Welcome to my blog - a collection of thoughts and musings on the world of writing, books and all those wordy type things.

Showing posts with label the Guardian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the Guardian. Show all posts

Monday, 18 February 2013

Loving Our Libraries

It's been hard to miss the hoo har generated by Terry Dreary's recent comments that libraries are a 'Victorian institution' and have no place in today's digital age.

I don't know if he had any idea of the furore that his pronouncements would kick up, but I don't think that such speeches by any author are helpful when we are battling to keep our libraries open. Everyone is entitled to their opinion - and my opinion is that everyone is entitled to access to a library.



Mr Dreary has been fortunate enough to make a lot of money, and as such, is probably more than able to buy any book that takes his fancy. Most of us are not in this position and as such, rely on our libraries to access to reads that we may not otherwise be able to enjoy. Not to mention their use in relaxation and research.

Author Matt Haig wrote a great piece in the Guardian about his love of libraries. I don't know whether Mr Dreary has read it, or whether he'd be swayed by it. Possibly not. I and many others, however, most certainly agree.