Brilliant post! I love your writing style. I’m happy to report that our neighborhood library is thriving! My children and I visit sometimes multiple times per week. They have incredible activities and contests. xx
This is a naive and uninformed post. I'll speak from an American perspective but....Public libraries aren't being forgotten. Most are doing exactly what you suggest they do: diversify their programming and services, expand what constitutes circulating collections, offer access to more and more multimedia digital resources, etc etc. (Also analog media like books and DVDs are still being checked out. Not everyone has access to streaming services.) All this while funding is on the decline and the cost of everything is increasing, and the people who work in public libraries are being overworked, underpaid, while also being expected to basically operate as a social services staff. I am a lifelong patron of public libraries AND a librarian and so I appreciate the spirit of this post but I'm irked by the implication that "the model needs to change". It has changed, tremendously, and continues to, largely because of the ongoing hard work of (usually grossly underpaid) library staff.
Thanks for your feedback! I think the model has changed in some geographic areas but not in all. That is precisely my point, to encourage other libraries to take up these newer initiatives and for people to check them out if they don't know about it. I am glad to see that in America libraries have adopted the model I have seen in Europe. However, in my area of Canada (that is what is informing my post and what I expressed as my anecdotal experience in comparison to living in Italy). I have seen a slower response. I recognized at the end, that my childhood library has made strides and that makes me super happy (see the quote "Upon further research of my hometown’s library, I noticed that they are starting to implement some of the programmings I see in Bologna’s library"). I even admitted that maybe the public library is not dead. Which in the case of Bologna it is fairly busy and I assume it is because the model has changed, showing a changed model (like in your library) has worked which is great. I just wish that for my hometown in Canada.
I also recognize that the dying of public spaces is as a result of privatization. I fear the impacts that it could have not to mention exactly what you stated about funding and poor working conditions for librarians like yourself. My writing was intended for all but particularly people in my age group who may have frequented libraries as children but have "forgotten" (or I should say, frequent less) libraries.
Respectfully, I do not see how I was naive as I recognized exactly what you expressed in your comment. I can't speak for your library (sounds like a place I would definitely visit!) I am highlighting what I have seen in my community. Both where I was raised and where I currently live. This was in no way demanding more work to be done by library staff in particular, but rather sparking a thought in readers to think about what they would want to see in their community library and possibly asking for that in their municipal government (or whoever oversees libraries)
Brilliant post! I love your writing style. I’m happy to report that our neighborhood library is thriving! My children and I visit sometimes multiple times per week. They have incredible activities and contests. xx
I am so glad you liked it and happy to hear that your kids are enjoying the library experience, it left a lasting impression on my childhood.
Absolutely! Same. They've always brought so much comfort and escapism. xo
Public libraries are SOOOO overdue for a comeback
right! i am so glad someone else agrees
This is a naive and uninformed post. I'll speak from an American perspective but....Public libraries aren't being forgotten. Most are doing exactly what you suggest they do: diversify their programming and services, expand what constitutes circulating collections, offer access to more and more multimedia digital resources, etc etc. (Also analog media like books and DVDs are still being checked out. Not everyone has access to streaming services.) All this while funding is on the decline and the cost of everything is increasing, and the people who work in public libraries are being overworked, underpaid, while also being expected to basically operate as a social services staff. I am a lifelong patron of public libraries AND a librarian and so I appreciate the spirit of this post but I'm irked by the implication that "the model needs to change". It has changed, tremendously, and continues to, largely because of the ongoing hard work of (usually grossly underpaid) library staff.
Thanks for your feedback! I think the model has changed in some geographic areas but not in all. That is precisely my point, to encourage other libraries to take up these newer initiatives and for people to check them out if they don't know about it. I am glad to see that in America libraries have adopted the model I have seen in Europe. However, in my area of Canada (that is what is informing my post and what I expressed as my anecdotal experience in comparison to living in Italy). I have seen a slower response. I recognized at the end, that my childhood library has made strides and that makes me super happy (see the quote "Upon further research of my hometown’s library, I noticed that they are starting to implement some of the programmings I see in Bologna’s library"). I even admitted that maybe the public library is not dead. Which in the case of Bologna it is fairly busy and I assume it is because the model has changed, showing a changed model (like in your library) has worked which is great. I just wish that for my hometown in Canada.
I also recognize that the dying of public spaces is as a result of privatization. I fear the impacts that it could have not to mention exactly what you stated about funding and poor working conditions for librarians like yourself. My writing was intended for all but particularly people in my age group who may have frequented libraries as children but have "forgotten" (or I should say, frequent less) libraries.
Respectfully, I do not see how I was naive as I recognized exactly what you expressed in your comment. I can't speak for your library (sounds like a place I would definitely visit!) I am highlighting what I have seen in my community. Both where I was raised and where I currently live. This was in no way demanding more work to be done by library staff in particular, but rather sparking a thought in readers to think about what they would want to see in their community library and possibly asking for that in their municipal government (or whoever oversees libraries)