Authors Praise Libraries

Libraries are places for new beginnings. Whether you are getting your first library card, learning new computer skills or planning a trip, the library is the place where your story begins. The books that fill libraries are there because authors have worked tirelessly to write them and then try to get them published. Many authors were inspired to write because of early experiences at libraries and with librarians.

Rita Mae Brown said "When I got my library card, that's when my life began." Brown certainly has paid back libraries. Her books include “Rubyfruit Jungle” in 1973 and recently “Cat of the Century” and are on most library shelves.

When asked about libraries author Isaac Asimov replied, "I received the fundamentals of my education in school, but that was not enough. My real education, the superstructure, the details, the true architecture, I got out of the public library. For an impoverished child whose family could not afford to buy books, the library was the open door to wonder and achievement, and I can never be sufficiently grateful that I had the wit to charge through that door and make the most of it."

"When I was the kid,” Judith Dupre remarked, “Saturday was the very best day. The day I could go to the library and stock up on books for the week! Books were my magical passports to the whole wide world. To this day, libraries thrill me, and yet feel as familiar as home."

Jean Fritz simply stated "When I discovered libraries, it was like having Christmas every day.”

Dave Donelson recalls a story from his student days. "My favorite librarian is the one who gave me a conspiratorial wink when she caught me sneaking out of the children's room and into the adult stacks at the grand age of eight."

“Every day, libraries across the country are helping people create their own unique stories,” says an American Library Association spokesperson. “Whether it is by opening a book and exploring distant lands, or by learning how to use new technologies to find a job, people at our library are creating new stories for themselves.”