Focus on Libraries: "Let’s choose to be a literate society." Pam Munoz Ryan

 Last week was a busy week we celebrated 

Drop Everything and Read (D.E.A.R) Day, 

National Poetry in Your Pocket Day, and 

National Library Week. 

Aswe researched each post, we kept returning to the library and its resources --for books, for information, for inspiration. We decided to make certain to share all the treasures we find and so this week we begin a new BFWP topic: "Focus on Libraries."

When we began the Books for Walls Project we knew that we wanted to support libraries. Since then we learned that there is much more to the library than we ever imagined -libraries are about a whole lot more than just books. The Sisters and The Dad are quite content visiting the library, reading books, creating challenges, and occasionally posting on the BFWP; The Mom is trying to put down her books (once in a while) and learn more, research more, share more, steady and slow. We are learning though, as it often happens, that everything is connected --information, the internet, libraries, books, education, and people. 

So now let us Focus on Libraries, here are a few things we learned this week!

There is quite a bit of buzz about books, libraries and their shaky future in the information age. Last week The Chronicle for Higher Education published an article by Robert Darnton titled 5 Myths About the 'Information Age' which shed light on (and debunked) these 5 myths:

1. "The book is dead." 

2. "We have entered the information age." 

3. "All information is now available online." 

4. "Libraries are obsolete." 

5. "The future is digital." 

In case you are worried: the book is not dead, we've been in the information age for a while (nothing too new there), only a tiny fraction of information is available online (really, think about it!), libraries are NOT obsolete (in fact they are busier than ever), and as far as the future being digital --well you cannot digitize everything, can you? Read the full article, enjoy.

Want a "Geek Ticket to Paradise?" Get your Library card! Linda Holmes, the host NPR's entertainment and pop culture blog Monkey See, just got her library card, by pure coincidence during National Library Week. Linda shared all sorts of goodies about the truth about the library from her point of view:

"The point I'm trying to make is that as a pop-culture-adjacent person, you may think that public libraries are not particularly relevant to you. But I felt like since we've talked about movie pricing, e-book pricing, and a lot of other business models, it was only fair to bring to your attention my experience with this bizarre business model that's so crazy it just might work."

Read the whole story visit Monkey See.

Also in the news are public and school libraries --cuts and closings. On Saturday Pam Munoz Ryan, beloved children's author, wrote an op-ed for Sign On San Diego, the website of the San Diego Union-Tribune. She explained, 

"library programs need the public’s support now more than ever. We cannot afford to lose the academic enrichment that a library brings to a school community. Please urge your congressional representatives to restore the federal budget for libraries in the coming year. " 

She pointed out the need for librarians, "a library without a librarian often becomes stagnant and falls into disrepair. Imagine a classroom without a teacher, or an orchestra without a conductor." We agree, librarians are essential. She closed with a great suggestion: "let’s choose to be a literate society."  For the full article "Improving literacy through school libraries" click here. For more on Pam Munoz Ryan visit her website. 

If you are interested in daily updates what's happening in the library world and bibliophile heaven, follow us on Facebook and/or Twitter --we try to keep up on all the latest, we'll post the highlights here when we Focus on Libraries.