Bertie

I sit in the main room by the wooden dresser, filled with white porcelain cups, a well-stocked tea caddy, silver spoons and a cake stand filled with a tempting array of biscuits. I take a seat and start reading The Guardian newspaper. I read an article about Unilever using an artificial intelligence system as a recruitment tool to evaluate job applicants. The thought of applying for a job and getting judged by an AI seems scary like a Halloween has come early and unearthed some technological monster. Yet here in the library it is the human element that is so warm and welcoming. The smiles and greetings as you enter through the wooden doors, the chatter that takes place amongst members sat at the tables in the refreshment area.  As I sip tea I look up and see a pastel pink knitted piglet placed on the carriage of an old typewriter by the library counter. When I ask Nicola and Anna they tell me the piglet is called Bertie and he is the mascot of the library’s craft club.

I look out of the left hand window and see Christmas lights affixed to a lamp post, hovering about the neon signage of the Halifax Building Society. In just under two weeks the Christmas lights will be switched on, illuminating the city centre. I’m sitting by the classic fiction section and spot tytles by Mervyn Peake, Flannery O’Connor and George Orwell. It strikes me that I have never read some of these classic titles and think that the dark winter nights will be perfect for reading some of the classic fiction titles in the library’s collection.

I walk over to the new non-fiction shelves and pick up Hiking with Nietzche by John Kaag. The hiking book reminds me of another title in the travel and geography section, Walking with Plato by Gary Hayden. I like the idea of finding connections between the books in the collection without resorting to any search engines or Amazon suggestions. I wonder if there is a theme going on with these books about walking and philosophy. Whatever next, Ambling with Aristotle or Skipping with Sartre?