Y Ddraig Goch

July 07 2025 - Libraries

Prompt: Library "A library is thought in cold storage." Herbert. Samuel Do you go to a public library? Are libraries still important in our lives?

***

That makes libraries sound cold and unwelcoming… or clinical like the seed bank… A safety net for when everything goes wrong in the world and society is forced to live in the real world once again – not the digital one. Yes, they are full of information and ideas that are housed there on shelves and between covers until someone comes along to find them, but so are most things.

Libraries have evolved. They are not just static, brick buildings anymore. I have kindle unlimited, which means I can swap books in and out at the drop of a hat from an online library at 02:00 when insomnia has set in, or when I’ve just finished the first book in a series and want to find out what happens in the second immediately… it’s not good for my patience level or my insomnia, but I don’t have to leave the comfort of my own home. I will then go and buy the book to add to “my at home library” as a little souvenir – sometimes in paperback and hardback…

There are still public libraries, although I admit I do not use them, but I know many people who do, and I think they still play an important part in our communities. I have a friend who uses the library the old fashioned way – to read books (crazy I know), another uses the e-book function. I know writers who purposely go to the library to write because it’s quiet and helps them focus. Kids/students who go there to study and use the facilities – printers, copies, computers etc… if they don’t have them at home, or if home isn’t the best place to study… or be. The libraries around us are also multifunctional and serve as toy libraries and as places for the community to connect and meet. There are often baby and toddler groups there for story time. They often also house detailed, historical information on the local community; films, pictures, newspaper articles etc… most of this is available online, but it’s also handy to have access to it locally.

And if the Day After Tomorrow, taught us anything they are a great place to wait out a snow storm…