myHamilton.ca | discover, participate, learn and grow

During Canadian Library Month this past October, customers had an opportunity to submit an online entry telling "Why I Love My Hamilton Public Library" and have a chance to dine with award-winning author Lawrence Hill. Thanks to everyone who participated for the wonderful stories and comments - it was a difficult task to select just two winning entries. 

Angela

I absolutely love My Hamilton Public Library, and the one library that I use frequently is the Westdale Library. The reason why I like this library in particular, is that the people who work at this library work very hard to see that I get the information I need. Whenever I have a question about where to find a particular book, or whether I have botched something on the computer, each person I ask is very knowledgeable and helpful, every single time. Their service is excellent. They really go the extra mile to provide me with the answers I need, and they provide these answers in a courteous, patient, and efficient manner. The people who work at this library seem very dedicated to their job and are willing to assist with any library requests, such as from where to locate a particular book, to explaining any changes that have occurred at the library. As someone who frequently relies on the library as a source of information, I am pleased to write about why I Love My Hamilton Public Library, and also to say thank you, to all the people working at the Westdale Library.

Sarita

We moved from Cambridge, UK to Ancaster mid-July 2011 without very high expectations of our local library at Ancaster. We joined in the first week of arrival and met with friendly and knowledgeable staff; people as enthusiastic about books as us, if not more. Even before we opened our own boxes, we started scouring the book shelves. We were not disappointed. The staff are the highlight of the library (finding books on anything like hamster keeping or telling us which one is the first in a trilogy). The next best thing is the online catalogue which enables one to borrow in Ancaster, anything available in other branches. We had this facility in Cambridge, UK but it is very quick and efficient here. We do not borrow too many DVDs as we prefer to read, but even then one comes across a gem like the French Organic Revolution in the DVD section. Our children read everywhere including in car journeys that last 5 minutes. With book shelves filling all available wall space at home, we needed a good library to stop having to buy books all the time. We are very grateful for HPL.