Interview With Ms. Marjorie
Theo W.


Question: What is your favorite part about being a librarian?
Answer from Ms. Marjorie: My first answer is all of it! If I had to have a favorite part, it’s finding kids books. You know how you come to me and you’re like “I don’t know what to read but I’m kind of in the mood for such and such,” and then I find you a book. And then the very, very, VERY favorite part is sometimes students come back to me a week later and go “I love that book.” So, total win.
Q: What is your favorite genre of book?
A: It’s so hard you know, it changes actually. When I was in middle school, high school, I read a bunch of fantasy and then I read a ton of science fiction; Dune [book series], Isaac Asimov. Lately I’ve been finding I do love a good mystery. Also, historical fiction, because I’ve been reading a lot of actual history. Also, a really well written biography. When I was in high school, I read my first book by Antonia Frasier. It’s a lot of work to write a biography!
Q: Which Carnegie library is your favorite?
A: Well I, I have two. I love a couple of really small ones. I love the Queen Anne library of course, and I love that when they restored it, they restored it with a beautiful slate roof, like the original slate roof. But they kept the look of it! There is another tiny Carnegie library that is on the island of Nahant. It’s a tiny island off Boston that’s connected to the mainland with a causeway, which is a road that’s raised up on these boulders. It only has an elementary school on it, and yet, they have a Carnegie Grant library, and it’s so pretty. [The library has] this very cool thing: it has two floors, and to let a bunch of light into the first floor, the big sections of the floor on the second floor are glass, so you’re walking around on these glass [panels], it's very cool.
Q: What did you want to be as a kid?
A: When I was a kid, I wanted to run a horse farm. Because I love love love horses, but that turned out to be not a good way to make a living. Then I wanted to do something to do with books and in fact, one of my jobs in college was working in the library. But for many years I worked in commercial finance, to lend money to big companies, like Harley Davidson. It was only after my daughter was born and she went to this school, that I started volunteering in the library. And one of our librarians was retiring, so I went to the principal and said, “I should do that job,” and the principle agreed. So I went and I got my masters degree, and then I was very very lucky, by that point another librarian decided to retire. So, I originally wanted to work with horses, and then books in some way, but then I went to this whole commercial finance group and then came back. So pay attention to the ideas you have now about what you want to do, because you may find yourself doing it!
Q: How long have you worked at Coe?
A: This is my 8th year as librarian. I was a library intern before that, but before that, I used to be one of the tutors. I was a classroom assistant for Kindergarten and then I was a reading tutor, and I used to help on the playground. My daughter is 26 and she came to school here, so except for one year, I’ve been here for 20 years, but I’ve just been your librarian for 8 or 9 years.
Q: What is one of your hidden talents?
A: Oh, one of my hidden talents? I’m a really good swimmer. I’m actually pretty fast. I think that’s pretty much it!
Q: What is your favorite season?
A: Fall. It’s so cozy. And I know that people think of spring as a time for new beginnings, but for me, maybe because I’m always around schools, fall is a time of excitement and adventure and new things starting. I also like to travel a lot in the fall. I really think it’s a beautiful, beautiful time to travel. I grew up in New England so there we get all the foliage and the apple cider and it’s just magical.
Thank you, Ms. Marjorie, for a great interview!