The library can be a place to find books and movies, use the internet, attend programs or conduct research, but it can also fuel your wanderlust and help you find your next adventure. For Maddie and Aaron Van Cleve, Madison Public Library was the “one-stop shop” for planning their honeymoon.

Their undertaking was a massive one — they decided to visit five different countries. Wanting to thoroughly research the history, culture and geography of each place, Maddie and Aaron enlisted the help of a reference librarian at Central library to help them find travel guides and relevant media. 

Directed to a book of Neruda’s poetry, a Chilean movie on growing up during Pinochet’s coup, “Black Orpheus,” Herzog’s “Fitzcarraldo” and more, they say the abundance and variety of resources was truly astounding.

“Many of those [materials] we never would have found without the fantastic help of our reference librarian, who was able to find us tons of helpful items that we wouldn’t have even thought to search for—let alone been able to actually locate—ourselves,” Maddie says.

At the end of their weeks-long research, they had a fully planned trip with the help of library resources. Stacks upon stacks of books and movies had gone into their work.

“Only at the library could we have acquired all this, especially with very limited time and money to do so!” Maddie says.

Their trip, Maddie and Aaron say, was one for the books.

“Our trip was a dream come true — the adventure of our lives — and it was greatly enriched with the help of the librarians and materials from the Madison library!” Maddie says.