New romantic novel collection at Des Plaines Public Library
What's the most popular book at the Des Plaines Public Library? It's "Fanta C" by Sandra Brown. And the most popular fiction author? It's Sandra Brown. In case you didn't know, Brown is the best-selling author of 56 romantic novels and thriller suspense novels.
Armed with the knowledge that romantic fiction is extremely popular, Des Plaines library staffers created a new Romance Collection. Thousands of romance novels were grouped together with heart-shaped labels on their spines. Library staff told me that the collection is very broad, including Regency/Victorian /Georgian romance, paranormal/vampire /futuristic/time travel romance, humor/contemporary romance, romantic suspense and historical romance. As someone who has not read romantic fiction, I was amazed. Who knew there were so many variations on a theme?
Not stopping there, the staff is focusing on love of every kind during February: romantic and familial love, love between friends, love between strangers and love between lifelong companions. The celebration began a few days ago with the unveiling of a "Romance Pavilion." It's really a tent set up in the library, but if you close your eyes you can imagine yourself in a Parisian salon filled with objects d'art and nothing but the best romantic literature, music and film with a view of the Eiffel Tower off in the distance.
Looking for a more serious and tangible discussion of love? Consider the programs in the "Exploring Love, Forgiveness and Wisdom" series. Based on the Fetzer Institute's Campaign for Love and Forgiveness, the series includes book discussions, activities and events to encourage contemplation and conversation about how love and forgiveness can effect meaningful change in individuals and society.
A series of book discussions led by local scholar Olivia Cronk focuses on how time and experience can lead to forgiveness in the presence of wisdom. Books for discussion over the next several months include "The History of Love" by Nicole Krauss (Feb. 19), "A Winter's Tale" by William Shakespeare (March 19), and "The Essential Rumi" (April 23).
At 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 26, join Jim Kenney, founder of Common Ground, for a lecture and discussion of contemporary issues of truth and reconciliation with examples ranging from South Africa to Iraq.
How about a "Meditative Garden"? At 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1, gardening expert, Vallari Talapatra, will present a slide show illustrating how a garden can be an avenue for connecting with nature and uplifting the soul.
The Des Plaines Public Library is not alone in focusing on love and romance. The Gail Borden Public Library has had a well-used Romance Collection for many years.
"It enjoys one of the highest circulation rates of all the print collections, with 11 percent of titles checked out every month," said Sara Sabo, assistant director of adult services at the library. "We can always rely on our romance readers to make suggestions for additions to the collection. Right now, series about vampires and the paranormal are the most popular topics."
At the Round Lake Area Public Library an Erotica Collection was established about a year ago. Maggie Rodriguez selects the books for this collection from the Romantic Times Book Review. She explained that these books have more sexual scenes than the usual romantic novel. Rodriguez said that the collection was small but very popular, with Jaid Black being one of the more popular authors. The library receives many requests from other libraries for inter-library loan of books in the collection. Again, I am amazed.