As book lovers, we’re pretty sure that librarians should be celebrated every day, but according to our calendar, only November 18th has been designated “High Five a Librarian Day.” Celadon talked with our company colleague, Talia Sherer—the Senior Director of Library Marketing and National Accounts Manager at Macmillan—to find out why librarians deserve high praise.
Tell us a little bit about your job:
I happily, and often over-excitedly, market and sell books to libraries. Read: I schmooze and booze librarians.
Why should everyone high five their local librarians? Why do you want to?
Because librarians are hard-working, underpaid, often undervalued book matchmakers fighting censorship, and promoting the heck out of literacy.
What do you think it takes to be a librarian?
Grit. Chutzpah. Courage. A sense of humor. Patience. And an MLS [master’s degree in library science].
What do you like about working with librarians?
They like to party. Seriously, librarians NEVER tire of talking about books, and books are my jam.
What do librarians do that the rest of us can’t?
- Work with the general public.
- Fix a copy machine.
- Explain calmly to a patron that viewing pornography on the library’s computer is a no-no.
- Rock adorable cardigans and dresses with pockets.
So, high five your librarian when you stop by your local bibliotheca, or just say “thank you” if you’re not the up-high type. Librarians stand sentry to public access to knowledge and are sage guides to us book lovers. And evidently, they know how to party!
