Who's That Librarian? Philly!

Name: Philistine B. Ayad

Position/Department: Paraprofessional/Children and Youth Services (CYS)

Birthplace: Cleveland, OH

Tell us something interesting about yourself: I cannot swim. I also lived in Jerusalem for five years.

How long have you worked at LPL? Since October of 2011.

What's your favorite spot in the Library? My favorite spot in the Library is a tie between the Librainium and the Toddler Story Room. I love how the Librainium engages the imagination, offers entertainment, and allows children to learn without realizing it. The Toddler Story room is also a favorite because of the gorgeous story-themed paintings.

What are you reading right now? I am reading several different things at the moment: Magyk by Angie Sage (I am reading this so that I can lead the book discussion with Lakewood middle school students), I am re-reading Cinder by Marissa Meyer (I love this futuristic sci-fi retelling of Cinderella as a cyborg), and The Fateful Triangle by Noam Chomsky (this man is a modern day Renaissance man and is very knowledgeable about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict).

If you were stranded on a deserted island, what three books would you want in your backpack? The Quran, The SAS Survival Handbook (because otherwise, I’d probably only last a week) and Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

Do you have a favorite memory of the library? My favorite memory of the library is when a little boy gave me a flower at the end of a story time session, hugged me, and said, “Thank you Miss Philly!”

Suddenly you find yourself living the life of a book character. Who are you and why? I would want to be the Time-Space Witch, Yuuko, from the manga series xxxHoLic. She is a character who is never flustered, she calmly assesses the situation and acts accordingly--all the while dressed in the most amazing outfits. She is almost always in control and, although she carries a heavy burden, is up to any challenge.

What might surprise us about your work at LPL? The amount of work that goes into everything we do in Children and Youth Services: planning programs, presenting them, designing crafts for the children, doing outreach programs, teacher pulls for the TLC, and even the many reference questions and interactions with our patrons. It is always exciting, and the joy on peoples’ faces after a program or interaction makes all of the work worth it.

Read More on Library
Volume 9, Issue 13, Posted 11:03 PM, 06.26.2013