Books are a Haven

Name: Malcom. Age: 28. A library assistant. Warning: Reads too much, is loud, and might awkwardly run mouth too much.

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aurelialupescu:

“You are quite welcome.  I thought that it might be good to let someone know, it is not really the easiest mistake to catch, especially in a library of some size.”  Aurelia gave him a small smile.  “If you could direct me to the English translation, I would appreciate it very much.  I have been wanting to read the book for quite some time.”

“Yeah, sorry about the mishap. We try out best but some things just slip past our radar.” He took another quick look at the book to determine where that particular book belongs. and gestured for the young woman to follow him “It should be over, in the 500s” 

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namwooult:

he could hear the distant cursing of a stranger and his natural instincts told him to offer assistance. he glanced around the library, spotting the other male muttering to himself, quickly getting up to move towards him. he extended two fingers, tapping his shoulder, the annoyance in the other’s eyes incredibly noticeable. “i don’t mean to bother you.. well, i mean you’re clearly already bothered. i was just wondering if everything was alright?”

He didn’t realize his frustration was palpable enough to be noticed from the other side of the room, and how loud had he been cursing? He winced feeling guilty for how rude he must have been “It’s fine just another, honestly frustrating part of my job.” He said looking back to the book case and removing a book on the history and evolution of democracy and holding it up “sometimes people find books in other parts of the library and just put them on the wrong shelf. Most often in the non-fiction area. It wouldn’t be that big of a problem if it didn’t happen so often that I had to reorganize an entire section.”

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brucemacalpin:

“I don’t need anything at the moment but whenever I do I’ll come back.” Bruce said, still smiling politely at the other man. “Ah, okay, thank you.” he handed the other the books that were in his hands carefully so none of them would end up on the ground. “That’s great, probably why you have such big variety.”

“Yeah, and it means there’s always something new.” Malcom opened up the necessary software on the computer and scanned the books one by one before printing out Bruce’s receipt and handing it over. “Well, your account’s clear. Hope you have a nice day.”

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kristoffersonderburg:

Kristoffer smiled to the other man that started quickly to babble about books. It was clear to him that the library assistant was really into books and was right person to ask about them. “I’m just trying to feed my adventure hunger. I’m really into hiking and travelling, and I miss it dearly. So something adventurous I guess then? I have read Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe and Into the Wild so if you can recommend to me something like that?” He said and then looked quickly at the book and then took it. It was about… children’s mental health. Of course it would be. “No. I think I have read this already…. and I really just need something non-fictional. Thank you though.” The prince chuckled awkwardly and then put the book pack where the other man took it. “And I can read some classic romance pieces too. I love The Great Gatsby.” 

“We have a good bit of adventure novels. I know that we have ‘The Worst Journey in the World’ and my favorites ‘The Life of Pi. As for romance are you a fan of Jane Austin?” Malcom winced when he realized he may have been getting a tad over excited “Sorry for running my mouth so much. The fiction novels here are arranged by genre then author. So we have a whole section of adv. I can take you to them just follow me.”

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kristoffersonderburg:

Even though Kristoffer did enjoy reading, he had found so little time to do that when he was living in Norway with his family, but now here in Shanghai he had noticed that if something, he had time. He had so much time that he was nearly going mad. So the prince had decided that it was time to pick up some books and start reading again. “Uh. Do you work here?” He asked and lifted his eyebrows up. The other man didn’t really look that kind of person that would work for the royals. But that didn’t really bother him that much so he decided to continue. “I think I need some help to decide what I should read and I thought that maybe you can help me? If that’s okay to you and you’re not too busy with that.” 

“Uh, yeah,” he said perking up a bit, putting his frustration from a few moments ago out of his mind.  he was always happy to talk about literature. It had always been a topic that he could easily carry a conversation about. “Are you looking for anything specific? Fiction? Non-Fiction?” He ducked down a shelf and grabbed a book there that he had read a couple times “This is a book about children’s mental health. It even has a few anecdotes from those who grew up with mental health challenges and their experiences with things like school and family it’s a fascinating read.” He straightened up and handed the book to the other “There’s also some of my favorite novels. like the book of the new sun series in the fiction section on the next floor. I can show you where those are if you’re interested.”

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aurelialupescu:

The library had turned out to be, quite unsurprisingly, one of Aurelia’s favorite places to pass the time in Shanghai.  There was a peace here that was similar to the solitude of her hotel suite, but somehow less lonely – the echo of the written word, the lingering presence of all who had wandered the halls.  She could bask in unlimited company without holding a single conversation.

Now, however, necessity demanded that she speak to an actual, physical human being on this plane of existence, and this one seemed a little on edge.  “Yes, aah, this book,” she began, holding out a thick paperback adorned with kanji.  “I think that it has been mislabelled, I…it says that it is the English translation, but everything is in Japanese.”

“Oh,” he said taking the book. Looking at it, he can tell that whoever had entered this book into the system had either not been paying attention or just didn’t care because the book was indeed mislabeled. He would probably need to re-register it.  “Thanks for bringing this to my attention. Do you need any help finding the actual English translation or something else?”

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brucemacalpin:

“Then I don’t feel so bad about getting lost.” Bruce joked, still following the man. “Yes, I read some recommendations that I really did enjoy. Kids liked their books too, maybe at some point I’ll come back here to get them some more books to read.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed your books.” Malcom said smiling stopping at the return desk “If you ever need anything specific we most likely have it.” He noticed the desk was empty and looked around “It looks like the head librarian is out at the moment, so I’ll check these in for you.” He made his way around the desk neatly tripping over a pile of new arrivals yet to be put in the system. “We also get new arrivals almost twice a month.”

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brucemacalpin:

Bruce started following the man, listening to his words and nodding as he spoke. “This is only my second time here, went to get these books for me and the kids last time and now I’m giving them back so I’m still a little lost.” the king raised his hand for a shake with the other as he introduced himself. “I’m Bruce, nice to meet you.”

“Pleasure to meet you too Bruce.” Malcom smiled and turned to continue his way through the shelves“This is a pretty large place so it’s easy to get turned around. It a couple weeks for me to get an understanding of where everything is.” Malcom continued, communicating with others is part of the job he enjoys, even if he’s not good at it one hundred percent of the time “Were the books what you needed? If you don’t mind me asking.”

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bcrri:

it’s not the typical haunt for the welsh prince. in fact, given his reputation, one might not think he reads much at all. but he’s actually always had a soft spot for a good library, perhaps because so much of his childhood was spent in his palace’s personal library, reading books to escape the loneliness of his solitary existence. right now, though, he’s not reading to escape nor is his imagination likely to be challenged by the task at hand. “actually, yes. d’ya happen to have anything on marital law? preferably of the royal variety. i’m looking… for a friend.”

“We should” Malcom paused for a moment before gesturing for the other to follow him and headed towards the 300′s “If we do it should be only a few shelves down. In the social sciences section.” Though it isn’t that far Malcom knew the organization system that most libraries use can be pretty confusing. This was a part of his job that he’s done so many times he could recite the classification system in his sleep. If it’s in the right place it should more specifically in the 344s. 

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brucemacalpin:

“That would be amazing, thank you.” Bruce said with a polite smile as the other offered him help.

"No problem." Malcom smiled and gestured for the man to follow him “I don’t know why the return desk is located so far away from the entrance it’s pretty inconvenient for anyone who hasn’t been here before. I’m Malcom by the way.”

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brucemacalpin:

Bruce went to the library just to give back the books he took in the past week but he had no idea of who he had to give the books to so when he saw a man replacing books he tapped the other man’s shoulder. “Hey, yes. I just came here to give back those books and would like to know who I have to give them to.”

“Yes sir, there’s a desk in the back over near the reference section.“I can show you where it is.” Malcom offered, the library’s size and the location of the return desk made it difficult for most people to find it on their own. 

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“For fook’s sake.” he murmured under his breath while rearranging the non-fiction shelves for the third time that week. Was it so hard to put your unwanted books on the trolley with the sign saying it was designated for unwanted books? He was so caught up in trying to determine which books were which books actually belong in the psychology and sociology section that he didn’t notice someone behind them until he felt the tap on his shoulder. He placed the novel that for some reason someone decided belonged there onto the metal trolley next to him and turned “Hi, do you need help?” he asked as politely as he could. No sense in taking his frustration out on someone else.