I’m going to choose my words very carefully. Because for as long as I can remember, I have loved words. Words convey meaning, and I can’t help but think that a search for meaning is what the whole human experience is about.
I didn’t think about this meaning stuff when I was eight years old in the summertime, riding a bus back from downtown at my grandma’s side. She always bought me at least two books when we would go to the bookstore downtown – one for the bus, one for the evening, and then we would go to the library to check out more books the next day. I would hear her brag to friends on the phone that I’d finished one of the paperbacks before the bus reached home. I would feel proud.
I devoured books as a kid, and I write this so you know that I am biased. I am a reader, and I’ve been a reader ever since I was a kid. I got more Personal Pan Pizzas than any other kid in school when we did the Book It program. My best friend and I created a “library” that lined the shelves in her bedroom, inventing policies for the other kids in the neighborhood to borrow our paperbacks. Books got me through long car rides, angsty middle-school friendships, Friday nights when I wasn’t invited to high school parties, and an extended illness that had me out of school for months. When I was faced with reading that didn’t thrill me – Shakespeare in high school, Plato in college, engineering manuals at my summer job – the habit of reading sustained me and carried my focus through the boring stuff. To this day, I feel less than whole when I’m not in the midst of a book or three.
Of course, there are more media options now. Sometimes I’m listening to a novel while I’m running trails in the woods. Sometimes I’ll highlight sections of nonfiction with a finger-tap to the iPad screen. But what counts is the story. Books allow me to live in the midst of more than one story – which somehow makes my own personal story just a little more inhabitable.
And so, I flinch whenever I hear of a library closing. These days, my flinches are practically nervous tics. In public education, budget axings pit libraries, arts programs, and nurses in competition for the distinction of first cut, with fatalities of the remaining programs soon after. In private schools, where budget woes are less pressing (at least for the moment), books are pushed aside to make way for what is deemed as innovation. In cities, libraries seems to exist just one headline away from closure, cutbacks, reduced hours, staff reductions – despite being the one thing that 91% of Americans can agree holds value in their communities.
After school last Wednesday, I was loading kilns and trying not to get drawn into a conversation with a few students who were working at a studio table. They were discussing the impending elimination of their school’s library, and its transformation into something that purports to be more innovation-themed and technology-driven. Words like “cool” and “awesome” flew across the table with glaze and splatters of wax. As I sanded shelves, I quietly meditated on how they seemed to know more than I did about plans just recently made public. Their conversation had the air of community buzz.
On my next trip past the table, I couldn’t help myself – I had to ask a question. “Don’t you guys have any reservations at all about clearing out the books?”
After the is-she-really-going-there pause, one bright, accomplished junior replied, “Seriously, Ms. P? No reservations whatsoever. The only thing I use those books for…” He paused. “I’m not on the record, right?” He knows I blog, and has been quoted before. I smiled. “I like to stuff a book in another kid’s backpack so that the alarm goes off.”
The others laughed and agreed. I leaned my forehead against a wall.
“Wait. But you guys read, right? I mean… you read more than SparkNotes?”
Laughter again. “There’s not much time to read more than I have to for school,” one student remarked. Another noted, “And sometimes I like reading that stuff! I mean, The Great Gatsby was one of my favorites.”
I quizzed them for a few minutes, then, on what else they read. Turns out that we have some recent fiction favorites in common – The Hunger Games, Divergent, Game of Thrones and others were on our shared lists. These were books they had purchased and I had borrowed. They talked about the plusses to reading on devices (lighted screens, you don’t have to fold pages, something I didn’t quite understand about what a pain it is to angle your pages while you’re reading in bed) – and about what they still like about reading physical books (less distraction, the sound of pages, the accomplishment of reaching the end). I didn’t say much – happy to let the conversation flow as long as it was flowing away from library alarm pranks.
But then, back to impending changes to the space-formerly-known-as-a-library. “It’s going to be awesome, Ms. P. Like… outlets hanging from the ceilings, and iPad carts, and a 3D printer.” I nodded, thoughtfully. “We won’t miss the books.”
In a book I’ve never read – The Leopard, by the Italian writer Giuseppe di Lampedusa – a prince proclaims, “Se vogliamo che tutto rimanga com’è bisogna che tutto cambi” – “For things to remain the same, everything must change.” Technology has changed education drastically in the decade since I started teaching, and I have rolled along with most of it – adapting, progressing, even leading the charge at times. I’ve bought in. I’m drafting this in Google Docs, and a trusted friend might add notes and comments to the same screen as I’m typing. But lately, I’ve been hitting some psychological walls with the rapid pace of this change – and my latest wall is made of books.
My students might not see value in checking books out of a library to read. But they also don’t see much value in practicing with two pounds of clay before they try ten. Or in trying to read Shakespeare before SparkNotes resolves their confusion. Or in speed limits. They are teenagers; they are hard-wired to be cursory and impulsive. Having Google in their pockets seems to sometimes reinforce such an approach.
I’ve always seen part of my job as an arts teacher to remind them to slow down, to consider consequences, story, and implications. In a studio, we consider all of that meaning stuff – sometimes before we create, often as we are creating, and always after. Replace “create” with “read,” and books lead us to the same considerations. If my students don’t see value in their studio work, my passion and advocacy for my subject matter doesn’t change – but it’s a surefire sign that I need to re-evaluate my approach to teaching it. And if students don’t see value in a library or books, I don’t see this an indicator that the books should be boxed and set aside to make room for more technology – but rather a warning sign that students are not pulling depth or substance from reading.
Last time I checked, such depth and substance trumped the pocket browser.
Maybe the library of the future looks less like stacks and more like Seth Godin’s version. I’m with my students – it does sound “awesome.” But in order “to do co-working and coordinate and invent projects worth working on together,” I hold that you have to have some deep content knowledge from which to work. Ever work with a co-worker whose knowledge was shallow and cursory? Ever coordinate and invent alongside someone who relies on Google for every answer? I have. It’s annoying, and any work that might happen feels equally shallow and cursory. I gravitate towards a different sort of collaborator – a more substantial and passionate one.
Depth doesn’t come from earning Godin’s “data shark” badge. Substance starts in curiosity, roots in understanding, takes form in exploration, and demonstrates itself in product and articulation. At least three-quarters of those steps are supported by the habit of reading – or at least by an inclusive approach that supports deep reading alongside the technologies of the moment.
There’s another issue at play here, and it has something to do with class. Public school systems and cities are closing libraries because they can’t afford them. Some of the reasons why libraries remain so necessary to communities are related to things that are hard to talk about when they aren’t in your front yard – homelessness, poverty, economic inequality, fair access to resources in the midst of a lousy economy. When you’re homeless, or barely making rent, the extra fifty bucks a month for internet access – or to pick up copies of books your kids would enjoy reading – may be impossible. According to Molly Raphael, past president of the ALA, “Public libraries are also serving as a lifeline for people trying to adapt to challenging economic circumstances, providing technology training and online resources for employment, access to government resources, continuing education, retooling for new careers and starting a small business.” If elite schools dismiss books, how do they ensure that their students – future citizens and community leaders – don’t dismiss the value libraries hold in more economically diverse communities?
But I told you – I’m biased, and in more ways than one. My grandma taught me to love books. Books taught me to seek meaning. The problem is that I’m struggling both with losing the books – and with the bigger meaning behind the gesture.
(Of course – even Godin is mired in the contradictions.)
It was a pleasure to read this post this morning, Thank you. I couldn’t agree more.
I love libraries too. I grew up next to one, and I believe it truly changed the course of my life. But I do think that technology will simply surpass libraries as the overhead is not really comparable. Sites like Project Gutenberg and Librivox are already doing what libraries can’t; giving people access to essentially whatever books they want without having to be close to a physical library. There’s also the problem of having the books that will be the most useful for people, and I think those sites will solve that problem in the future as well.
Of course libraries are important, and the medium through which online books can be accessed is an issue (although I think companies like OLPC are going to change that in the near future too), I just think libraries are starting to have a real uphill battle because of overhead costs, and efficiency does make a difference in people’s willingness to fund any public project.
I guess what I’m getting at is, if there is a problem, we should fix it, but the solution may look very different than what we’ve grown up with. I really enjoyed your article. Up with books!
Reading this, I agree with all that you have said. But I have to ask, considering you mentioned you read on your IPad and listen to books on audio, how many times have YOU visited a library in recent years?
Libraries are failing because even the bibliophiles are abandoning them because it’s far easier to touch a button on a screen.
Well – often enough that I have a full screen in my checkout records this year! But you make a great point. I visit my library because it’s still a habit. I don’t know whether those same habits are taking root in the students I teach.
Exactly! Going to the library every two weeks was something my mom did with me as a kid and it has stuck with me. It seems as if we lost a generation of readers along the way…
I love libraries too–and bookstores (the actual book section not the rest of the merchandise they sell). It’s sad to hear about public libraries being closed or losing funding b/c of a lack of demand for them :(. Then again with technology developing so rapidly (e-books, ipads etc), this doesn’t surprise me… :s…On a happier note, congrats on being FP and drawing attention to the topic! 🙂
Brilliant post. I’m still at school and can’t generally afford to buy books, so I go to the public library a lot (though not so much recently, as like the kids you mentioned, there isn’t time to read more than I have to for school, even though I fully intend to change that over the summer). I go to the school library sometimes too, but its stock is more limited, and it doesn’t have the option to reserve things from other libraries and borrow them, which for me is important. Usually, the reason I buy books now is because they’re my favourites — I’ve already read them from the library, but want my own copy. (Just as I listen to music first on Spotify, and then buy the album if I really like it.) Or I’ve had to buy them so I can annotate them for school. Buying books just to read them is not so frequent anymore. I have a Kindle, too, but I rarely buy books. I mainly use it to read free indie-published books that aren’t available elsewhere (or cheap ones), and mythology, which is out of copyright.
The trouble with the local library now is that they’ve cut staff and it’s all volunteer-run, and one is encouraged (instructed) to use the self-service machines. I used to like going up to the counter and making conversation as I checked out a week’s worth of reading, which was usually more than I could comfortably carry, but now I can only do that when the machine doesn’t work or one of the books doesn’t show up for some reason. And that happens often, so I know the librarians by sight and they probably know me by now. Nevertheless, it’s not quite the same…
When I was a kid I wanted to grow up to be a librarian. Was a librarian, in primary school — all the year six kids were monitors of some sort, and I was a library monitor, except they called us ‘librarians’ and taught us to use the computer system (which we then refined and made better for the next year’s librarians) — as were my brother and sister, despite the fact that my brother didn’t like reading. Family tradition, I guess.
I’d forgotten about that until now. Funny how things come back.
Congrats on Freshly Pressed, and sorry for my essay-comment!
I love reading as well. I am proud to have raised a child that is a combat medic in the Army, a big tough guy, that loves reading as well. I read books in whatever form I can get (ebook, audio, physical book) but I LOVE going into libraries. A library has gotten me through times of loneliness and times I couldn’t afford to buy books. I love wandering the shelves and running my fingers along the books titles.Twice I have done major moves and donated all the books I had gathered to local libraries.
So like you, I am sad every time I hear about a library closing.
My husband, not an avid reader, and I, devourer of all printed materials, had a curious conversation about this recently. We’d just seen an article about some big city getting rid of a library in favor of some internet cafe library thingy. Seriously, you can’t call that a library, people! It was amazing to me that both of us came to the conclusion that it was really an elitist move in the sorely unrecognized class warfare that is being waged. I’m not talking about a political class warfare either.
You are so right about the loss of libraries hurting the people who need them the most. I know many people in my midwestern small town who routinely use the libraries internet because they can’t afford to pay for it. Usually these same people come away with books and movies.
Books used to be a status symbol. Only the affluent could afford them. Now the latest tablet or e-reader is the status symbol. But one day, in the future, ownership of books will return to being a status symbol. It’s a lot harder for the government to track your reading when it’s done in a book. (I realize this makes me sound like a conspiracy theorist, but I’m not… I’m just thinking about the recent trends uncovered at the federal level.)
One thing I know, my hundreds of books are here to stay. Hopefuly my library is too, because i cannot possibly afford to buy all the books that I borrow, not even the digital versions
Great post! .
I was literally just having a conversation in my head about how important books were to me when I was a kid. I went to the library every Saturday and continued to go my local library as an adult until I became a book reviewer and started getting way more than I could ever read, for free. Every year, I sit at the end of my driveway and give hundreds of these books away at the neighborhood garage sale. It’s amazing how I have to “sell” free books. Many people are scared to take them.
i love books and everything about them – the smell of fresh ones and the smell of the old stacked ones….the feel of holding them…of sleeping while reading them…love them all…
congratulations and well worded!!!!
I am a librarian and I love love love books. I also understand the technology side but I try to focus my technology purchases based on how is this going to help my students read. My students give me odd looks when I bring over a book to them while they are just fooling around on the computer and I say “You look like you could use a good book to read since the screen is frozen.” I try so hard to push books on the students that I hope the ones I do effect remain life long readers.
This makes me think of a sad moment I had while teaching in Louisiana, when I had a conversation with a teacher who said (in front of students) “I hate reading”!!!!ahhhh!!!!!What’s wrong with the world?!
I am so glad that you share your love of reading with the students you encounter. This was a great post, thanks for sharing!
While I agree libraries are facing difficulty, I think much of the younger-generation-doesn’t-read-anymore talk is nonsense. Reading books has always been an activity that has appealed to a certain segment of the population, and my completely uninformed guess is that it will remain that way. But, in general, I think all the technology has encouraged more reading and more engagement and more knowledge. Just look at blogs and news sites full of readers and passionate debates. Methods are changing for sure. Unfortunately, many people cannot keep up with the technology from an economic standpoint, and that creates a whole separate issue on the technology gap.
The question of how libraries adapt and stay funded is an interesting question. My library in Wisconsin is packed daily, yet still they are cutting their hours and turning to more volunteers.
Excellent. It horrified me when I heard of a library that was being refitted for computer use, not for reading.
I agree to a point, I far prefer paper books, but I have to admit I do a lot of reading on a screen: Kindle, computer, tablet. Most children prefer to read on screens these days too. It’s not a choice between reading paper books or reading on screens, it’s a choice between reading on screens or not reading. I think there needs to be a balance though – no kid is going to pick up a book that isn’t there to be picked up. Having ebooks available from libraries might be the hook that gets children into the library and into reading in general, and from there they might progress to reading for the love of it, whatever form it takes.
I am so grateful you raised the issue of library funding and cast light on a population of readers who would be overlooked if we sacrifice affordable access to literature.
On a purely sentimental level, I would be heartbroken without the weight of a book to anchor my days.
The Hunger Games? Sad.
Unfortunately, the homeless have another impact on libraries, too. In downtown Portland, Oregon, the main library is a giant edifice of classic architecture four stories high. The periodicals room is massive and beautifully lit…but few actual readers ever go in there anymore. It’s filled to the brim with the homeless using it as a place to nap during the day. Every seat is taken by someone who hasn’t bathed in a month, dripping rainwater onto the carpet and sawing logs in the overheated room. I don’t think I need to describe the aroma. Apparently, all one has to do is grab a random magazine, spread it out before them on the table, and that’s the total price of admission they need to pay to promptly lay their greasy head down and commence drooling on pages 56 and 57 until close.
People here hang out in bookstores now because those establishments have the right to eject people who scare off business. Libraries are public access and whether they have rules against leaving a ring of filth behind on your library chair, I do not know, but they sure as heck don’t enforce them. Ditto on screaming children.
I say let them sleep. “There but for the grace of God go I”
And as long as I’m spouting clichéd quotes, how about “The medium is the message”–as a teacher I agree that depth, close reading and close observation are inspired more by physical books. I recently gave an assignment in which students needed to think through an idea: the impact of “nature” on people and people on “nature” (while acknowledging the false distinction). Many did, however others apparently “googled” their responses and came up with shallow reflections that, yes, fit the parameters of the assignment, but were basically meaningless. Efficiency and speed are sometimes the enemies of thought, as mentioned in this post re SparkNotes and Shakespeare. And then there is the loss of serendipity: have you ever gone into a library with one book in mind and then been attracted to another book just by walking through the stacks? With no logarithm following you around telling you what you’re supposed to “like”?
Sounds like you are a great teacher!
Brilliant post and I particularly like it when you say that if children don’t appreciate books now, what’s tome become of the libraries in the future!? It’s a scary thought that’s for sure.
What no one seems to address on a bigger scale is that technology is fantastic as a space saver, but dangerous as a promoter of misinformation. Wiki is now a reputable, collegiate source; and students in my classes quote Sparknotes instead of reading the material. It’s frightening to me. A whole civilization of people thinking Romeo and Juliet is JUST a love story, or the Grapes of Wrath is just dirty people moving west.
On a positive note, the number of blog sites about books is overwhelming me. Every day I find at least three just by chance.
People still care about books so much. Our special archives department is full of people who protect these bound gems like they were children, and at the same time are working diligently to digitize them.
If we strike a balance, we’ll be okay. I don’t think we have to freak out just yet (although it is tempting to do so). Books might become like great art. Still valued and traded in tight circles making it an incredibly valued, protected investment; but scanned onto the web to expand its reach (which is what I think we want most-more accessibility).
In the meantime, we have book-share programs, and kiosks of books in public spaces (on the honor system!), the art of bookmaking is taking on a new popularity as an art form. And people like Cassie Elliot, who you might appreciate: http://antelopelendinglibrary.tumblr.com/. She started with nothing, and now Iowa City has a place for the kids, who can’t truck uptown to the main library.
I want to have hope, but will admit I am nervous the farther away from Shakespeare we get in public schools. But then, doesn’t that stuff go in waves?
I feel your pain 🙂 great post.
Some of my earliest memories of libraries were at school, where I hunted out those special books with the special passages dog-eared and underlined; later, they included attempts to date librarians (which worked a couple of times); once in awhile, they led to chess clubs. . .but mostly, they lead to burying my nose in books and finding out about things I never would have otherwise, and many things my parents probably wish I hadn’t. It is for this last reason, if no other, that libraries need to be maintained
My university friends joke that I practically live in the library. They’re kind of right.
I love reading and I love books but now there are ebooks. Does that mean that libraries will go away?
i enjoyed reading you words
keep it up
i hope to see you visiting my page
I work in a library (and I love it). I borrow books, up to 20 right now, download many on my iPad, as this is the only way I can read while waiting for my toddler to fall asleep at night, and am on a first name and friendly basis with our local bookseller due to the volume of texts I buy…there’s room for all in my life, but that’s MY life. It’s great to see different views in this actually 🙂
Very well said, and your points about libraries and the class system is a very important one. Some of the first modern-day lending libraries were established so that people could read and study and become informed citizens even if they couldn’t afford to buy reading material for themselves.
Sad :(. Spending almost every day at the library as a preteen and in my early teenage years is one of the reasons I fell in love with books/reading. The Librarian made the journey more enjoyable, every now and then, I pass by to say hi :D.
Now in recent years, I wanted to start my own collection so I rely on cheap book sales for my reading pleasure. Then, I switch back to the library during my university years but since then I realized that I have not borrowed a book from a library in about two years. Finally last week, I did my first library trip and oh boy I was so excited like a kid again. So excited, I signed my little sister up as well. I want libraries to survive, I want my future children to enjoy the journey like I did. Even if I plan to have a library in my home, I still would want them to have that interaction at a library. I was thinking of what I can do to encourage the survival of libraries. I plan to donate books to my first primary school as soon as I can afford. Maybe all of us, should work on one thing to help our libraries survive.
Yeaaaaa its always good to see another book-loving-reader..As I’ve said before and I’ll say it again I even love the smell of books! There is something about walking down isle of isle of books that makes me even feel smarter..no other way I can explain it. I enjoy it. I also have been reading since I was very, very young. My Daddy has said, for as long as I can recollect, that I began reading at 3 yrs old.Said one day he looked up & there I was reading the newspaper. At 3 yrs old..now whether thats something he made UP or not; I believed him. I was a book nerd in school; who became a smart swan in high school. I’ve always taken books for granted; and wrongfully assumed they’d always be around. I also ASSumed everyone! else felt the same way. We all lose if libraries become a thing of the past. There are things technology can’t replace..I can’t curl up with a nook and fall to sleep reading..just can’t imagine it feeling the same. I can’t lie down and read with my future lover in front of a warm fireplace..so romantic! I can’t “see” ebooks physically/keep them for years then dust them off & read them again..I visit the library often…a learned habit from my parents who still do the same. So many things we can get for FREE from the library. Have folks forgotten what it is to save money? I’m always pleased when I drive up to the library & I see rooms full of children studying…there is HOPE that our library system won’t die off today. 2 thumbs UP on your write.
Hi, great read.
I am much the same as yourself. A voracious reader, and obsessed with the tactile feel of paper. I have caught myself in similar conversations recently, and have come to a conclusion of what may happen to the printed book. I believe, that much the same as vinyl records, we will see a resurgence of interest in printed books sooner than expected. If vinyl records have taught us anything, it has to be that truly great mediums for art cannot just be pushed aside by technology.
As for libraries, well, it’s just sad to watch something so priceless within our communities get beat up by budgeting.
I’ve recently sat a critical thinking exam on this exact subject – the closure (or the ‘need to update’) public libraries, and with most students proceeding this exam with groans of it’s boredom, I could not have been happier with the subject. I have such strong feelings against library closure, and although I may be as bias as you (reading novels from the age of 7 and the local library across the road from my hometown being a second home throughout my childhood) I am so glad this post has made it onto freshly pressed, as a student – this mirrors my feelings, and reflects my angst at the ignorant students who hate libraries….
It is sad, but what can we do? Every generation identifies with multimedia, academics and leisure time differently. Until recently, technology has been beneficial: becoming compact, portable and enabling us to complete our work faster. The same technology now lends infinite distractions and books are expensive. On top of that, everyone is becoming more visually oriented, and less word oriented. Words, words words! We need them still! pretty soon there won’t be any more (good) writers because there are no more readers. I hate audio books, I blame them, too. Dictionaries, thesauruses and spell check are all electronic now too, but it doesn’t substitute the skills acquired from reading. Want to be a better writer? The only solution is read twice as much as you write. Like you said as well, people perform their jobs faster and better if they read leisurely; it really gets you through the hard, boring stuff!
I enjoyed this read, thanks for making me think!
What a joyful and meaningful read! Your reading so vividly reflects in your writing: it’s got flow, beauty, substance and of course the meaning! Loved few lines which are no less than quotable quotes. Thank you for inspiring me. I personally love books in paperbacks and immensely enjoy a good read but sadly too sluggish to practice it regularly and extensively.
It’s not just libraries closing, but every time a bookstore closes it makes me sad. I saw an advert for the new kindle the other day which did not once mention reading books on it. I nearly cried. Books are so important but culturally we are just dismissing them as meaningless.
Bookstores and libraries are my “happy places” and I try to take my kids to our tiny local library as much as possible.
That said, I couldn’t get by without my Nook. When I was injured in a car accident a few years ago, my mother-in-law bought me a Nook so that I could have plenty to read during my recuperation. Since then, I have used it to explore genres and discover other authors that I might never have found with traditional books. For a disabled person like me, having an e-reader has enabled me to keep reading even when I can’t physically go to the library.
Reblogged this on ibrahimhalilaslan2055.
Amazing post. You summarized my own sentiments about libraries, both public and school libraries, and made me realize that I need to continue to impress the importance of books on my son.
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Librarian… i think of being a librarian when in school…
Reblogged this on With Seasons Changes and commented:
Absolutely wonderful. Featured in Freshly Pressed and explains my exact thoughts on the dwindling nature of books. It really is sad to see so many book stores and libraries closing.
Reblogged on “With Seasons Changes”
thank you for an amazing read.
Great post — esp.the need to think deeply and broadly. It is truly the height of hubris to think everything we need to know is simply found in Wikipedia or easily Googled.
I spent a very happy hour yesterday (visiting Tucson, from my NYC-area home) talking to the book buyer about what is selling (or not) and why. I also spent $100 on new books, one of them a birthday gift for a 26 year old.
I have written two non-fiction books (she had two in stock, which was lovely) and one of my happiest and proudest moments was going into worldcat (you know it?) to see which libraries worldwide had bought the first one. It was a huge thrill to see that librarians as far away as Hong Kong and NZ had thought it of value to their readers, who would never have found it in their bookstores.
Libraries are necessary to us for many reasons. We lose democratic access to affordable, accurate and reliable data at our peril.
I’m a bookseller, avid reader, lover of libraries and the smell of used book stores. This was a delight to read. Thank you.
This is really interesting. I love to read- but I have never thought of the value of books quite in this way. Thanks for sharing!
http://stepstochangetheworld.wordpress.com/
You should really try The Leopard (Il Gattopardo). As I am Italian, I read it in my mother tongue. Beautiful and perfectly written. One of the best books I ever read.
I started to love books on my own. My mother encouraged me to read when I was a kid, however, when I was a teenager and books were my main source of knowledge, she became to be rigid about them. Because I lived different lives through them and she had no control on them…
By now, when the working day finishes, I prefer the secondary exit, which shares a door with a library. The most relaxing thing is the smell of printed paper that I always sniff, as I am serial reader as well as a serial sniffer of books (I admit that sometimes I do it also with my e-book reader!).
Of course, the smell of books is to me like the snake’s apple offered to Eva in Eden. And I’m a woman too…
Intriguing and thoughtful post. Very relatable and relevant, especially to all of us former Book-It kids who are old enough to remember how things used to be but young enough to understand the direction things are going.
I too am a library lover. My very first blog entry (posted today) details my summer library trips. Even though there are digital alternatives, I still really love holding a book and turning the pages!
I just started going to the library again. Although it is quite the experience in Santa Monica. We have one of the highest amounts of homeless people. Let’s just say they spice up the library experience. You could turn a corner to find your favorite Dickens novel… or just an old crazy man’s dickens out for the world to see. What an adventure at the library now a days… Oi 😉
http://aubreys642.wordpress.com/
I admit that I havent stepped foot in a library in years. Apart from the fact that I work during the week when the majority of libraries are open, the main reason I havent attended on is that I have brought (and been brought) enough books to keep me going for years. Paper books, ebooks, audiobooks, it doesnt matter.
I read approx 100 books a year, most of which have been brought by someone. That said, this year a good proportion of my books have been provided free by the publishers on the proviso that I write a review and blog about the book afterwards. My focus is more on supporting the book and the writer – if a greater proportion of my time or money goes to them by buying the book than borrowing it from a library (or blogging about it so other people buy it) then I’m happy
I ensure that my nieces and nephews get at least one paper book a year for christmas or birthday and that I sit with them and a book when I can – most are now old enough to hold and read a book without me needing to go through it with them.
Something we havent done together is actually gone to a library (though I understand that they go to their local library with their parents and borrow plenty of books).
Reblogged this on stumbling and lost.
My favorite building at WCU is the library.
My only complaint about WCU is that the library isn’t open enough.
Ironically, I’ve never checked out a book, though I take my books into the library to read and I constantly write at the library. Beyond the obvious function of a cultural center for civilization’s literature, I find that libraries offer an irreplaceable environment for serenity and focus. Knowing that my favorite sanctuaries are closing down makes me sad.
As for my generation ignoring books, or ignoring their substance, I think it’s the result of growing up with so much technology. We’re accustomed to fast-access everything, and books get deemed “slow”. Me? I like slow, but I can tell you that I’m an extreme minority in that regard.
Lack of exposure to literary quality has watered down popular media quite a bit. Today’s cinematography revolves around explosions, cheap melodrama, and shallow dialogue, writing standards are dropping, and reading standards have really plummeted. We’re dumbing down the craft of the story, in all its forms, and I think it’s our lack of appreciation for reading that’s at fault.
The sad truth of it all is that it’s a problem of effort, not exposure. I’ve only recently picked up literary reading, yet I understand master quality story. It’s much more about the deliberation, the contemplation, and the process of coming to understand the literature that’s being read. I know way too many people who read just to read and put no thoughts to content, to analysis, or to understand through self-deliberation what he/she does not understand. They’re just not interested, and frankly I don’t have any ideas how to encourage people to peer through the surface of the words they read.
It’s not a sad world yet, but once all the libraries have gone, it will be.
I hate to think that libraries won’t be around in the future and will be replaced by more malls. I mean, if one just wants to pass the time or go somewhere air conditioned, why not go to the library instead?
Reblogged this on .
I read an article recently about the ‘bookless library’ which is something being trialled in some cities – basically a building where you borrow a Kindle and download on it. First thing I thought was, why bother with the building? Much as I cherish books, what I cherish more is the writing inside them and, in the end, I think that so long as the novels and stories I love thrive I don’t entirely care whether they are read from paper or on a screen. The Leopard, which you mention, is a novel about great change, about the old order being swept away – so it’s very apt in this case! Whatever the changes in store I believe I will still be able to get hold of the ‘books’ I love in some form – and other people will be able to get hold of mine!
I enjoyed your post and it made me nostalgic. I was an avid reader as a child, with limited means and practically lived at the library. When I was old enough to work, it was at the library. When I went to university and was forced to read great volumes of stuff that was mandatory but of little interest, it scarred me. I have found it hard to read for pleasure ever since then. I also find it more difficult to find stuff that I actually enjoy. It was easier when I worked at the library; the high circulating material was at my fingertips and readily accessible. I find separating the wheat from the chaff very frustrating. That said, I have had a run of good luck lately with the help of the library.
Public education uses books like teaching tools, creating a predisposition in young people about reading; today, kids think reading is boring, and serious literature isn’t appreciated anymore. In our young people, we need to encourage a mindset that sees the intrinsic value worth of education–extending beyond the classroom. We need to approach reading in schools less formally; it seems like more kids read for fun when they’re younger, and as the curriculum becomes more rigid, any initiative (to open a book) is beat out. To wrap this up, I think it’s sad when a class of kids groan about having to read, and I’m left wondering where we’ll be, culturally, in 20-30 years down the road.
wonderful post. it really offers a lot of food for thought. technology has made it too easy for the young generation to brush aside books. i cant stand reading a book on a device. i still prefer the ability of sitting down with a good physical book. like you i love the act of turning the pages and getting to the end with some accomplishment. if it wasnt book i would not have learned about my daughters autism like i have. i do find it harder to read nowadays with having a daughter but when i do it still feels great to do it. In highschool reading was always encouraged because of it allows your mind to grow without noticing. up here in canada we are losing libraries also and its a sad sight to see really.
I’m a teenager and this post just made me sad. I don’t read that often with school work bogging me down, but I love to read and I almost indefinitely prefer a physical book over an electronic copy. It’s sad trying to think of a school without a library, or a world without physical copies of books.
“Depth doesn’t come from earning Godin’s “data shark” badge. Substance starts in curiosity, roots in understanding, takes form in exploration, and demonstrates itself in product and articulation. At least three-quarters of those steps are supported by the habit of reading – or at least by an inclusive approach that supports deep reading alongside the technologies of the moment.” I totally agree with that, this is a good reply to those who think that reading doesn’t matter anymore and the only thing that matters is innovation and thinking creatively. Where I live, libraries are closed on weekends and during the weekdays they are open upto 8 pm max 🙁
“Words convey meaning, and I can’t help but think that a search for meaning is what the whole human experience is about.” <<< perfectly said! I couldn't agree more. 🙂
On my blog, I’ve been debating e-book versus physical book while discussing Stephen King’s decision to not offer an e-book for Joyland. But it’s a whole different consideration if it’s not just bookstores that are ailing. It would be a shame for libraries to disappear – the one place where students in schools, families, and the occasional lone person can just be surrounded by words of all sorts. Now that’s a tragedy. I do think that holding that library in one device in your hands doesn’t quite match the same feeling of being surrounded floor to ceiling by books. Definitely giving me more food for thought!
I love to read and we are in our local Library on average 3 to 4 times a week. I do also have an eReader that I love with a passion. But it is sad to see and hear about libraries closing because I grew up reading all the time. I was not a good reader until I was in high school and didn’t like to read what the schools made me read but I still had my favs. I have my kids read all the time and I am teaching them that reading is not something to hate but something to enjoy. It will take outside of this life and put you in a new one for a little while. You can go any where in the world inside a book. I would be so lost if my library closed its doors. I am even going to start volunteering at our library this summer and helping with the programs that they support for kids in the summer.
There were few books in my house as a child. My parents were not great readers but I became one. My life spent as a teacher took far too much of my time but, in my retirement, I’m finding more time to enjoy reading again.
It would be pushing it to say I share your degree of passion but long live books. As I write, I have a stack on the shelf still to read but my wife has just gone out to the local library (in the pouring rain) because she has just finished her book.
I loved this. When I was a kid, I lived at the library. If my parent’s had tried to buy enough books to keep up with my reading habit, I’m sure it would have sent them into bankruptcy. Your post brings to mind a quote that I came across the other day, “Anyway — because we are readers, we don’t have to wait for some communications executive to decide what we should think about next — and how we should think about it. We can fill our heads with anything from aardvarks to zucchinis — at any time of night or day.”
― Kurt Vonnegut
I really enjoyed this mainly because I love reading, as well. That is pretty much why I joined here because as an ‘OfficialTeenager’ I love reading a story, it takes you to places and you get that special moment where you relate to the character or writer and its magical because you can be anyone and your absorbed into this magical world, which makes you want to change reality a bit so it seems like that magical world and thank you for reminding me how important that is because as a 13 year old I forget. I am happy that I could relate to your love for books and also happy because you reminded me how inspiring they really are. Thanks.
Wonderful reflection. Definitely puts things in perspective. Thank you
I mourn the decline of books the way my father mourned the decine of radio as the pre-eminent broadcast medium. Perhaps technology will save books and inject new life into this fading (sadly) medium.
I love your blog! 🙂
I have always loved reading as long as I can remember. But it wasn’t until we moved to a small town in Missouri how much I missed big city libraries. Sadly my two kids do not like to read, but I love reading.
I’m a university librarian. With textbooks becoming “integrated” with technology and ebooks being available even when the library is closed, a print book can truly be a hard sell. They are also a refuge for the technology-hating [usually but not always] older student who doesn’t understand that everything techo that supplies information doesn’t work like Google! I miss roaming the 11 stories of stacks at my Big 10 University, but to my students convenience is the name of the game.
That all said, I am a huge public library user and am blessed to live in a state with regional libraries and decent support for public libraries. Even in my tiny town our library can get me about anything and with no fees.
A thoughtful read at NAIS:
http://www.nais.org/Magazines-Newsletters/ISMagazine/Pages/The-New-School-Library.aspx
“A well-supported school library is at the heart of student academic growth and integral to academic success. In short, they leverage the mission of the school.”
Hm.