I've loved libraries forever. I remember walking a couple miles to get to one as a child. It was a magic place. The most memorable library I've been in is at Trinity College in Dublin .
The Library Book by Susan Orlean does an amazing job diving into the role libraries play and just how important they are. They're one of the last free spaces for people to enjoy and provide such important community services. I think a lot of us who grew up reading have those fond childhood memories, and I hope some kids today get to have that same experience of feeling like the library is a place full of magic and possibility.
When I was a kid, I made a library out of all my books, with little numbers taped on them and a card for each one, and checked them out to the neighborhood kids. I'm happy to be in a town that that has a most magical new library (Missoula). Thanks for the post!
Another thing we have in common. Our small city of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, had a great library, and I spent many hours there. My high school had a fabulous library. Both my parents were readers and we had many books in the house. I couldn't get enough of reading and it is a real thrill to me when I hear from someone who has read one of my efforts and found it meaningful/enjoyable/fun. While our Oak Ridge Library was excellent, when I went to Cincinnati for music school and walked into the Hamilton County Public Library I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I miss that library. I have to say, though, in my even smaller town where I currently live, we have an excellent library which has an exceptional children's section and many activities. You're right, the library should be a magical place. After all, opening a book is often the closest thing to magic most of us will ever realize.
In my nose’s imagination, I can still smell the Newark library that made my childhood tolerable. Love that smell! When I was a college drop-out, I worked in a bookstore that smelled like that library. It was magical, too. Thanks for this piece!
Libraries should be magical! I remember getting my first book 'published' when I was seven years old and my story was chosen in a local contest. It was printed in hardcover and a copy put in both our public and school libraries. I felt I had reached the pinnacle of of fame to be a published author in the LIBRARY!
Sadly, the new library in my small town feels generic and lacking soul but at least hey have a lovely children's section that seems magical.
For those of you on IG you may like this account I follow that showcases the worlds greatest libraries.
I feel very qualified to comment here as I've worked in public libraries both in Canada and the UK for over 40 years! Libraries have changed HUGELY, it's true - but so has their functionality. To many, the library experience that many of you describe here has become elusive - even those who continue to borrow regularly, now use the building itself as a kind of depot, where books that have been put on hold are merely collected. That said, the library addresses different literacies now, such as how to use a computer (many, MANY people learn this skill for the first time from library staff) and also how to navigate getting a passport online, learn English etc.etc. At my local branch, the staff also used to help a lovely elderly lady braid her hair each morning after she had broken her arm and had no one else to assist. She was so grateful! We ran programs for new mothers and babies, had lots of local artwork and I used to transcribe poems on the back window which everyone stopped to read! (Not my own, short bits from the classics often based on the season). We also set up a tiny, silken tent for children to creep inside with a book! The issue with homelessness is real though and has hugely impacted libraries from a safety perspective - you might be shocked what the staff have to deal with on a daily basis. I am so sorry that the library vibe let you down lately, Ramona - I am really hoping it was just a bad day or that the strife from the Pandemic has yet to be shaken off.
We are at our local library at least twice a week. I used to go growing up and I got away from it when I got too high school, but we have been fortunate to have 2 great babysitters who take out kids to the library. We’re so lucky to have such a great one.
Wow, reading about that library broke my heart a little. But you also brought back some absolutely memories I haven't thought of in years. Memories of a VERY excited little boy going to the library again and again, happily perusing all of those books and then checking out and carrying a huge stack of books home. I'm not sure I was ever much happier as a child than I was in those moments.
Some of my happiest times were spent in my local library when I was a kid. That's where my love of mystery and science fiction took hold, and I would read and read and read in a really comfy chair in a corner of the library on the second floor, away from other people. Just thinking about it now brings back a lot of memories.
Thank you for this. I enjoy libraries very much and support them as much as I can.
I've loved libraries forever. I remember walking a couple miles to get to one as a child. It was a magic place. The most memorable library I've been in is at Trinity College in Dublin .
The Library Book by Susan Orlean does an amazing job diving into the role libraries play and just how important they are. They're one of the last free spaces for people to enjoy and provide such important community services. I think a lot of us who grew up reading have those fond childhood memories, and I hope some kids today get to have that same experience of feeling like the library is a place full of magic and possibility.
When I was a kid, I made a library out of all my books, with little numbers taped on them and a card for each one, and checked them out to the neighborhood kids. I'm happy to be in a town that that has a most magical new library (Missoula). Thanks for the post!
Another thing we have in common. Our small city of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, had a great library, and I spent many hours there. My high school had a fabulous library. Both my parents were readers and we had many books in the house. I couldn't get enough of reading and it is a real thrill to me when I hear from someone who has read one of my efforts and found it meaningful/enjoyable/fun. While our Oak Ridge Library was excellent, when I went to Cincinnati for music school and walked into the Hamilton County Public Library I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I miss that library. I have to say, though, in my even smaller town where I currently live, we have an excellent library which has an exceptional children's section and many activities. You're right, the library should be a magical place. After all, opening a book is often the closest thing to magic most of us will ever realize.
In my nose’s imagination, I can still smell the Newark library that made my childhood tolerable. Love that smell! When I was a college drop-out, I worked in a bookstore that smelled like that library. It was magical, too. Thanks for this piece!
Wow! I'm thrilled to know someone else did that, too! Some of my old books still have the stickers on them.
Libraries should be magical! I remember getting my first book 'published' when I was seven years old and my story was chosen in a local contest. It was printed in hardcover and a copy put in both our public and school libraries. I felt I had reached the pinnacle of of fame to be a published author in the LIBRARY!
Sadly, the new library in my small town feels generic and lacking soul but at least hey have a lovely children's section that seems magical.
For those of you on IG you may like this account I follow that showcases the worlds greatest libraries.
https://www.instagram.com/1000libraries/
I feel very qualified to comment here as I've worked in public libraries both in Canada and the UK for over 40 years! Libraries have changed HUGELY, it's true - but so has their functionality. To many, the library experience that many of you describe here has become elusive - even those who continue to borrow regularly, now use the building itself as a kind of depot, where books that have been put on hold are merely collected. That said, the library addresses different literacies now, such as how to use a computer (many, MANY people learn this skill for the first time from library staff) and also how to navigate getting a passport online, learn English etc.etc. At my local branch, the staff also used to help a lovely elderly lady braid her hair each morning after she had broken her arm and had no one else to assist. She was so grateful! We ran programs for new mothers and babies, had lots of local artwork and I used to transcribe poems on the back window which everyone stopped to read! (Not my own, short bits from the classics often based on the season). We also set up a tiny, silken tent for children to creep inside with a book! The issue with homelessness is real though and has hugely impacted libraries from a safety perspective - you might be shocked what the staff have to deal with on a daily basis. I am so sorry that the library vibe let you down lately, Ramona - I am really hoping it was just a bad day or that the strife from the Pandemic has yet to be shaken off.
We are at our local library at least twice a week. I used to go growing up and I got away from it when I got too high school, but we have been fortunate to have 2 great babysitters who take out kids to the library. We’re so lucky to have such a great one.
Wow, reading about that library broke my heart a little. But you also brought back some absolutely memories I haven't thought of in years. Memories of a VERY excited little boy going to the library again and again, happily perusing all of those books and then checking out and carrying a huge stack of books home. I'm not sure I was ever much happier as a child than I was in those moments.
Some of my happiest times were spent in my local library when I was a kid. That's where my love of mystery and science fiction took hold, and I would read and read and read in a really comfy chair in a corner of the library on the second floor, away from other people. Just thinking about it now brings back a lot of memories.
Libraries were the start of the outside world for me! See my https://open.substack.com/pub/jordanjankus/p/the-world-beyond?r=p9z88&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post
Thank you for this...I too love libraries where I write and read and sit in silence to let the characters begin to speak to me.