It's a cliché because it's true.

It's easy to conjure up the mental image of college students at a library - students poring over piles of textbooks, sitting cross-legged in the stacks, slumped and snoozing in armchairs. During college, that was me too - only I wasn't in the school library, I was in the public library, and the book I was engrossed in probably had nothing to do with my scholastic pursuits.

Welcome to the life of a library geek. I'm Joobie and I'll be your guide.

As y'all know, I went to college at UC Berkeley. During my first couple years of college, the main branch of the Berkeley Public Library was under renovation, so I went to the North Berkeley branch instead. Though smaller, it was equidistant to my house and in fact closer to my work. (Believe it or not, proximity to the library has always been one of the first few things I check when considering the move to a new apartment. Walking distance is a major plus.) I went to the library a lot during my sophomore and junior years, and even more during my senior year.

Happily, it was during my senior year that renovations to the main branch on Kittredge were finally completed. Viewing the exterior of the main branch, you can't really understand how great it is inside. The children's area is bright and welcoming. There's ample space throughout to spread out and study. There are all sorts of nooks to drag a chair into and settle down with a good read. The place is spacious, full of windows, and well organized. In short, it's awesome.

To me, libraries have always felt like a good place to unclutter the mind for a spell. But they're also like quicksand - oh so hard to drag myself out. Last weekend I went by intending just to return a book, and here's what I came out with:

Three Junes - Julia Glass
This has been on my "to-read" list for years, literally. I'm halfway through it! (The book, not the list. That is waaaaaay too long.)

Behind the Scenes at the Museum - Kate Atkinson
Another one from the list.

The Namesake - Jhumpa Lahiri
I heart Kal Penn, AKA Kumar. He'll be in the movie version of this book soon enough.

Love Monkey - Kyle Smith
On the first, now-disintegrating page of the list. They made a show out of this, but it was cancelled, so it looks like I'll be reading the book and just picturing Tom Cavanaugh instead.

My Boyfriend's Back - Donna Hanover
Reading so I can dish with Grandma. Hi Irene!

Fargo Rock City - Chuck Klosterman
Reading so I can dish with China, my mom's coworker.

Brief Interviews with Hideous Men - David Foster Wallace
Reading so I can dish with Jim from The Office...in my dreams.

All that, plus one (ahem) romance novel and 2 Clive Cussler books for Josh. (Man, is Josh hooked on those Dirk Pitt books! I read them back when I was a middle-schooler and remembered them being fun. After figuring out Josh's taste a bit, I brought one home for him and he devoured it. He's been addicted ever since. Cute!)

What else should I be reading?