Molly Young

On the trolley, I thought of ocean waves cresting and crystalline droplets wending down stalactites. This interpretation may have been flavored by the nation's abundance of water features, lakes, rivers, sea, or perhaps the language itself had somehow been flavored by the water features.

On the trolley, I thought of ocean waves cresting and crystalline droplets wending down stalactites. This interpretation may have been flavored by the nation's abundance of water features, lakes, rivers, sea, or perhaps the language itself had somehow been flavored by the water features.

Or the association might have owed to Finnish intonation patterns, which cascade from high to low pitch over the course of a sentence. Because the stress is always on a word's first syllable, the language also has a cozy regularity, like a horse clopping down a road. I got off at the city center and walked to Helsinki's main library, which looks like a ship made of carrot cake. It is called ODI.

Or the association might have owed to Finnish intonation patterns, which cascade from high to low pitch over the course of a sentence. Because the stress is always on a word's first syllable, the language also has a cozy regularity, like a horse clopping down a road. I got off at the city center and walked to Helsinki's main library, which looks like a ship made of carrot cake. It is called ODI.

The name was selected from 2,600 entries in a competition held a couple years before the library opened in 2018. the jury sought a library name that was short, easy to pronounce, and not dedicated to a single person. Odie is Finnish for ode. A visitor enters through the prow of the enormous carrot cake ship and is prompted to remove her ice cleats, if she is wearing them.

The name was selected from 2,600 entries in a competition held a couple years before the library opened in 2018. the jury sought a library name that was short, easy to pronounce, and not dedicated to a single person. Odie is Finnish for ode. A visitor enters through the prow of the enormous carrot cake ship and is prompted to remove her ice cleats, if she is wearing them.

It was thronged but quiet on the morning I arrived, and the disorienting combination of visual traffic with hushedness made me feel as though I were wearing noise-canceling headphones. Hey, an employee said in greeting. Hey, I said, what is the cost of a ticket? What? Shall I buy a ticket to enter? Ha, ha, ha, the employee said. No, we don't have tickets. Ha, ha, no ticket, of course.

It was thronged but quiet on the morning I arrived, and the disorienting combination of visual traffic with hushedness made me feel as though I were wearing noise-canceling headphones. Hey, an employee said in greeting. Hey, I said, what is the cost of a ticket? What? Shall I buy a ticket to enter? Ha, ha, ha, the employee said. No, we don't have tickets. Ha, ha, no ticket, of course.

One does not need a ticket to enter a public library. The fanciness of the building had tripped some reflex to sacrifice cash, which itself caused an inner ripple of gloom. On the ground floor of the library was a cinema, a cafeteria serving beet lasagna and carrot soup, and 22 children playing games of chess at window-side tables.

One does not need a ticket to enter a public library. The fanciness of the building had tripped some reflex to sacrifice cash, which itself caused an inner ripple of gloom. On the ground floor of the library was a cinema, a cafeteria serving beet lasagna and carrot soup, and 22 children playing games of chess at window-side tables.

I escalated to the second floor, which featured a 3D printing station, a laser cutter, a large format printer, an engraving machine, conference rooms for anyone to use, and rocking chairs in which to sit and read.

I escalated to the second floor, which featured a 3D printing station, a laser cutter, a large format printer, an engraving machine, conference rooms for anyone to use, and rocking chairs in which to sit and read.

There were electric and acoustic guitars, nice ones, to borrow, as well as a drum kit and multiple zithers, a podcast studio, an electronic music studio, classrooms, a kitchen space that could be reserved for cooking with friends. All of this was enchanting, but it was a piece of signage that took my breath away.

There were electric and acoustic guitars, nice ones, to borrow, as well as a drum kit and multiple zithers, a podcast studio, an electronic music studio, classrooms, a kitchen space that could be reserved for cooking with friends. All of this was enchanting, but it was a piece of signage that took my breath away.

At home in Brooklyn, the library is papered with reminders to please keep your voice down. In contradistinction, the signs at Odie said, please let others work in peace. The two commands are almost, but meaningfully not, synonymous. The Brooklyn version is a plea for self-control. The Finnish version is a request to acknowledge the existence of other people. You see the difference.

At home in Brooklyn, the library is papered with reminders to please keep your voice down. In contradistinction, the signs at Odie said, please let others work in peace. The two commands are almost, but meaningfully not, synonymous. The Brooklyn version is a plea for self-control. The Finnish version is a request to acknowledge the existence of other people. You see the difference.

On the top floor were books, games, and sheet music from composers like Edvard Grieg and Yanni. There was a second cafe, more salmon soup, pink-domed princess cakes, and glass jars of fresh flowers at every table. Bucida bucerus trees grew indoors, sunshine pressed gently through curved glass walls. Beyond the walls stood the House of Parliament with its mighty gray facade.

On the top floor were books, games, and sheet music from composers like Edvard Grieg and Yanni. There was a second cafe, more salmon soup, pink-domed princess cakes, and glass jars of fresh flowers at every table. Bucida bucerus trees grew indoors, sunshine pressed gently through curved glass walls. Beyond the walls stood the House of Parliament with its mighty gray facade.

The Odie balcony was designed to rest at precisely the same level as the entrance to the House, to symbolize democracy and dialogue, according to a library brochure. Children in stocking feet rolled down a sloping spruce floor as though it were a grassy hill. Pause to contemplate the far-fetchedness of a public library in a major U.S. city that is clean enough for floor rolling.

The Odie balcony was designed to rest at precisely the same level as the entrance to the House, to symbolize democracy and dialogue, according to a library brochure. Children in stocking feet rolled down a sloping spruce floor as though it were a grassy hill. Pause to contemplate the far-fetchedness of a public library in a major U.S. city that is clean enough for floor rolling.