Order makes libraries run smoothly. Thanks to classification systems like the Library of Congress, we can ensure that books are on the shelves exactly where you expect them to be, in addition to being as browseable as possible.
Outside of the library shelves, however, sometimes we like to add a little bit of art to the way we organize the books. The other week, the CLP – Main Teen Poetry Workshop grabbed items from the shelves and configured their spines to make a poem.
Are You Going to Kiss Me Now?
by the Teen Poetry WorkshopUnwind
a coming evil
after midnight.
Pretty is
why I fight,
scrawl
fury
of sound mind.
Don’t shoot!
Bait–
shift–
bloom–
and then things fall apart.The farther you run–
trapped
in the forests of the night,
the dark
total chaos
traces
mist
after
something happened.Then
without warning:
deadly
looks
crazy
lies,
flawless
chaos–
everything I was.Listen!
The singing
behind the curtain–
going, going–
out of shadows
into the dark.
While I guess we could have assigned stanza and line numbers to the catalog, a volunteer did put them back on the shelves. But if you happen to create art out of the chaos–or out of the order–of your own bookshelves, why not take a picture and post it in the comments?
~Joseph
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Main
Filed under: CLP - Main, Poetry, Teen Interest
