It’s great to see authors like Marilyn Johnson delve into the world of what a modern library actually looks like. Here’s an excerpt from This Book is Overdue that summarizes it pretty well:
Somewhere between Jeanette Moodie’s frontiers and Lena Kjellar’s is the story of a profession in the midst of an occasionally mind-blowing transition. A library is a place to go for a reality check, a bracing dose of literature, or a “true reflection of our history,” whether it’s a brick-and-mortar building constructed a century ago or a fanciful arrangement of computer codes. The librarian is the organizer, the animating spirit behind it, and the navigator. Her job is to create order out of the confusion of the past, even as she enables us to blast into the future.
I also appreciate the acknowledgment that a librarian helps you find your information efficiently, as well as the nod to libraries as a community center. Our local public library is offering business and network classes and helping people with their job applications. In a time where the majority of our population is being hit hard economically, a hub with free access to information is crucial.
Here’s a link to the article from NPR.
