First to Graduate

By Debra K. 

I first discovered the world was much larger and more exciting and exotic than I had ever imagined thanks to my local public and school libraries. Though I loved school as a child, it was mostly due to the social aspects rather than the learning, that is until I read my first young adult novel in early middle school, which sparked a serious (some would say obsessive) love of reading. By the end of middle school I was reading a book a day — sometimes hidden behind my textbook in the back of class. I took my current book with me everywhere — often bumping into furniture and walls at home as I walked and read. This earned me the nickname of Mrs. Magoo after a beloved myopic cartoon character popular at the time.

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Promoting Success for My Son’s Future

By Rory R. 

As a child I would go to the library on a daily basis with my brothers, sister and grandma who is an avid reader. Going with her to the library was always fun and exciting as we got to read books that grabbed our imaginations, interest and took us to another level of learning. The library was also a great spot to find new friends as there were always planned events that brought community children together to see that day’s event. I remember authors coming in and reading to us and having games that incorporated math, science, social studies etc. These experiences may not have seemed important to me while as a child but I can say it was important because I was learning and it was fun.

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Little Library, Big Life

By Marti P. 

We were on our own in the library! That is, we had no computers, no story time, no volunteer to help us. We were just let loose to find a book of interest. I attended a parochial school in a very small town. The library was about the size of a small kitchen, but it was heaven to me! At a very young age, my favorites were biographies – George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Helen Keller. Later on we had permission to walk a few blocks to the public library. What a joy!

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More Than Just Books

By Cristina M.  Several years ago, I was asked to babysit my friend’s 2-year-old for a few days. My friend told me a good place to “distract him” might be the library, so I decided to take a chance and catch the bus downtown. It had been years since I had stepped foot there – … Read more

Winds of Change

By Cindy M.  I was a non traditional student returning to school for a master’s degree. I was confronted at every turn with the integration of technology into the education system. (High school math for me meant slide rules not calculators). One of my neighbors happened to be the head of the library at the … Read more

Happy 125th Birthday to the Osterhout Free Library

By Robert A. 

The Osterhout Free Library in my hometown of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, celebrated its 125th birthday on January 29, 2014. The Osterhout is the first public library that I ever visited and memories of my experiences at this venerable institution are rich and plentiful.

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Libraries and Life-Long Learning

By Diane G. 

I’ve loved libraries for as long as I can remember. I learned to read at a very early age (my mom still wonders if I taught myself!), and I don’t think my parents’ bank account could have kept up with how fast I went through books. I know they were thankful for the library just around the corner. New books, story-telling groups, book clubs and summer reading challenges; all are some of my favorite childhood memories.

And could I have made it through high school and college without great libraries, and librarians? It would have been a lot tougher…

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