Endless, incredible loot
Main reading room, the U. S. Library of Congress, Washington DC
Photograph by Carol M. Highsmith, public domain via Wikimedia Commons
“The richest person in the world – in fact, all the riches in the world – couldn’t provide you with anything like the endless, incredible loot available at your local library. You can measure the awareness, the breadth and the wisdom of a civilization, a nation, a people by the priority given to preserving these repositories…” — Malcolm Forbes
I’ve read that the public library is “the poor man’s university,” and I think that’s an apt description. However, it can also be a rich person’s playground, as Forbes attested. Are you enjoying this wonderfully accessible wealth? If not, I encourage you to check out your local library (no pun intended) and if it’s not to your liking, explore others within a reasonable drive until you find one that fits your idea of a fun place to browse, dream and relax.
Even if your closest library is somewhat lacking, most have resources that allow you to tap into online databases and inter-library loans to find whatever you most want to read or study. Many libraries offer free classes, music and movies, electronic readers for checkout, and other items. But the books are enough to draw many of us back again and again.
A rainy spring day is a great time to hunt for an absorbing book. You’ll want to have one or two on hand for those nice warm days that will be calling you outside to spend a few minutes relaxing in a lawn chair or on a park bench. Visit a library soon, and capture a bit of loot to treasure!
This post was first published seven years ago today. The original post, comments and photo are linked, along with two other related posts, below. These links to related posts, and their thumbnail photos, do not appear in the blog feed; they are only visible when viewing the individual posts by clicking on each one. I have no idea why, nor do I know how they choose the related posts. That’s just the way WordPress does things.
- Posted in: Uncategorized
- Tagged: books, collections, enjoyment, libraries, literacy, literature, public library, reading, riches, shelves, wealth, wisdom
Defeat Despair 
Hello Ms. Julia, I love this post. When I was a child, my parents would take me to the local library. I did not have much growing up, but the trips to the library showed me the wealth of knowledge that were contained in books. Until now, I love to read books that have great stories or share new mindsets. A past boss always said you don’t know what you don’t know until someone tells you. Over the years, so many books told me what I don’t know, and I become a better person with this new knowledge.
Hi Ben, it’s nice to see you here in the comments section! I’m so glad you love the library. I grew up always wanting to go to the library in school and also the public library, and even as a child I used to say I wanted to be a librarian. Going to library school at the University of Hawaii (where I got my MLIS in 1996) was one of the greatest experiences of my life, and I loved my years working as a librarian. I don’t know how I would have survived without books to teach me, make me laugh and keep me company when I would have been very lonely otherwise. It’s wonderful to know that you have this treasure too!
Julia, When I walked home from Armijo High School, most days I stopped by the library. At that time, I wanted to read ALL the Clara Barton books. I have loved reading as long as I can remember. The thrill of discovering new words propelled me to read more books! To this day, I regularly check out books & learn new, exciting things. It’s such a pleasure to hear your love of learning & libraries!
Thank you, Mary Ann. The love of reading is a lifelong gift, as both of us can attest. And how wonderful that our local libraries are so full of discovery, all ours at no added cost (not free, because taxpayer dollars fund it) and with electronic options, more convenience than ever. I hope we never take this amazing blessing for granted!