By Cyn D.
The building is still there, though it’s used as a “performance” space now, I believe. But the majestic marble and wood rotunda of the Main Library in downtown Chicago was a magic portal, a grand and sacred space. The huge rooms surrounding the rotunda offered not just books but movies, vinyl recordings of the jazz greats and classics of all genres, art work you could actually take home and place on your own walls…amazing treasures.
By Julie M. My daughter is a senior in high school and she could not have survived without our public library. The online resources have been a life-saver; she’s found current events, multiple sources for obscure art history projects, and she did most of her SAT prep through the library’s database. She’s such a fan … Read more
By Kristen G. I always was at the library when I was little. We biked there, almost, daily in the summers. I loved being able to walk around and look at all kinds of things. We felt very ‘adult’ being in the adult section, sitting at tables, doing our homework. Once I had kids, I … Read more
By Nikki P. I grew up in a very small town, a village of 1200 people. Our town only had two stop lights and the library was right near one of them. I lived about 3 miles from the public library, and used to spend every few days there in the summer. I would ride … Read more
By Jennifer B. As a recent college graduate, I could not afford internet access or a computer, and I lived far away from family. A friend told me about an amazing job opportunity and my local library gave me the resources to be able to apply for the job online and to take out books … Read more
By Marissa O. I was fortunate to grow up in Portland Oregon, with a very healthy public library system- The Multnomah County Library. There were branches in almost every community, including the two I grew up in. My parents took us there weekly, if not more often. For as far back as I can remember, … Read more
By Jim G. With our youngest son Jack I started a new family tradition: “Libs Night.” Every Tuesday evening we would go to our local community library to read together, read separately, or just enjoy an evening surrounded by books. One step leads to another: I was elected to our Library Board of Trustees, became … Read more
By Ronald W.
My very first trip to a public library was in my hometown of East Haven CT, the “Hagaman Memorial Library”. It was on a field trip in grade school, I was no older than 7. I still remember the experience, starting with the entrance to the building at the time; the steps leading up to the huge doors and once inside the marble floors, the huge staircase, oak furniture and the portraits on the walls. I knew I was inside a special space.
The class attended “story hour” that day in the Children’s section; we were told that “story hour” would occur every Wednesday after school for those who wished to sign up to attend. The whole class received library cards that day.
By Jill Q.
My hometown was a small one, about 2000 people. Our town library was hence a small one, but it was always where kids went after school to do homework, get a book, or just hang around, maybe get some candy at the village store on the way.
I was no exception to this when I was younger. Our library was a short walk from our elementary and middle school, back when walking was no big deal. My parents both worked and since we got out earlier than my mom’s job was done, I walked to the library every day after school to wait for her to pick me up. It became a big part of my day…I would read, get as much HW done as possible, or have my after-school snack there. I even tried reading the newspapers there when I finished all my other work (granted, I was 8 or 9 at the time, so it would get boring. Other days, I would just explore. I found out I loved reading mysteries because I would just walk through the shelves and found books based on spines that looked interesting. I must have picked up dozens of books that way growing up.
By Frank Menchaca
Libraries, it seems, are under attack everywhere. Schools are eliminating librarians. College libraries receive less than three cents of every dollar spent on higher education. Marketing guru Seth Godin— and a chorus of others—has questioned the relevance of libraries in particularly stinging terms.
But there’s good news too. Ninety-five percent of Americans believe that public libraries play an important role in helping people live more successful lives. Students who visit their college libraries even once a semester are much more likely to return to school the following semester than those who do not. According to the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project, “the vast majority of readers aged 16-29 have read a print book in the last year.” And 60 percent of Americans under the age of 30 have used a library within the last 12 months.
The message is clear. Libraries—whether academic, municipal, or special purpose—are essential to the health, wealth, and education of the communities they serve. There’s no doubt libraries are challenged by funding cuts and bad press or that they need to beef up their marketing efforts, but the rumors of their death have been greatly exaggerated.