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Reviewer Profile – Dorene O.

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RevPro-DO-largeOur featured Reviewer for October 2013 is Dorene O. Dorene has been with the Lincoln City Libraries system at one branch or another for many years, and currently works in the administrative offices at the downtown headquarters library. Her reviews have shown up occasionally on the Staff Recommendations pages of the BookGuide web site, and on the Staff Recommendations display at Bennett Martin Public Library, starting in 2004. Reading has always been a major part of her life, as she indicates in her answers to our profile questions:

Would you care to share any personal info with our readers — such as where you grew up, what you read as a child, how long you’ve been with the libraries, etc.?

Up until the time I was about 9 years old, I lived in a small, small town in SE Nebraska with a population of about 50 people. When I was in fourth grade, we moved to a big city of about 300 people! They had a library at the school I then attended! Oh – happy days!

swissfamilyrobinsonHow long have you been an active reader, and were there any particular books or authors or other people that “made you a reader”?

I discovered Nancy Drew when I was in fifth grade. That was a wonderful discovery. I read my way right through the series and then started on The Hardy Boys. Other books I enjoyed at the time were Trixie Belden and The Box Car Children. I’ve read Swiss Family Robinson numerous times.

How important are books and reading to you, currently?

Reading is part of my everyday life. Usually I listen to a book on CD in the car and I always have a book to read over my lunch hour. In addition, it is not unusual for me to have one to read at home also.

How do you select what books to read next?

My favorite genres are: Inspirational Fiction and Pioneer Fiction. The best reading moment is when you find a new author AND it’s a series.

What do you enjoy about writing book recommendations?

It’s like sharing a really good recipe, a good movie, or a good place to eat – you want other people to know about it. When the book is so satisfying that you practically inhale it, you know really want to share it.

What is your history with the Lincoln City Libraries – how long have you been a customer, and how long have you worked for LCL? Which locations?

When I graduated high school in 1968 and came to Lincoln to work, I quickly discovered the library. Being new to Lincoln and from a small town, the library was an important destination.

Years later I remember being at Bethany picking out a new book to read when staff working there at the time caught my eye. They were helping some patrons and I just stood watching from across the room and decided that I would like to be the person helping adults and children find the information or books they needed. A while later I saw an ad in the Journal Star newspaper advertising for a part-time temporary worker for the summer. The rest is history. After the temporary job ended, I applied for a permanent one at the Anderson and Bethany branches and worked there for about 9 years. I worked for one summer at Gere Branch, and filled in as needed at Arnold Heights, Belmont, and South. In 1998 I started working at Bennett Martin Public Library, downtown.

Do you have a favorite literary-related website or online resource you like to visit or that you’d like to recommend?

I subscribe to the Inspirational Fiction list that LCL provides, and also the newest Audio and DVD newsletters. [ Click here to visit the sign-up page for all of subscribable e-newsletters from the libraries’ Books, Movies & More newsletter service! ]

Are there any interesting book- or reading-related stories or bits of trivia in your past that you’d like to share with our readers?

When the grandsons were younger they would choose a book to read and I’d read the same book. When we finished, we’d get together and discuss it. It was our own mini-summer-reading program. Fantasy was not my favorite genre, but I learned to appreciate the author’s imagination. It’s a great way to relate to your grandkids and have a fun conversation. At the end of summer we’d go out for lunch and a movie to celebrate.

alanterninherhandand finally…

If there was only one author you could convince people to read, that author would be:

Nebraska author Bess Streeter Aldrich!

Read Dorene’s Reviews

Posted to the BookGuide site in October 2013 | Last updated in March 2016