Opening new worlds

Mary A. Castillo

SHE IS . . . Introducing children to books.

Boisterous with books

The Children’s Wing at the Huntington Beach Central Library has one

rule: there’s no shushing.

Anyone who walks into the whirlwind world run by Nanci Williams will

see that she strictly enforces that rule.

As the children’s and media coordinator, Williams sees to it that

children have fun in her wing.

Children climb on the giant sailboat while others chatter with their

buddies about a book on fighter planes. One young patron pulls a book off

the shelf and stuffs it into a bulging canvas bag. Another points and

yells to his mom about the colorful fish in the giant aquarium.

“When people ask me how many children I have, I tell them I have

thousands,” said Williams over the clamor.

Considering that last year 81,000 children participated in library’s

programs, and book circulation skyrocketed to 390,000 transactions,

Williams isn’t too far off the mark.

Action packed

The wild world Williams controls and offers to children is as much a

handful as her patrons.

Children have over 88,000 books and periodicals to choose from. There

are also 17 computers with Internet access and a catalog of educational

games and software to use in the library. In case visitors get bored,

there is a story time hour scheduled every day of the week.

“This is a very family-oriented community,” she said. “The parents are

so eager to expose their younger children to cultural activities.”

Recently Williams and her team of librarians noticed that Laptime

story-time programs were attracting audience members as young as six

months old. Even though the programs are geared toward toddlers, Williams

and her staff welcomed their participation.

In this library, anyone that wants to be part of the activities are

welcomed, she said. However to meet the needs of the community, the

library will offer a baby story time hour next fall.

A Changing role

With 26 years invested in the Huntington Beach Public Library Williams

jokes, “I’ve always been in the children’s business.”

Not only has she seen a great deal of change in the way libraries

serve the communities, but also in the role of a children’s librarian.

“This job has never allowed me to grow up,” she said. “I get daily

doses of refreshment by taking a child to a book and watching their eyes

light up.”