In praise of libraries

For some reason, it often takes people by surprise to find that I am an amusing public speaker. Deliberately amusing, that is, not laughable. But I’ve been speaking to groups for a long time, since long before I became a writer, and I am very comfortable manipulating the attention of fifty or five hundred people.

I am enough of an amateur, however, to find that beginning with a large and enthusiastic group makes the process easier: the more crowded the room, the greater the chance the evening will sparkle.

Last night at the Royal Oak library, the SRO crowd led us straight into a great time. At least, I had a great time, and if the crowd was unhappy, their laughter hid it very well.

Of course, it was helped by having come from a festive dinner with a glass of very nice wheat beer, attended by librarians (led by Royal Oak organizer Rosemary), John Lamb as the representative male (he’s a singer and directs a writing retreat, which would like to have me come), and four (or was it five?) sets of mother-daughter Friends of Russell, including Nikki and Caitlin, who had driven from West Virginia for the chance to play with Laurie.

Thank you, Metro Detroit libraries, for three days of fun and ego-building. May your Dewey Decimal system never fail, may your patrons remain always polite, and may all your books come back to roost.