"Love is in the Library"

It’s just got to be Spring as “Love is in the air”. It’s also in the Library!

By far the most popular use of the computer lab at the Library is for sending and receiving e-mail and communicating by instant messaging to loved ones around the world—particularly Mexico and South America.

For many others, the same computers are used for matchmaking, using one of the many dating websites to prowl for love. One wonders what stories are being told.

Love is in the library in other places as well. Many of the most popular novels are on the topic of romance. The Harlequin paperbacks practically have a franchise on love and the readers of these paperback romance novels take them from the Library by the arm load.

Others read from a large selection of romance novelists such as Sandra Brown, Catherine Coulter, Georgette Heyer, Barbara Taylor Bradford, Janet Daily, Barbara Delinsky, Victoria Holt, Linda Leal Miller, Casey Michaels, Belva Plain, Amanda Quick, Nora Roberts, Nicholas Sparks, LaVyrle Spence, Danielle Steel, etc.

Newer romance novelists include Helen Fielding who brought us “Bridget Jones Diary” and “Bridget Jones, Edge of Reason”. A newcomer to the romance field is Mary Kay Andrews whose latest novel, “Hissy Fit” brings the reader some mystery as well as humor and romance. A wedding is planned, but the bride-to-be catches the groom in the act with her maid of honor at the rehearsal dinner. Of course, the wedding is off, but the groom’s father, a local banker, applies financial pressure to the former bride’s interior decorating business. A new guy in the girl’s life, who wants more than her decorating skill, adds to her dilemma.

In Andrews’ earlier novel, “Savanah Blues”, the heroine, Weezie, is divorced but still living in a carriage house of the mansion she and her former husband had restored. When she discovers the corpse of ex-husband’s girlfriend in the mansion’s dumpster, she inadvertently becomes the primary suspect. Romance complicates her life all the more when Weezie develops an attachment to the hottest chef in town and she finds out how delicious love can be the second time around.

Romance can be found in the Library’s video collection with films like: “You’ve Got Mail”, “Shall We Dance?”---both the Japanese version as well as the American version with Richard Gere—“Pretty Woman”, “Green Card”, “Sleepless in Seattle”, “My Best Friend’s Wedding”, “Ghost”, “Emma”, “While You Were Sleeping”, “The Bodyguard”, “Addicted to Love”, “Six days, Seven Nights”, etc.

The recorded book section abounds with romance. Again, Barbara Taylor Bradford has a number of great love stories on tape and cd including: “Three Weeks in Paris “ (1312CD), “Triumph of Katie Byrne” (1131RCB ), and “Where You Belong” (0926RCB). Nicholas Sparks’ recorded books include: “Message in a Bottle” (0505RCB), “The Notebook” (0244RCB), and “A Walk to Remember” (RCB1051. Danielle Steel’s recorded books include: “Echoes” (RCB0634), “Lone Eagle” (RCB1179), “Journey” (RCB0612), “The Wedding” (RCB0934) and “Irresistible Forces” (RCB0830)

The non-fiction section deals more realistically with romance. Deborah Wood’s new book, “The Dog Lover’s Guide to Dating: Using Cold Noses To Find Warm Hearts” cites studies that claim you are three times more likely to meet someone if you have a dog with you. So, take your neighbor’s dog for a walk and greet, meet, and fall in love with a dog lover. Of course, if the romance starts going somewhere, you might have to kidnap the dog.

“Why We Love” by Helen E. Fisher gives us an anthropologist’s view of love. According to Fisher, we fall in love when our brains create dramatic surges of energy that fuel such feelings as passion, obsession, joy, and jealousy. While this all sounds a little dry, it really isn’t! Her analysis and theories on love actually make for great cocktail or after dinner discussions.

If you’re humming John Paul Young’s song, “Love is in the Air”, it’s probably an indication that you should stop at the library and pick up “love” in one of its many formats.