Lina Burklin is the recipient of the 2025 Martha Wong Scholarship, awarded by the Texas Library and Archives Foundation. This new scholarship opportunity supports students enrolled in a Texas library/information science or school library certification program with a reimbursable grant of $2,000 for tuition and/or textbooks. Burklin is currently working as the cataloguer at the Judy B. McDonald Public Library in Nacogdoches while earning her Master of Library Science degree from Texas Woman’s University. We enjoyed getting to know her and think you will, too.
Q: Congratulations on winning the Wong Scholarship! What does winning this scholarship mean to you?
A: I was surprised and just so honored that my application was chosen. I mean, I know there are many wonderful people pursuing library science degrees in Texas right now. It’s been a big encouragement, since I’m making a career shift from teaching into library science. And it’s helping me see that I’m in the right place, that I’m making a difference where I am, and it’s encouraging to have that recognized.
Q: What inspired you to become a librarian?
A: I’ve been a lifelong avid reader, ever since I can remember. As a teacher, I’ve always loved teaching literature and creative writing. It was time to do something new with my career [Burklin taught middle school for 14 years], and I was looking for something where I’d still be helping people, working with people, and educating. And there’s a whole lot of that in library science. And my grandmother was also a librarian.
Q: Tell me about your experiences working in a public library.
A: I love that you just never know what’s going to happen from day to day. I’ve done a little bit of everything, including shelving, book repair, book processing. Right now, I’m a cataloger, so I’m doing logging and processing. I’m also selecting some books, which is fun. I’ve been asked to do things from proofreading people’s resumes to tech support where people hand me their phone and ask me to make it work. People ask for book recommendations. I did have somebody come in and ask me to get him a divorce, and I had to explain I couldn’t do that, that’s not a service we provide [laughs]. I did help him go to texaslawhelp.org, to help him with the process. It’s just so many things, but it’s great. And I have some of the best coworkers.
We tend to think of libraries as connecting people with information, which of course they do, but we also do a lot of connecting people with resources. People who need help and they don’t even know where to start, will come to us.
Lina Burklin
Q: In your MLS studies at Texas Woman’s University, is there a favorite class or professor you’d like to mention? What has been the most rewarding part about your studies?
A: This is my third semester. [The MLS degree program at Texas Woman’s University is available entirely online.] And in my first semester, I took Dr. Aaron Elkins’ Foundations of Library Studies. And it was just so phenomenal. I feel like I learned so much from that intro course. And one of the things he does that I love is a weekly Zoom call with the class. And initially I was like, “Oh this is going to be so annoying.” But it became one of my favorite things. We’d get a chance to interact with him and with each other. He would lecture, and then we would break into small groups and get to talk with people. Just to talk to other people was huge.
Q: Who are three of your favorite authors (living or dead)?
A: Well, I was glad you asked for three and not just one, because that’s such a hard question. And even three, I had to really think about it. Brandon Sanderson (the Mistborn series and The Stormlight Archive) is one of my favorite authors, I love science fiction and fantasy. Rosemary Sutcliff (The Eagle of the Ninth) is a British author of historical fiction who has spoiled me for most other historical fiction. And J.R.R. Tolkien (The Lord of the Rings). The stories are just so, so powerful.
Q: What is a Texas book (by a Texan, or set in Texas, or both) that you’d recommend to our readers, and why?
A: I read very widely, and not specifically geographically, but I think I’d have to come back to Holes, by Louis Sachar. As a teacher, it was one of my favorite books to teach. And I loved it because my kids, for the first two sessions, were like, “This book is dumb, why are we doing this?” But then by the second or third time, they’d be like, “Don’t stop reading!” Because they were so into the story. I love the complexity of the story; I love that it’s about friendship, and the about the power of choices. What we do matters.
Q: In your scholarship application, you wrote very eloquently about the importance of libraries to a community. Could you share some of your answer with us here today?
A: Once I started working in libraries, I realized just how vital they were as a way of connecting people. We tend to think of libraries as connecting people with information, which of course they do, but we also do a lot of connecting people with resources. People who need help and they don’t even know where to start, will come to us. We share with them: here are organizations that can help you locally, these are places you can go. And libraries are also a way to connect with community, for example through our various programs. People meet at a library program who might not meet anywhere else, and find out they have common interests.
And in our culture, there’s just not a lot of places you can just go and be and you are not expected to buy something. And I also realize for a lot of our patrons, we’re the first people who have listened to them that day, it’s obvious. To get a chance to work with people who might not have anywhere else to go—I wish we could do more. Sometimes they just need to talk and have someone listen, and it’s such a privilege to be able to provide that.
Q: Where do you picture yourself five years from now?
A: I don’t have a specific place in mind, so much, but obviously I want to stay in public libraries. I’ve just really fallen in love with what we offer at public libraries and what we do. I’d like to gain some experience with reference work, but I hope I’m still cataloging in five years.
Q: Do you have a favorite genre you like to read and why?
A: I enjoy science fiction and fantasy for many reasons. I think the question “What if?” is so profound. What if this was the way the world worked? What if you could live on another planet, or what if magic was just part of the laws of science? Fiction gives you a way to see situations from a new perspective.
Q: What’s the first book you ever loved?
A: It’s a series: C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia. My mom read those out loud to use when we were kids. I just love that world so much. I always hoped that somehow, I’d open a cupboard and be able to slip into Narnia myself.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.