Indian Trails Public Library District — Attraction in Wheeling Township

I was donating some books in the donation box by the front door. These books held a lot of sentimental value, especially from when my kids were babies.

Suddenly, a man approached me and my daughter. He invaded my personal space, his face red with anger, and he stared at me aggressively. Without introducing himself or identifying himself as a library employee, he rudely demanded, “Did you put a piece of paper in there?”

I had no idea who this person was or what he was referring to. I wondered if he might be homeless or mentally ill.

I said, “What?”

Still glaring at me, he repeated, “Did you put a piece of paper in there?’"

Unsure of what he might do, especially with my daughter there, I squared off with him and said, “Why do you ask?”

He replied, “This is a book depository.”

I responded, “I see that. And who are you? Do you work here?”

He grunted, “Yeah.”

At this point, I was so furious with his rudeness I wasn’t going to explain anything to him.

So I replied, “Ok, fine. Then open the box and I will take all my books back,”

He said, “I cant, we’re closing.”

To which I replied, “Well then stop bitching.” And I told him he was one rude dude.

At this point he walked away. He was a white male, about 5’7” in his late 40 to early 50s, with short grey hair.

Let me tell you, everything about this man was confrontational and I wasn’t going to put up with his BS.

In addition to donating around 40 books, I also donated about five educational workbook packets, for grades 1-3, covering subjects like reading, writing, and arithmetic—each packet about 12 pages long. These were printed on heavy stock paper. I thought the library might find them useful, so I placed them in the depository. The 'paper' I’m guessing this knucklehead was referring to was a multiplication table, also printed on heavy stock. My thinking was, if the library couldn’t use these educational items, they could easily toss them in the recycling bin. How hard is that?

Listen Indian Trails Public Library—you need to hire people with customer service skills, who know how to communicate POLITELY with patrons, rather than berating a member of the community who’s simply trying to do some good. You might want to start by assuming POSITIVE INTENT from the very people who support your organization and GIVE you employment, instead of treating them horribly.

Furthermore, I read many of the other reviews and based on Karolina Bukowski's review, it sounds like, as I suspected, Indian Trails Public Library supports sick, wacko, leftist’s ideologies.

SHAME ON YOU for placing such harmful, inappropriate, evil, garbage in the CHILDREN’S section. Now I’m certain I’ll never set foot in this place again. Trust me, I will be loud and clear in telling others to avoid it as well.

Ricky roach’s post hit the nail on the head- “Ever since the pandemic, the people who work there became insane and filled with totalitarianism.”

By the way, I have also experienced this totalitarian, snobby, pretentious attitude in the Barrington Area Public Library (go figure). By the way, I've lived in much wealthier areas than Barrington (including S. Barrington), so go stuff a sock in it—you’re not all that.

I’m in agreement with Brenda Sanchez who said “Big library but most of the people working there not very friendly.”

On a positive note, however, I will give credit to where credit is due: The lady in the drive up window was very kind and helpful. She was the one that directed me to the donation box in the first place.

In conclusion: David Modlin’s post said it best, “The best thing you can do with your Indian Trails Public Library card is register it with the Mount Prospect Public Library.”

I agree. I've been there many times, and in my experience, the staff are much friendlier and understand that their main role is to serve...

UPDATED I have been going to this library for over 15 years, before the remodel, since I was a minor. Lately, in the last few years its been really taxing to try to go to the library to get work done. Each visit here always brings some kind of noise pollution and it's very upsetting to have to play librarian and tell someone to close the door to their meeting room or ask a parent to tell their screaming child to stop. A complete and total lack of decorum from the public- child or adult- how do you not understand how to behave in a library? No amount of headphones is going to cancel out the fact that you have a noise problem. Outside of helping with books, I was under the impression that a library and the librarians in it would want to actually, actively maintain a quiet space. The library is so essential in a community, so it really upsetting that the library isn't actively shushing people. If someone is talking so loudly that the entire floor can hear them... why not respectfully tell them to use an indoor voice? Why am I doing your job when I come here? Bring back the shushing library stereotype that actually allows people to do the most important thing in a library: read!

UPDATED RESPONSE: This response from the library is SOOO dissappointing and feels like AI or an automated robot wrote this. Where do you think I sit when I go... in the children's play area? No! If there's room, I am almost always sitting in the "Silent zone" The silent zone has periods of noisy people/children passing through and again, noise cancelling headphones aren't as effective as...

I recently had the pleasure of spending a day at this library as a guest member, courtesy of my Naperville library card. The check-in process was seamless, requiring just a brief form and verification of my membership status. Once inside, I found the facilities to be top-notch. I utilized a study room on the second floor for a two-hour session, which I was able to instantly reserve. When the next guest failed to arrive within the 15-minute grace period, the helpful staff at the Helpdesk assisted me in rebooking. The ambiance of the second floor was professional and conducive to productivity, with many individuals engaged in laptop work and conference calls without causing any disturbance. The study room itself was well-equipped with whiteboards, ample desks, markers, and plenty of charging and USB points. The only suggestion for improvement would be the addition of a self-service cafeteria or vending machines offering drinks such as water and coffee. Overall, a highly commendable...