Employee of the Month knows the power of books

Susie Sharp, the Eddy-New Rockford Librarian, has a fascinating superpower. We're not talking invisibility, superstrength or even time-travel. We're talking about a superpower that can alter your mood and your mind, taking you to far away places.

Susie's superpower is this: recommending books her patrons love.

It is this superpower that earned Susie a nomination by Gloria Rubio for Employee of the Month.

For as long as Susie can remember, she has had a love of books. It was 11 years ago that she became the librarian for the community. Looking back, she recalls, "I figured I had the job when by the end of the job interview, the board members were writing down the book recommendations I was offering."

Susie's first project as a librarian was a grand undertaking. Originally located in the building adjacent to the 1914 city hall, the library was in dire need of space. Those cramped quarters didn't allow for a second computer and certainly wouldn't accommodate all the books Susie had in mind. A donation from the New Rockford Lions Club covered the costs related to the move, and Bill Starke built 17 new bookshelves.

Susie began filling those shelves with new titles, and never stopped. In fact, she was just recently awarded $2,000 from the North Dakota State Library Coordinating Council for purchasing young adult and large print books.

If recommending books is Susie's superpower, then buying books must be her calling. Susie serves as the purchaser for the adult fiction section for the North Dakota Digital Consortium, all of which are available on Overdrive through Library2Go.

Overdrive currently holds 41,000 audio and e-book titles, which can be checked out from home and then downloaded onto your computer or media device. Stop in and see Susie to get signed up for Overdrive free with your library account.

You're bound to find something you love, and if you're not sure, go ask Susie. I think she'll know.