Friday, June 15, 2007

McKinley Park #67, 6/15/07

Well, Dave's away this weekend so I'm all alone...I guess I'll just putter around and await the inevitable - wait, what was I talking about? Libraries? All right, I guess so...I went to another one today, that's the scoop. Yeah that's the hot ticket. The snazz. The big one. Ok.

So, I've been into comics lately, like way into them, more than usual. I got this sweet Jack Kirby Omnibus and I've been looking for books on the history of comics, as well as anything good I might not have heard from. I've even resorted to amazon lists, one of which turned up this trip's selection. In a surprising twist of events, nearly every library had a copy, so I found one that was a decent bike trip, but not too much of one, and came up with the McKinley Park Branch.

Branch: McKinley Park
Location: 6802 Fort Hamilton Pkwy. (at 68th St.)
Transport: bicycle
Book: Castle Waiting by Linda Medley
Date: Friday, June 15, 2007

Now this book is basically a different take on some classic fairy tales, or at least that's how it starts, but then it branches off on a story all its own. A lot of reviews for it discuss its feminist perspective, and it is noticeable, but the story is so well-written and enjoyable that it ends up feeling more like Bone (albeit much shorter) than anything else. Of course I've only read the first third so far but...it's definitely very good.

The library itself, I can honestly say (write) is one of the best branches I've been to. The neighborhood is sorta near Sunset Park, Bay Ridge, and Dyker Heights, but I guess it's technically part of Borough Park. Anyway, though I didn't go to the titular park, the library was nice enough on its own. It was renovated in the 90s, and is apparently one of the bigger branches in the system. Obviously those circulation numbers gave it more funding, because it is very well stocked, and the staff was extremely polite and helpful (guy found my book, I didn't even ask him to.)

The area - what I saw of it anyway - was very nice too. I came through Brooklyn's Chinatown to get to the library, there was a nice little strip of a park a block away from it (Leif Ericson Park and Square), and best of all a 24-hour stone diner to eat breakfast and read at. Fear not, loyal readers! The diner is in the pictures below.



Braving the street crossing



I don't know, the corner I guess?



I couldn't take a picture straight on today...



The excellent diner (at 65th St. and 7th Ave. by the way)



I love signs where there's two parts rotating at different speeds.

That's it, come back next week.

1 comment:

Ruth said...

no, you come back next week. ha.