Comments on: We get questions….

By: Rosalind Reisner

Rosalind Reisner — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:39:03 +0000

My favorite question is “In Voodoo, how do they bring the dead back to life?” I was a very new, very young reference librarian when I got this question–it made me realize that I wasn’t always going to be able to find answers and that the range of questions was far more extensive than library school had led me to believe.

By: Ilene Grayev

Ilene Grayev — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:57:27 +0000

Thank you for a very “entertaining” 10 minutes. I think we have the “best” stories and none are more funny (and puzzling, and fustrating, and heart-warming…etc) than the real life encounters we have everyday. I love my job as a high school librarian because there is never a dull moment just as you said. I am also a adjunct professor at Arcadia University where part of what I teach is “the reference interview.” I can’t wait to share some of these posts next semester.I look forward to reading many more of your blog posts!

By: Mark

Mark — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 23:18:26 +0000

Classic. I think the responses to this post are great, too. I especially like the one that describes the actual process of embalming. I think this shows the dialectic of reference work. The point was that it was comical. As the dutiful MLS student he is, John could not resist giving an excellent and complete explanation. I do think it is OK to laugh at patron miscues. It is cathartic and funny.
Thanks for the Laughs.

By: Annie Frank

Annie Frank — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 19:36:21 +0000

My favorite was a little 8 year old boy who wanted a book on how to draw stick figures. Just think about it…

By: Anne Jefferson

Anne Jefferson — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:25:06 +0000

My story is of a caller who wanted to know when Maureen Stapleton died. A simple question now, but this was about 1990. It is difficult to prove that someone has not died, but I did find a reference to her being in a play about 6 months before. The caller insisted she was dead (it had been several years since her character on “All in the Family” died) and quipped that perhaps I expected to see her and Elvis having lunch. From the sound of the voice and the noise in the background, I suspected this to be a bar bet. Oh well, you can give them the sources but you can’t make them believe you.

By: Day

Day — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 18:25:28 +0000

My very favorite question ever (and granted, I’ve only been in the field 3 years) was a gal who asked me where to find “the Korean bible.” The reference interview led us to realize she did not want the bible written in Korean… But the Koran.

By: :-) Love it! « The Loudlibrarian’s Blog

:-) Love it! « The Loudlibrarian’s Blog — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 01:03:08 +0000

[...] http://pointsofreference.booklistonline.com/2009/06/30/we-get-questions/ [...]

By: Jessie Affelder

Jessie Affelder — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 23:29:27 +0000

Some of your anecdotes and examples seem almost familiar…and fun. Our world would so dry and humorless without the (often amazing) gaffs we all can make when asking for information. My favorite questions and requests received while on the reference desk: 1)”I need an actual photograph of the sinking of the Titanic. And not some drawing.” 2)I need a WD40 [tax] form.” 3) “This is a library, right? (Yes)You’re a librarian, right? (Yes) So…(sound of baby carrier being thumped onto the reference desk)Watch the baby!” There are more, and I treasure every one of ‘em.

By: Jean Currie

Jean Currie — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:26:02 +0000

Another question!
Where is the book that has the answer to every question?
What they wanted was one of those books on pros and cons of moral issues that freshmen are inflicted with.

By: cindy

cindy — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:44:02 +0000

These anecdotes are funny, I admit. But I don’t think librarians should be so quick to deride patrons. It sounds catty. It makes librarians seem insufficiently busy.

Some of the worst spellers I know are librarians, by the way. I could show you hilarious examples. But I won’t.