Without libraries… We wouldn’t have so many wonderful things

A few eager people are waiting in the meeting room. A dozen or so more are milling around restlessly near the public access computers in anticipation of the Kindle Workshop which is due to start. Deciding not to join them yet I head off to inspect the DVDs. I quickly scan the documentaries then search through the movie titles and pick out a few that seem interesting. I then grab a couple of magazines.

My husband, meanwhile, is busy gathering a collection of books by his favourite authors. In a few minutes he comes looking for me but by then I am standing by the Graphic Novels engaged in conversation with a friend I had not seen for many years. We decide not to attend the workshop. Instead, the three of us stand with arms laden with books, magazines, DVDs and a couple of CDs and continue our conversation which gradually morphs into a discussion of the changing role and nature of libraries today. Libraries, we all agreed are nothing like they used to be. No one is ‘shushing’ us as we talk. There are no nasty glances from fellow library-goers busily reading newspapers nearby (or from the librarians). The atmosphere is relaxed, a pleasant place to spend some time on a lazy Sunday afternoon.

The late well-known sci-fi author Ray Bradbury was once quoted in the New York Times as saying, “Libraries raised me… when I graduated from high school, it was during the Depression and we had no money. I couldn’t go to College so I went to the library three days a week for 10 years”. I often think libraries raised me too. I can’t estimate the number of hours I have spent in libraries. But I digress.

Once simply depositories of books to borrow or to refer to, libraries are now on enthusiastic missions to reinvent themselves. To these ends, libraries are changing. Mona Vale Library (where I spend most of my library-time these days) now offers internet and e-reader workshops (like the one I missed), access to digital magazines through Zinio and digital audio books through One Click Digital as well as free WiFi for up to two hours a day. Library Manager, Cathy Howe informed me that they are in the process of investigating adding e-books to their collection once licensing issues are ironed out.

I think the best digital innovation is being able to access the library catalogue from home, reserving it with a click and picking it up after a phone call letting you know it is waiting for you. And, if you enjoy researching online, with a few more clicks you can access the State Library or National Library’s digital collection of books, magazines and newspapers, dating back to the 19^th century. Although… there is still something delightful in browsing the shelves and randomly selecting titles that capture your attention in the moment.

Local libraries in the 21^st century are also evolving in other ways. They are fast becoming acknowledged for their active role in community building turning into social hubs where a wide range of activities that could cater for just about anyone, are run. Mona Vale Library hosts free reading groups, knitting groups, author talks and movie nights. Assistance is available for those working on their family histories. Local libraries are becoming seen as a relaxing place to establish meaningful connections to the community. “A neutral space where serendipitous encounters with people and ideas take place”, Richard Watson wrote in an article called ‘Public Libraries: If We Didn’t Have Them, We Would Have to Invent Them’.

So… back to my serendipitous encounter. After a good fifteen minutes of chatting we say our goodbyes and take our treasured finds to the check-out desk. “This should keep us busy for a few days,” I comment to the librarian who replies with smile. Then as we slowly walk up the ramp out from the magical world of reading, listening and watching in all its wonderful forms into the stark reality of a mid-Sunday afternoon, I remember another Ray Bradbury quote: “Without libraries what have we? We have no past and no future,” to which I would now add “and no wonderful afternoons such as these in the present moment”.

Do you visit your local library? What do you enjoy about it most ?