Oh, how I miss Buffy the Vampire Slayer. There was just one horribly unrealistic thing about the show, and I’m not talking about the weekly demon infestations or the likelihood that someone who looked like Sarah Michelle Gellar would be a high school outcast.

Rather, I’m talking about the Sunnydale library. It was, like, totally dead.

By contrast, the teen library scene in real life is kind of amazing. There are, of course, still librarians who treat teens like giant children in need of aggressive shushing and a long list of rules. But they’re in the minority, it seems.

Librarians who specialize in serving teenagers today have blogs; they set up advisory boards that give teenagers a say in what the library buys; and they design programs that meet teen-specific needs, whether for music downloads or SAT practice tests. Here’s a sampling of what teenagers can find in a good public library, in addition to books written specifically for kids their age:

* DVDs of new movies and popular TV shows.
* Current music.
* Free Internet access.
* Magazines.
* Free online homework help after school.
* SAT and GRE workshops and online access to practice tests.
* Special teen programs featuring such things as jewelry making, book clubs, and poetry slams.

What’s more, many libraries have people who specialize in stuff just for teens. New Jersey library branch manager Liz Burns happens to be an expert in books for teenagers. (I’ve read her posts about teen books, and she has great taste.)

You can tell Liz, "I love Sarah Dessen but I’ve read all her books; what can I read next?" She’ll be able to dish up ten books you might like to read next.

Another really nice thing about librarians is that they can help answer questions without getting all judgmental about it. Jessamyn West told me she’d recently answered teens’ questions about witchcraft, Sweet Valley High, and skateboarding regulations, among other things.

I can testify to the nonjudgmental nature of librarians.

When I was considering writing a book about how to find a husband, I checked out the competition, some of which was really embarrassing (The Surrendered Wife? Smack me with a wet apron string.) And yet, there I was, with my stack of man-hunting texts and two small children in tow, feeling as though I had some explaining to do.

I sputtered a bit how it was just research—not for me, well, for me, but not for me—when the librarian simply put his hand up and said, "We never judge what a reader takes home. We don’t even look at it."

This might even be the most important thing for teenagers at the library: someone to help them find what they’re seeking, someone to point them toward books, music, movies, and other things that can help them understand themselves better, without all the baggage that can come when parents and teachers know all their secrets.

It’s like a vampire slayer’s watcher, only better: They don’t expect you to practice your martial arts or kill monsters when you could be safe at home, watching the Buffy DVDs you just checked out at the library.