked to change your email or any other accounts to a Google account just so you could leave comments on this blog. If limitations or demands of this sort were required, I would not have chosen this publishing service.

I am new to using blogs. I am attempting to make this as accessible as possible, knowing that it may not be at this time. I look to amend whatever is needed to better serve our library patrons. If you have any difficulty in using this blog to communicate with the Bangor Public Library, please feel free to email me directly at playne@bpl.lib.me.us.

Fiction Books Recently Added to Bangor Public Library's Collection

Here are but a few of the fiction books recently added to the Bangor Public Library's collection.

Click on each book's image to link to the URSUS catalog record for each book. Once in a record, you can check the book's availability, put a request on a book (so long as it is not checked out), and click "More About the Item" to see a summary or a book review.

Nonfiction Books Recently Added to Bangor Public Library's Collection

Click on the image of the book for the URSUS catalog record for the book. From here, you can check the book's availability, place a request for the book, and/or get a review or book summary by clicking "More About the Item".

Bangor Public Library Addresses Your Comments from Recent Library Survey

The Blog offers a big thumbs up to everyone who participated in the recent library survey Libqual. Over 900 surveys were completed and close to 600 comments were submitted. Your comments are particularly helpful to us at the library, as the comments shed light on ways we are successfully and less successfully meeting your expectations of us.

In an effort to continue the dialogue with you over many of the issues you have raised through your comments, the Blog will be offering further discussion of your concerns and offering explanations of current library policy and procedure.

The first issue the Blog will address is the public’s level of satisfaction with our selection of materials. Staff members generally are ordering books based on a number of factors. Staff members primarily are ordering based on reviews in publishing catalogues such as Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Booklist. These publications announce new titles months (sometimes close to a year) in advance. Early notice of a book’s impending release enables us to order the book well ahead of time so that, upon release, we will have a copy available to our public.

We also look to New York Times and other lists of bestsellers, generally adding most of the more popular items on these lists to our catalog. Chances are that if a book becomes a bestseller, our reading public will be interested in the book as well.

The publishing catalogues generally are helpful in allowing us to predict what will be the most in-demand titles. This is, however, an inexact science. Our book selecting clairvoyance can only take us so far.

In this case, this is where you, our reading public, can come to our aid. A third way Bangor Public Library’s book get selected for purchase is through the direct request for a book from a library user. Many of our current library users are already aware of this & take advantage of the opportunity. This is a perfect win-win scenario; we get to lean on your knowledge of and demand for books and you get a willing partner in your reading pursuits.

Bangor Public extends an invitation to all our readers to take advantage of this opportunity. A few of the negative comments about our collection note outdated or minimal collections in certain subjects. While we try to be aware of these deficiencies in our collection, many times we might not know of them without them being pointed out to us. We will gladly research to find the best available newer books in a subject area anytime you desire.

We have acted on subject areas noted as deficient in your LibQual responses, ordering several books in areas such as computer manuals, real estate, and investing.

We pride ourselves on having a well-rounded collection. This is a daunting and on-going pursuit, and frankly, not one that can be done without hard work & persistence on our part and an on-going open dialogue with our reading public.

Welcome to the Bangor Public Library Blog!

Welcome to the Bangor Public Library Blog!

We are excited to begin using the blog format to communicate with the Bangor community about library events, new books, reference tips, and more.

Check back here regularly for library updates.