Friday, January 3, 2014

But none of them look cozy

I found the post below on Facebook this morning. There are many worthwhile ideas here. There are many beautiful libraries...and some that don't ring my esthetic chimes at all. But there are none that appear to have a cozy circle of comfortable chairs; a flickering fireplace on a cold day; a bright corner with books and toys for the youngest children; programs that bring a community together...

In my opinion, it is the community libraries that meet the needs of a broad range of people that will "save society," not the monumental structures pictured here.

Perhaps I am being unkind. Perhaps there are (at least at some of these) wonderful programs that can't be portrayed in a single photo. And no doubt there are people who find exactly what they need in one of these buildings, something they would not find in a community library. But for me, I'll take a small library with friendly, knowledgeable staff and a cozy place to sit. A view of the natural landscape is a plus. [And of course, inter-library loan is important, too!]

http://www.buzzfeed.com/wordsbydan/28-quotes-about-libraries-on-photos-of-beautiful-l-b6bd

1 comment:

  1. Yeah...I notice that these kinds of round-ups and inspirational posts always show academic or special libraries, either in historic buildings or with weird, probably award-winning architecture (white? who has a WHITE library?). Those kind of posts always kind of annoy me - the library as Temple of the Book is soooo outdated. Children's services are where it's at and we need some respect for the fun, the cozy, and the customer service of small public libraries! This is mostly big libraries, but it's a better article, imo! http://livability.com/top-10/top-10-libraries-children or these libraries in LA http://redtri.com/los-angeles/best-kids-libraries/

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