TrulyGrace

Homewood Library--Celebration of Reading

I met William and Marissa for lunch at the Greek Food Festival at St. Nicholas's Cathedral. We dined with William's coworker, Judy, and were certain to get sufficient desserts. William and I watched an outdoor art installation at Carnegie Mellon University, and sandwiched between lunch and his meeting we stopped at itinerant-sidewalk-used book man's boxes on the CMU campus.

Tonight, William and Marissa, Dad and Mom, and I went to the celebration of reading at the Carnegie Library of Homewood. I was greeted at the door by Diane C., and by Mr. Wilkinson of the Security department. Diane is on a committee for Black literature in Pittsburgh. We were treated to African drumming, to a poetry reading and a lyrical dance performance by two Westinghouse High School students, to a signed/emotive poetry recitation by Vanessa German, to a commentary on the placement of the casinos by Kimberly Ellis (Dr. Goddess), and to introductions to various books by their respective authors.

I love the Homewood Library--it was the last neighborhood Carnegie Library built, as it was Andrew Carnegie's neighborhood. He requested that the walls be lined in wood. Even after the renovations, it still retains a character all its own. I had visited there back in '98 when Beginning with Books was still on the top floor (with the ballroom) and there was no HVAC system. Then-head librarian Joyce Broadus stood with her closely cropped hair in her office on the main floor with all her office windows open in the middle of summer. After 2000, one of my classes worked on suggestions for the consumer health collection, one of the best in the area for a predominantly African-American audience.

posted by Grace @ 5/12/2006 10:13:00 PM