By Addison Chrivia, Managing Editor
The library has always been a comfortable place to study and relax between classes, as well as a great place to get info or find resources like renting a computer or a study room. What is often forgotten at the Pellissippi State Community College library, however, is the books. There’s nothing quite like getting lost in a good book and letting it take you to faraway lands or distant times. That’s why the Educational Resource Center is prioritizing students’ access to reading now!
Encouraging students to read outside of school, Library Reference Specialist Laura Hood says, “Just pick up a book, comic book, or whatever they like to read and kind of get in the habit of doing that. I think if you start that at a pretty young age, it’ll carry with you. I know that reading has really helped me… when I’m just feeling off, and I need to relax. TV is nice sometimes, but a book – it sounds corny, but it can really transport you to another world and get you out of your stressful mindset.”
There has been a complete revamp of the Leisure Reading section, with new suggestions from current student employees and library faculty. It has also been reorganized to best suit the readers’ needs and look aesthetically pleasing. One such student employee, Cal Cross, says, “If you’re stuck in a reading rut or just interested in something new, I would definitely check out our monthly genre and see what we have selected there.”
Reading doesn’t always have to be physical books either. They can be inconvenient to carry around with you, especially in comparison to the easy entertainment on your phone, which you constantly have easy access to. You can also check out ebooks with an app called Libby.
Cross explains, “Libby is an online app where you can read public library books, like through Pellissippi or like Knox County Library – pretty much any library. I definitely like it a lot because sometimes there aren’t physical copies of the books you want to read. Like, we recently got Dungeon Crawler Carl, all of them on Libby.” The platform is great for slower readers or busy students who need longer checkout times or multiple renewals.
Along with renovations to our campus buildings, there have also been remodels of the library system, both online and physical. With the physical reorganization of shelves, there has also been an effort to update the online systems to make them more student-friendly, accessible, and easier to navigate. Alongside this, there has been a rediscovery of the book review system! Beforehand, it was geared towards instructors and academics, but now it’s a place where anyone with a love of any kind of book can share what they love with others. It can be found on the leisure reading page of the Pellissippi State Libraries Website. Library Reference Specialist Hood states, “It will give (students) an opportunity to voice their own opinions, give them a little practice in writing opinion pieces, and find their own writing voice.”
I can say personally that I found writing on my own time for Imaginary Gardens to be helpful in finding my own opinions and people who share them. It has also drastically improved my writing for school as well, making it easier to analyze things, collect my thoughts, and share them with others in a way that’s both interesting and makes sense. I love reading, and think that writing book reviews would not only be fun and help me in school, but also serve as a journal of sorts for what I’ve read and how I’ve grown.
When asked about books she recommended to the Leisure Reading shelf, Laura Hood replied, “A couple of books by John Green. Showing my age… I read his fiction books as a teenager, and now he’s kind of transitioned into a lot of non-fiction writing. Everything is Tuberculosis was one that I recommended, so we should be getting that pretty soon. I just appreciate his take on these global issues, and then he kind of put some more personal lens on it, I would say.”
To close out is a list of book recommendations from our staff and volunteers here at Imaginary Gardens:
Editor-in-Chief Emma Harrison – And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Staff Writer Rebecka Jones – Mark of the Lion series by Francine Rivers
Contributing Writer Katie Extine – We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer
Editor Patrick Dobyns – Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton
Editor Rylen McGuire – No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai
Faculty Advisor Anna Matsen – Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
Contributing Writer Katherine Long – How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell
Cartoonist Anya Edwardson – Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan
Cartoonist Fin Jump – House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
Faculty Advisor Trent Eades – Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay
Staff Writer Oly LaGabed – The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Social Media Editor Jacqueline Ayala – The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
HR Representative Ash Beach – Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull
Faculty Advisor Heather Schroeder – The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton
