#12 Talented Teen Librarian!

Who you are: Alissa Lauzon
What you do: Young Adult/Reference Librarian
Where you do it: Haverhill Public Library, Haverhill MA

LTC: What's one thing you wish more people knew about libraries and what they do?

Alissa: Technology has brought about some wonderful changes in the library world and allowed us as librarians to provide access to so much more information (both online and through the collections of libraries around the world). Also, librarians are so much more than the stereotypical woman with the long skirt and hair in a bun that just sits and checks out books all day and tells people to be quiet.

LTC: If you were stranded on a desert island what would you *need* with you?

Alissa: Aside from the basics (clothes, sunscreen, food, water) I would definitely need to have music, and either books or my knitting with me to keep me from going completely insane.

LTC: Guess what? You get to have a book on that island too! Which one is it?

Alissa: have to pick just one?!?!?! I'd probably have to go with A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks, or maybe Anne of Green Gables, or Wait Til Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn, or.... see, I can't pick just one!

LTC: What do like best about the community that you serve?

Alissa: I absolutely love working with the teens in my community- they are so much fun and they definitely keep me on my toes. The best feeling comes when you find a book that someone who doesn't like to read just loves and comes back raving to you about it.

LTC: When did you know that you wanted to become a librarian (or get into the information field)?

Alissa: I was a history major in undergrad. The day a research paper was assigned, I would immediately start researching (on three or four potential subjects) but I would never get around to writing the paper until the very last minute. I realized that I just loved doing research and so librarianship seemed like a pretty logical career choice. Of course, my mom has always told me that I should be a librarian because I have always been a big reader (I was one of those kids who got up at six am on a Saturday to read instead of watching cartoons). I got into YA librarianship after taking a Children's Literature course and realized how perfect that would be for me.

LTC: What's on your mp3/CD player right now?

Alissa: It depends on which player you look at- I have a variety of things from the Rent soundtrack, Cascada- "Every Time We Touch", and a mix of international music with songs like "Tunak Tunak Tun," which is by an Indian Rap artist named Dahler Mendi, and "Dragostea Din Tei" (aka the Numa Numa song) by Romanian group The O-Zone, to name a few.

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Holy Cow! So it's not up for a Bloggie or anything, but the savvy library community has taken some notice... And the February issue of "Library Journal" features a little news story about Librarian Trading Cards! I am so psyched. Hooray for the people willing to step up and feature their talents and tastes in order to TEACH people more about the profession! How's that for alliteration?

--Amy