Stories

I would be delighted to share my library story with you. At present, I'm waiting to hear if my book, "Ladies Don't Do That: Memoir of an Olympian" (Friesen Press, 1953) will be accepted into the Ottawa Public Library collection. In addition to describing my life of an athlete competing internationally in the nineteen fifties, I talk about important people, places and experiences that were influential in my life. The following excerpt from my memoir tells about one of these (Part I, Chapter 1).

"We never had many books in our house. One day, when I was six or seven, I caught sight of two friends coming up the street with books in their arms. I dashed over and demanded, "Where did you get those books?" They replied, "from the library" "What's that?" I wanted to know." They explained that it was a place where you could get books but you had to take them back. I rushed home to tell my mother about this wonderful place and asked if we could go there. She replied, "Of course", and took me to the library at the foot of our street, St. Clements Ave. at the corner of Yonge St. (Toronto). It was small, compared to many of the libraries I have known since, but to me at that time it encompassed the world and was the beginning of a lifelong love affair with libraries and librarians. It was open every day and evening, including Sundays. Of course today, with the Internet, I don't go to the library to look many things up. However, (at 92) I am a member of a book club and still love reading and make many visits to and from my local Ottawa Public Library (Cote St.) "