Amanda Reynolds Cooper, Library Director
I have only ever worked in libraries, starting when I was 16 years old. The settings have been varied – college libraries, a government library, and public libraries – but never a day outside of this field.
I have worked at Lane Memorial Library for a million years and have no spare time. Just kidding. I was lucky to be hired as the Director in 2008 and am planning to break my father-in-law’s record and work for the Town of Hampton for more than his 32 years.
I am lucky again to have made a family with an amazing son of Exeter and spend my “spare time” parenting, caring for our historic home in the Exeter historical district, and occasionally reading.
I generally don’t like popular books and would be happy to discuss how poor an offering The da Vinci code by Dan Brown or The girl on the train by Paula Hawkins are. I read a lot of teen and juvenile fiction. I find the characters more relatable and the plots more compelling. Recently read greats include: Darius the Great is not okay by Adib Khorram and Frankly in love by David Yoon. I love audio books! I love being read to and the performances on many audio recordings of books are amazing, adding a layer of interpretation on top of the words on the page. Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s performance of her work, World of wonders is outstanding.
Stacy Mazur, Assistant Director, Marketing & Events Librarian
I’ve been at the Lane Library and in the Seacoast region for about the same amount of time. After 14 years, I am more in love with the ocean and mountains of New England than ever before. My appreciation and deeper commitment to the natural world has grown in that time, as I learn more about New Hampshire through my volunteer work with USFWS at the Great Bay National Wildlife Refuge and as a NH Covert. I love to hike, run, kayak and be outside exploring nature in the woods or a garden. If one book were to embody my love of the natural world, it would be The Overstory by Richard Powers.
In my downtime I love to read and listen to audio books. I read romance, science fiction, and fantasy. Some of my favorite authors are Neil Gaiman, Nnedi Okorafor, N.K. Jemison, Terry Pratchett, Carol Berg, Tad Williams, Libba Bray, Elizabeth Bear, Emma Bull, Patricia A. McKillip, Anne McCaffrey, James S. A. Corey, and Sharon Shinn. Oddly enough for audiobooks I listen to mystery and suspense, with lots of cozy Maine based whodunits. Sign me up for the latest Paul Dorian.
I’ve worn many hats at Lane Library. Moving from cataloging books, to managing the teen department, to my present role of Assistant Director and managing events and marketing for our library. I want to be sure we’re offering engaging and inspiring events at our library that our community will love. Please reach out any time with a suggestion.
Paulina Shadowens, Community Experience Librarian
Favorite Thing:
Oh, so many!
I am passionate about literature (no surprise there! =), history, art, interior design, fashion history, organic living, animals, architecture, music, and movies.
Travel.
I’ve lived in Puerto Rico, have traveled a bit in Europe (UK, France, and Iceland), and enjoyed day jaunts to Mexico and Canada, but am itching to do lots more traveling.
I’m a “language magpie” and enjoy collecting words from countries all over the world. If you need someone to count to four in Finnish or ask how you are in Welsh, I’m your girl.
Reading Interest:
I’m an omnivorous reader with a special place in my heart for children’s classics such as The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Little Women, Johnny Tremain, the Prydain series, and A Wrinkle in Time. I am in awe of illustrators NC Wyeth and Trina Schart Hyman.
I love the wit and wisdom of Jane Austen, GK Chesterton, and CS Lewis.
Nathaniel Philbrick, Jon Krakauer, and Bill Bryson are 3 of my favorite non-fiction authors. I was also impressed by Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales, which examines why some survive catastrophes and others don’t. Audiobooks are my constant car companion. Jim Dale and Frank Muller are two of the best narrators going—listening to them is like hearing an entire—and amazing--acting company.
Kevin Robbitts-Terry, Systems Librarian
Favorite things:
I like all sorts of stuff; some of my hobbies include reading (semi-stereotypically), racquetball (and most racquet sports), frisbee, disc golf, board games, card games, cooking, etc.
I enjoy TV/movies but I am extremely bad at pursuing them as a hobby.
Reading interests:
Generally fiction. I read mainly speculative fiction (GRRM, Robin Hobb, Joe Abercrombie, Diana Wynne Jones, Ursula Le Guin, many others) with a slight bias towards fantasy.
I also enjoy many graphic novels (Walking Dead, etc.) and some manga. In terms of more normal fiction, I am fond of stuff by Alexandre Dumas, Cormac McCarthy, Gaiman, Ishiguro .. and many others.
Jennifer Richards, Cataloging Librarian
Favorite things:
Books. I was an avid reader growing up and an English major in college, so becoming a librarian was a natural progression for me!
Animals, especially dogs.
Baseball, in particular the Phillies, though the Red Sox are growing on me after two years of living in Boston.
My home state of Maryland.
Reading interests:
I mostly read science fiction and fantasy. Some of my favorites are Diana Wynne Jones, Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, Margaret Atwood, Tamora Pierce, J.K. Rowling, Diane Duane, Victoria Schwab, and Seanan McGuire.
I also enjoy the occasional romance novel, especially historical romances by Courtney Milan, Rose Lerner, and Tessa Dare.
I fell in love with Jane Austen in high school and she remains one of my favorite authors to this day.
Kathleen Hall, Acquisitions Librarian
I’ve been working at the Lane Memorial Library for 11 years. My hobbies include making art through various media, gardening, and of course, reading. I love the outdoors, birdwatching, and wildlife tracking, therefore my favorite books to read are about nature and the environment. I’m from New Hampshire so I was bound to like working in any public library in the state, but the Lane Memorial Library is active and progressive and is utilized by some very lovely members of the Hampton community – and beyond. I’m glad I found my way here!
Wendy Rega, Collection Maintenance Librarian
Favorite things:
Kids (It’s not an accident I work in the Children’s Room!), books, renovating my house with my husband, traveling, Liverpool Football, cooking and baking.
Reading interests:
Romance (Eloisa James, Nora Roberts, Lisa Kleypas, Susan Elizabeth Phillips); Urban Fantasy (Karen Marie Moning, Ilona Andrews, Patricia Briggs, Jim Butcher); Fantasy (Deborah Harkness, Diana Gabaldon); Action/Crime (Lee Child, John Sandford, Janet Evanovich, J.D. Robb); Kids (J.K. Rowling, Rick Riordan, Jeanne Birdsall, Laura Ingalls Wilder)
Sharon Svirsky, Patron Services Assistant Librarian
Favorite things:
Spending time with my son and family, especially with my two beautiful granddaughters. Also my granddoggie, Sawyer.
Animal and nature lover.
Enjoy traveling, which may have been developed by growing up in the Air Force, and have lived in Germany and Labrador. (Mention travel and I say where? when?).
Getting together with friends for dinner, a movie, a play, walk/hike, to play a game, or just for coffee and chat.
Love spending time at the beach by sitting with a good book and looking out over the ocean.
Reading interests:
Having always loved to read and having been a former teacher, working in a library is perfect for me. When I'm not reading children's books to my granddaughters, I enjoy reading mostly fiction. A variety of historical fiction, mysteries, thrillers, and an occasional romance. Audio books go along with me when taking road trips. (ex. Stephen King, Liane Moriarty, Jeannette Walls, Jodi Piccoult, Karin Slaughter)
Liz Premo, Patron Services Assistant Librarian
Favorite things:
My absolute top favorites are my wonderful family, my great friends, my awesome church, my super co-workers, and my terrific jobs – I love them all. I also love live theatre, going to great restaurants, listening to all kinds of music, appreciating fine art, crafting and creating (especially for the Children’s Room), and computing.
I love my Hampton home! I am an original New Englander, and growing up as a Navy brat I have lived on both coasts as well as in Hawai’i. After all those years of traveling from state to state, it was nice to finally become “grounded.” My husband and I chose to settle in Hampton more than 30 years ago because we both love the town and because we felt it would be a great place to raise our family. We were right!
Reading interests:
Among my absolute all-time favorite books are the Holy Bible, "Champagne for the Soul: Celebrating God's Gift of Joy," "The Message," "Little Women," "The Hiding Place," "Diary of Anne Frank," "Charlotte's Web," "Beautiful Joe: A Dog's Own Story," Nancy Drew mysteries, and many others. My favorite writers include C.S. Lewis, William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ray Bradbury, Colleen McCullough, et al. I especially love short story collections, craft and needle art books, and big, colorful photographic coffee table books. I have also been known to read the dictionary and assorted reference books just for fun.
As a member of the Children’s Room staff, I have enjoyed “catching up” on all kinds of current titles, mainly so I can better serve our youngest patrons. Among my favorites: “Wonder,” “Counting by Sevens,” “A Wrinkle in Time,” “Punk Farm,” and many more to come!
Mikki Phillips, Patron Services Assistant Librarian
Brenda Kohl, Patron Services Assistant Librarian
Joan Maloney, Patron Services Assistant Librarian
I have been working at the library for almost 5 years. I started as a volunteer and enjoyed it so much that when a position opened up I grabbed the opportunity! Some of my favorite things to do are spending time with my family and our two dogs. We love to travel together and believe anywhere we are together is home. I like to run, cook, sew, travel, and of course, read! My favorite books are science, history, mysteries, and historical fiction. My favorite authors are Erik Larson and Sam Kean, writers of my two favorite books, Devil in the White City and the Disappearing Spoon. I am so lucky to work at our amazing library with wonderful co-workers and have the opportunity to meet great people and contribute to the Hampton community.
Jenne Demac, Patron Services Assistant Librarian
I'm new to the library having worked previously as a recruiter and a public relations professional. I've always worked helping people and client teams, so naturally I love being of assistance to our Patrons!
My grandmother taught me to read when I was 3 years old and I haven't put down a book since. I am a trivia and pop culture junkie so I'm intrigued by all types of books, stories, and articles. A world of suspense and mystery is a fun escape for me. Some of my favorites are Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier, The Secret History by Donna Tartt, Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns, and any Eloise story by Kay Thompson.
In my free time I love to cook, listen to music, and spend a day at the beach. I'm grateful to live on Hampton Beach with my husband and cat.
Carol Menard, Patron Services Assistant Librarian
Photo Pending
Library Pages
Kierra Martin-Biggs
Jesse Ball
Morgan Jackman