Jennah Nahhas (’24): Alexandria Quarantined

Each slot of thought reeks of rot,
My brain of bounded books.
They cordoned off my turquoise veins
But down my brow still looks

On students hiding from the rain,
On squirrels traversing concrete plains.

And as a hen her heavy wings
Protects her smallest young,
So too I my concrete shade
Provide to children flung

Outside my lettered marrow,
Beyond my buzzing thoughts.…

Famous Libraries: The Vatican Library

The Vatican Library, located inside the Vatican Palace in Rome, Italy, is among the oldest libraries in the world. In fact, it’s so old that its history is divided into five periods: the Pre-Lateran, Lateran, Avignon, Pre-Vatican, and Vatican period. All of the periods span over nearly 600 years.  When the Vatican Library first opened in 1448, it held over 3,500 works of literature, which made it the most extensive library in the Western world to date. 

Famous Libraries: The Wren Library

When you picture a library in your mind, what is the first thing you see? It might be rows and rows of books, comfy chairs to curl up in, or amazing architecture. The beautiful thing about libraries is that wherever they are in the world or whenever they were constructed, each has a story to tell, whether through the books they house or the artwork within their walls.

Library Love: Nora Domino (’24)

To understand where my love of libraries comes from, you have to understand my nightly bedtime ritual as a child. Since I was a toddler, the importance of literature was imparted to me by my parents. My dad’s mission was to read to me every night before bed. This was a tall order because I would set a sizable stack of picture books on my bedside table for him to read to me.

A Bite-Sized Conclusion

Staying true to the podcast’s theme and name, my bite-sized podcast ends with some reflections about the podcast’s journey and thoughts on this internship as a whole. Content creation is a special challenge in itself. Creating something new each week was an interesting process to go through– some parts were enjoyable, while other parts were a drag.…