In Defence of Libraries

The progressive shutting down and permanent closure of public libraries is proceeding apace with many local authorities throughout the land.  In many areas there has been stout opposition to these plans but far too many local authorities seem determined to proceed down this road to ignorance.  Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide library services but many are choosing to interpret that duty in a less than rigorous manner. Gloucestershire and Somerset Council was determined to close 21 of their libraries until campaigners took them to court and won an order that instructed the council abide by its duty.  Incredibly, Brent Council in North London has spent £150,000 defending its plan to close half of its libraries — one of which, apparently, was opened in 1900 by literary giant, Mark Twain.  Many well-known people have been joining the campaign to keep the libraries and they should drag in as many supporters as possible.

I have to admit that I rarely use libraries these days but this is because I have about 2,500 books of my own.  But I still support all those who are fighting for libraries to stay open.  When I was a child I went to the local library up in Atherton all the time taking out great piles of books that I read at top speed. That library in a small northern industrial urban district was a gem.  There was so much in there to help educate a growing boy.  The schools taught us to read and the library provided the material to read.  I read — and came to love — Dickens, Conrad, Graham Greene, Somerset Maugham, J.B. Priestley and many another as well as more popular detective stories of such as Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie.  And books of history, travel, geography, etc.  Today, we are concerned about the educational failings of young people and this surely is not the time to cut the libraries.  An ability to read well is a fundamental of gaining an education and when many homes no longer have books, we should be encouraging the use of libraries not closing them down.   These days half the homes in Britain have no books in them whatsoever.  I could not even imagine a home with no books but such a situation will make it more difficult to get young people reading more books.

It is said that electronic book reading is the future.  I am all in favour of the Kindle book reader but this will not replace the hardback and paperback book.  There is nothing like holding the real book in the hands and curling up to read it.  One other thing; once a book has been published and purchased it can be read at any time in the future — and over and over again,  An e0book depends on technology and while it may be possible to store 100,000 books on a single machine, the latest technology and the machine itself will always be needed to allow anything to be read.  A book is complete in itself and will be readable, if looked after, for a thousand years.

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