Chat with MLC: Charlie Simpkins

Hello! I’m Charlie Simpkins. I’m the Special Collections Coordinator for the Mississippi Library Commission (MLC). My love for libraries started well before I started working at MLC in 2018. My grandmother lived with my family when I was a child, and I remember our almost-weekly routine. We regularly took her to the local library for her to return at least a bag full of books and to pick up even more. She used a cane, and then a walker, to get around, so I stayed with her while she browsed, helped her get the books from the shelves, and carried them wherever she needed. (I vividly remember spending a lot of time in the Danielle Steele section.) She read throughout the day and way into the night. She once told me how, when her school library finally got a copy of Gone with the Wind, there was a long waitlist. When it was her turn to check it out, she finished the book in a single day, having stayed up all night reading to do so. She didn’t want others on the list to have to wait longer than necessary. Having her as a grandmother and reading role model had a huge impact on me. For example, when I was in elementary school, my teachers had to regularly tell me to go play at recess instead of reading. 

My journey toward librarianship really started taking shape in college where I was a student worker at the campus library. I enjoyed learning the basics of how libraries work and all the services they can offer. Getting to help people daily was very rewarding. I took a five-year detour after college when I worked as an elementary school teacher. Helping kids learn essential skills was incredibly rewarding. If you’ve ever seen a kid have an “Aha!” moment, a moment when something they’ve been struggling to understand finally “clicks”, you know how delightful that can be.  

While I enjoyed teaching, librarianship was still calling my name. In 2015, I left the classroom and started working in a public library. I worked in multiple areas: in reference, helping answer questions on a wide range of subjects; in circulation helping with checking out, checking in, and shelving items; and in programming, planning events that would appeal to different age groups, like Trivia Night at a local restaurant, Movie Days at the library, and Story Times. I was even a branch manager, where I learned about collection development, budgeting, and other aspects of running a library.  

During the three years I worked in public libraries, I enjoyed learning how libraries work and how important they are to their communities. In 2018, I learned about MLC and was fascinated. They even had a job opening that seemed perfect for me: Special Collections Coordinator. It was a hard choice to leave public libraries, because I absolutely loved getting to watch the community grow and figure out how the library could help and support that growth. I made the choice to join MLC, though, because I wanted my work to have an impact with people throughout the state. I believe I’ve found that here.

As the Special Collections Coordinator, I help librarians across Mississippi with their programs. They can check out items from MLC’s Special Collections to aid in what they want to do. If they are interested in starting a book club, we have book club kits. If they are interested in crafting, we have crochet kits, knitting kits, sewing machines, and more. If they need games for a big event, we have oversized games, card games, board games, and more. If they want to do something we don't have, I look at how to make that possible. I love talking to librarians about what they are planning and trying to figure out how we can help.  

Even after working in librarianship for almost ten years, I’m still amazed at how libraries serve as a major foundation for lifelong learning. Infants at “Baby and Me” learn foundational skill to prepare them for school. Primary, secondary, and higher education students access resources to help with their coursework. Adults and seniors participate in book clubs, classes on local interests, and even “cooking clubs”. Libraries are there to support these needs, and more. I haven't found the words yet to express how much I love librarianship, but I can say that I am proud to be a part of libraries and the essential services they provide to communities. 

Charlie Simpkins
Special Collections Coordinator

Read with MLC: Read a Book with a Woman on the Cover

Welcome to March and the third month of the 2025 Read with MLC Reading Challenge! This month's goal is to read a book with a woman on the cover. This not-so-subtle nod to Women's History Month should have you examining the covers of the books you are reading just as closely as you do their insides. In The Clothing of Books, Jhumpa Lahiri says “The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that a cover is a sort of translation, that is, an interpretation of my words in another language -- a visual one. It represents the text, but isn't part of it. It can't be too literal. It has to have its own take on the book." How does your chosen book portray the women pictured? Does it meet the expectations you formed once you read the book or does the cover seem to follow a book cover trend that does little to show off the story it surrounds, like the women looking away phenomenon. It’s so much of a trope that we even created this test to see if our followers could spot a fake.

 

Our staff had some fun suggesting their own books with women on the cover, either ones they plan to read or ones they've already enjoyed. Catch their suggestions after the jump!

Chat with MLC: Lawrence Smith

Hello, I'm Lawrence Smith, the Collection Management Director at the Mississippi Library Commission. I began working at MLC in 1996. My wife and I moved back to Mississippi after living in Nashville for five years to be closer to her mom. I have a degree in Criminal Justice from Mississippi Delta Community College, but I was a CNA up there. The pay for the same job in Mississippi paid half what I'd made in Tennessee, so I decided to try something new. I took the state exam for a postal clerk (I thought it was a federal exam!) and I did really well. I interviewed at both MLC and the Mississippi Department of Health on the same day. MLC called me back before I even made it back home to Yazoo City, so I accepted.

Learn to Love You

As February rolls in, the world is already gearing up for Valentine's Day, a holiday that's all about celebrating romantic love. But what if we shifted our focus just a little and made this month about something just as important--self-love and self-care?

Read with MLC: By or About Someone You Admire

Welcome to February and the second month of the 2025 Read with MLC Reading Challenge! This month's goal is to read a book by or about someone you admire. The book industry produces an astounding number of biographies and memoirs each year. According to the Library and Book Trade Almanac, there were 4,887 biographies published in the first year of this millennium. Just over 20 years later, in 2022, that number remained just as high, at 4,949. Why do we enjoy reading about other people so much? A quote often misattributed to C.S.Lewis says that "we read to know we are not alone". Even though the quote comes from screenwriter William Nicholson instead of Lewis, it still rings true. Biographies and memoirs humanize the people we admire, showing us their foibles and faults as well as their heady accomplishments. They show that we are all out here in the world, living our lives and doing our best. Which biographies and memoirs have staff members of the Mississippi Library Commission enjoyed? Scroll down to find out!

Chat with MLC: Zach Burton

Hello, I’m Zach Burton, the current Cataloging Librarian for the Mississippi Library Commission. I began working with MLC in the fall of 2022 as the Patron Access Coordinator for the Talking Books Services department after working as an archaeologist for a few years. My bachelor’s degree in Anthropology led me into archaeological work, but I found myself dissatisfied with the field and was soon enrolled in a master’s program for Library and Information Sciences at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Read with MLC: A Year in the Title

Happy New Year, everyone!

We're excited to start another year of reading packed to the brim with both learning and fun. We've come up with a brand-new year of reading prompts designed to help you step out of your comfort zone and find something new, all while celebrating the joy of reading with our Read with MLC 2025 Reading Challenge.