Though Dawn McGinnis and Tim Leathem work on opposite sides of the state line and their 39th Street work places are decidedly different, they share similarities: a reverence for old books and a passion for research.

McGinnis is the rare book librarian at KU Medical Center’s Clendening History of Medicine Library. Will Leathem is co-owner of Prospero’s Used Books on the northwest corner of Bell and 39th Street.

For McGinnis, historical publications are part of her everyday life. Whether the visitor to the Clendening library is a medical student or a staff member, an area high school senior working on a paper or a visiting scholar from Germany, McGinnis eagerly helps them find what they need.

What they find at the Clendening library, considered among the nation’s leading history of medicine libraries, is a treasure trove. The library’s virtual card catalog contains more than 24,000 volumes and periodicals related to the history of medicine, many in that rarified classification known as incunabula, meaning they were published prior to 1501. Among the collection are correspondence and books on nursing written by Florence Nightingale.

Will Leathem at Prospero’s says he sees a fair share of visitors from KU Medical Center. In fact, says Leathem, “The Medical Center helps keep 39th Street alive and thriving. Because of KU, people come to this area from all over the world.”

I recently visited with Will, who was just starting an evening shift at the quaint bookstore. Once an historic hardware store filled with tools, nails and paint supplies, its walls are now lined with floor-toceiling bookshelves. Rolling library ladders help customers access its more than 50,000 used books.

“What do visitors come looking for?” I ask, wondering whether the draw was the shop’s used hardcovers and paperbacks or its growing reputation as a center for writers, artists and musicians.

“They really come in for a wide variety of things,” Leathem says. “Sometimes medical students are looking for old textbooks or a volume on anatomy. Or we’ll get professors in here who are history buffs or staff looking for light reading.”

“One thing that gets lots of use is our outdoor used, free book bin,” he adds, pointing to the permanent wooden bookstall under the store’s colorful awning. “Occasionally, late at night, family members who’ve been in a waiting room all day will wander over and browse through the books. Sometimes they’ll take one to pass the time. Invariably they come by a day or so later to thank us and return the book. We’re glad we’re helping in some way.”

Dawn McGinnis loves to poke around old bookstores when she’s on vacation and has more time. “You never know what you’ll find,” she says.

While McGinnis and Leathem are about helping others find books, both agree they’ve found job nirvana. “This is as good as it gets,” says Leathem about his work at Prospero’s. “I feel like the luckiest person in the world,” concurs McGinnis. “Being the Clendening rare books librarian is the dream job of a lifetime.”