By BRAD MELTZER
My grandmother recently passed away, and when it came time to write her eulogy, my sister and I spoke about dozens of different memories. But there was one memory that was so vivid to both of us: When my grandmother took us to get our first library cards. We both had an almost silly pride in those cards. Back then, we didn’t have money, but those cards gave us books, which served as passports to a better life.
In my Brooklyn Public Library, my life was changed. Enlarged. Yes, I can now say it helped me become an author. But what was far more important was that it helped expand the way I viewed the world. There were suddenly places to go, adventures to be had.
And that’s why I worry that the more than 68 percent of our population who hold library cards may lose their opportunity to take advantage of free library resources such as books, Internet access and library business centers that help support entrepreneurship and retraining. Full story
Publishers stand accused of “nonsensical” policies on e-book lending to libraries. So, with nearly $1bn spent on e-books last year in the US alone, what does this mean for the institutions already at risk of closure?
