The Hits Just Keep on Coming

How do you figure out what book to read next? I think a fair amount of us rely on a combination of serendipity while browsing and other people’s recommendations. There are a lot of areas in the library where you can get the best of both of those worlds. 

Courtesy of zen

Take for instance the somewhat hidden and mysterious Mullenbach Collection. Often shrouded in secrecy in the Rotary Heritage Room, all the books available in this collection are classics or contemporary favorites of literary quality. A few new titles are added each year so along with perennial picks such as The Catcher in the Rye you can find fresh copies of instant classics such as The Help. The first section of books across the Rotary Heritage Room is the Book Group Collection. This area features copies of past book club reads and is a great place to look if you are stumped on what to read next. Or if you never got around to reading “that book everyone keeps talking about” such as The Hunger Games.  

Another place to look for recommendations is the Positively Ellinwood Street blog display located on the third floor. We feature suggestions from our blog posts there, along with bookmarks and flyers on different topics such as popular teen books or books to read while you wait for your Fifty Shades of Grey hold to come in. 

Of course we are always available at the Readers Services desk if you are not sure where to look for your next great read. Beyond our powerful minds we can provide lists of similar authors to your favorite writer or similar materials to a book you just read and loved. One of my new favorite quotes about reading comes from Diane Duane’s So You Want to Be a Wizard: “Reading one book is like eating one potato chip”. If you feel the same way about reading, Des Plaines Public Library can easily be all that and a bag of chips for your reading tastes.  

How did you stumble across the last great book you read? And how will you find your next read? 

Yes, You May Check These Books Out!

One of my favorite questions I get asked at the 3rd floor Readers' Services desk is: "Where is the Mullenbach Collection?" This gives me the chance to show off one of my favorite sections of the library, The Rotary Heritage Room, which contains the Mullenbach Collection.

The Mullenbach Collection, generously funded by Jane Moore, consists of classic literature as well as contemporary literary fiction, including many award-winners. So you'll find classics like Jane Eyre and The Great Gatsby alongside less familiar titles like The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz, which won the Pulitzer Prize as well as the National Book Critics Circle Award. Other contemporary authors who have made it into the Mullenbach Collection are Philip Roth, Toni Morrison, Michael Chabon and Ann Patchett. The collection also includes chapter books for young people, such as Charlotte's Web and The Hobbit, many of which are special illustrated editions.

Upon showing patrons the Mullenbach Collection, the next question I'm usually asked is: "We can check these books out?" The Mullenbach Collection is housed in the Rotary Heritage Room, which has the feel of a luxurious private library, so I can understand why patrons might think that the gorgeous hardcover editions gracing the shelves are for in-house use only. But they're not. They are all available for checkout, and the Rotary Heritage Room is a quiet reading room open to the public. So the next time you're on the third floor, help yourself to a Mullenbach book, sink into one of the luxurious red chairs in the Rotary Heritage Room and enjoy! And yes, you can absolutely check these books out!

To access a list of the Mullenbach titles in our online catalog, click here.