Hello, South Burlington! Guest blogger Lee Freeman here. South Burlington’s Public Library has been soldiering through the pandemic along with everyone else, and, like many institutions and businesses, has been slowly opening to the public. We are currently open from 11 AM to 4 PM on Mondays and Fridays, and 11 AM to 6 PM on Wednesdays. The Board of Trustees and Library Director Jennifer Murray are working with the City to increase these hours as the summer progresses. I don’t want to share any secrets, but patrons may be pleased come early August!
Interlibrary Loan will also be back soon. This has special meaning for me, as it means more Georges Simenon novels delivered to moi. A prolific French author from last century, Simenon is best known for his Inspector Maigret novels. Maigret is a sort of French Poirot (Agatha Christie’s famous detective, who, while often mistaken for being French, is proudly Belgian). Or a French Sherlock Holmes. A French Sam Spade? Nationalistic identification isn’t productive in civil discourse, so maybe it isn’t in fictive association, either. Suffice it to say, Maigret navigates the famous French bureaucracy, underworld, and sedimentarily compressed cultural strata to (usually) bring lawbreakers to justice. Considering current conversations about the nature and implementation of police enforcement, it’s interesting to read about how (a fictional) foreign police force deals with members of the public, criminal suspects, and local politicians. 
Keep reading, South Burlington! The Library is back open, and it is still awesome. Construction of the new Library/City Hall building continues apace. As the actor Adam Sandler once said, "Reading is GOOD!" -LF
Boy Lee, you've got a new look!
ReplyDeleteI belong to a mystery book group, when getting together in person is an option, and we recently read one of the Maigret novels. I recall a murky underworld, life on the river, seedy cafes and class tension.