I'm jumping the gun a bit in celebrating libraries, because next week, April 14 - 20, is National Library Week, a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April. It was first celebrated in 1958. The theme this year is "Communities Matter @ Your Library" and the Honorary Chair is Caroline Kennedy. The purpose of the observance is to honor the contributions libraries and librarians make to our communities and to encourage library support and use.
Many libraries hold author festivals during and around National Library Week, inviting local authors to attend and give presentations, talk to patrons, sell and sign books, etc. I am participating in THREE library author festivals in Colorado in April:
Saturday, April 13, 2013, 12:30 - 6:00 PM
Mountain of Authors
East Library Branch of Pikes Peak Library District
5550 N. Union Blvd., Colorado Springs, CO 80918
Saturday, April 20, 1:00 – 3:00 PM
2013 Longmont Library Festival's Colorado Author Open House
(part of their 2-week You Belong Longmont Library Festival)
Longmont Public Library
409 4th Ave., Longmont, CO 80501
Sunday, April 28, 2013, 1:00 – 4:00 PM
2013 Meet the Faces – Colorado Author Open House
Englewood Public Library
1000 Englewood Pkwy, Englewood, CO 80110-2373
Is YOUR local library planning an event or events for National Library Week? What are they? Do you plan to attend?
While a child, I made weekly trips to the library with my mother and siblings and checked out the maximum number of books I was allowed each week. I devoured them during the week and looked forward to the next visit, when I could check out more books. Those trips fostered my lifelong love of reading, and my love of writing that developed as a result. My wish is that EVERY child has access to books in their own language to encourage them to develop a love of reading and a lifelong thirst for knowledge. Do YOU have special memories of visiting a library as a child? Share them!
Whether your libary is large ...
... or medium-sized or small,
I hope you will visit it this week or next. Check out a book or audiobook or movie, use the computer, ask a reference question, attend a program, thank a librarian for what they do, make a donation. And take a child with you!
10 comments:
Libraries are so important...and sadly many have faced terrible funding cuts.
We take full advantage of the library programs in our community from the story time for our youngest to the summer reading contests and the monthly reading program for our 3rd grader. I am good friends with one of the children's librarians and help her out with quotes as to the library's role in our lives whenever I can. I know that for me, I could never afford to read in the volume that I do if it weren't for the library! The week of April 14 is spring break here, so we will be definitely spending some time at the library!
Thanks for your comments, Kathleen and Kelly. Kelly, I'm so glad you are introducing your children to a love of reading and to their local library at a young age!
We at school are always closed for spring break so we really don't do anything out of the norm for that week. I will be at my local library for my knitting group if nothing else on the Wednesday. I'll have to think about this one....
Mare
Mare,
Maybe your knitting group could go on a "scavenger hunt" at your local library during your meeting for books (both fiction and nonfiction) related to knitting!
I'll be speaking at the library in Colby, Kansas next week. My first trip to the library had to of been in my mother's arms for she loved the library,loved books, and read to us every night. That library is in Libby, Montana. When my brother & I had the pink-eye and had to stay in a dark room until we healed--this is back in the olden days--our mother sat on the other side of the door and read to us.
Great story, Eunice, about your mother reading to you when you were young! Good luck with your library event next week.
Our local library just announced yet more cutbacks!
This Friday I'm joining our Old Town Library folks for a Drop Everything and Read flash mob in Old Town Square (Fort Collins). I think we had 300 or so people last year.
I loved the Library when I was a kid and when my girls were young. I will be going again soon with my new Grand Son! Thanks for the article.
Post a Comment