As an English professor, a chronic feature of my desk is at least one teetering stack of library books perched on a corner. During times of active research, especially during the summer, there are usually several such stacks, enough to obscure one of my windows. I procure some of these books from my university library, but I also regularly requisition books from Curtis.
Regardless of the place of retrieval, however, many of my books originate elsewhere: from public libraries around the state, University of Maine System libraries, and private college libraries, both in Maine and beyond. I’ve had the luxury of conducting research from my home office primarily because of the interlibrary loan system.
If you are an active book borrower, you are doubtlessly aware of the sudden halt to interlibrary loans this past June, the result of a contract dispute with the delivery van service that is essential to moving books from one library to another. This stoppage has impacted more than 200 libraries across the state, disrupting countless readers and researchers.
Few people are aware, however, that Maine libraries have been cooperating with each other for more than a century. What began as a targeted strategy to connect journal collections at eight of the largest libraries in the state in the early 20th century evolved into the 1973 creation of the Maine Library Commission, which helped centralize and coordinate statewide library services, including what eventually became our robust interlibrary loan program.
Libraries like Curtis — in other words, small-town libraries with limited budgets that serve diverse populations — have always had to be canny about their resources, and cooperating with other libraries has long been an important strategy to best provide materials to our communities. But Curtis is hardly a one-trick pony: Even with what may later be known as the Historic Interlibrary Loan Stoppage of 2024, the library staff has quickly found other ways to serve us.
Aside from buying extra print books in anticipation of summer reading, the library now also provides access to Libby, an app that offers digital books, audiobooks, and read-alongs, with more than 800 titles that cardholders can access on virtually any device.
And our bookmobile is going strong after a year-plus on the road — it welcomed 6,261 visitors throughout Harpswell and Brunswick who borrowed 6,542 items, and 423 new library cards were issued. We have a new location for our weekly stop on Orr’s Island — Thursdays from 1-2 p.m. by the Salt Cod Cafe, followed by a stop in Cundy’s Harbor from 3-4 p.m. by Holbrook’s Lobster Grille. On Wednesdays we stop at Mitchell Field from noon to 1 p.m., and at the Harpswell Town Office from 2-3. Get a new library card, check out books and DVDs, use the Wi-Fi, and learn about digital resources. We have books on board for toddlers, kids, teens, adults and large-print readers.
The Historic Stoppage has not curtailed our summer programming, including the annual summer reading challenge for kids, which runs through the end of August, and an author visit from Bill Roorbach, who will be presenting his latest novel, “Beep,” on Aug. 12.
The Curtis staff is so good at what it does that this past June it was honored with a John Cotton Dana Award, one of the most prestigious awards in the industry, by the American Library Association. Most libraries that receive this award are significantly larger, serving communities 10 times the size of ours, which suggests the magnitude of this distinction. Representatives of our stellar team were presented with the award and a $10,000 grant, which will quickly be put to good use.
My desk may feature smaller stacks of library books than usual this summer, but thanks to the extraordinary efforts of Curtis staff and those of other creative, collaborative libraries, I have yet to miss anything — and now I can even see out of my window.
(Note: At press time, interlibrary loan services had not resumed throughout the state. The Maine State Library has retained a new courier service and is working to restore service as soon as possible in the coming weeks.)
“Library Connections” is a monthly column that rotates among the three libraries that serve Harpswell: Cundy’s Harbor, Orr’s Island and Curtis Memorial.
