What is the best way to get to know a librarian?  By getting them to dish about books, of course!  Each month, we will introduce you to one of the librarians of Chelmsford Public Library.  This month, we talked to Laura Judge, one of our Reference Librarians.

Besides working in public libraries, Laura has also been a research assistant at Harvard, a lecturer at Keene State College, a teacher, an audio-visual archivist, and has spent time on the lecture circuit in Hungary. Her areas of interest include postcolonial studies, transformative justice, and experimental cinema. She loves gardening, cooking vegan food, skateboarding, and hanging out with her dog. She mostly reads literary fiction, poetry and essay collections, and prioritizes #ownvoices narratives. She’ll play any board game, try any vegetable, dance to any music, and happily answer any questions you may have!

We asked Laura…

What was your first library?

“My first library was Concord Public Library in Concord, NH, which I frequented as a child, but the first libraries I fell in love with were the Mason Library and the Film Library at Keene State College where I earned my undergrad degree.”

What is on your nightstand right now?

Written on the Body by Jeanette Winterson

I Hope We Choose Love: A Trans Girl’s Notes from the End of the World by Kai Cheng Thom

Cannonball by Kelsey Wroten

What book do you love to suggest to patrons?

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Who are your top five favorite authors?

Claudia Rankine, Mariko Tamaki, Sally Rooney, Octavia Butler, and Carmen Maria Machado

What is your favorite line from a book?

“Love doesn’t just sit there, like a stone, it has to be made, like bread; remade all the time, made new.”

—The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin

Where is your favorite place to read?

“On my porch in the early afternoon sun surrounded by my plants and with my dog by my side.”

What book would you most like to read again for the first time? 

Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman

Why do you love being a librarian?

“Because I love helping connect people with the information, resources, programs, and support they are looking for. I have always understood libraries as safe community spaces that can re-imagine equity and access, so being able to work towards that daily as a librarian is incredible. Plus, I get to learn so much from the reference questions that we get asked at the desk!”