"That's awesome Julia! You go for it."
Nor was it:
"What a perfect job for you. I could totally see you as a Librarian!"
No, no. Instead his response was:
"A Librarian? But Julia Libraries are probably going to be obsolete in a decade! And not only that but books will probably cease to exist except digitally too."
Really? Libraries OBSOLETE?!?! Books? ONLY DIGITAL?!?! I know I've used this video in one of my posts before but I think you will agree that its appropriate to use it again:
I don't know about you but the thought of Libraries becoming obsolete is absolutely horrifying to me. Like "I should write a dystopian novel about it" horrifying. Ever since I was a kid the Library has been my favorite place to go and hang out and just the thought that a few generations from now there could be kids that don't even know what a Library is? I don't even want to go there....
And on to my Dads second point about books going digital: Is it true? Could there eventually be a time when books go all digital? This scares me almost as much as the thought of no Libraries. I'm not a fan of eBooks. I realize that they're saving the environment one tree at a time but honestly I like my bookshelf full of books even if we had to kill a few trees to get them. I love the shiny covers and the smell of the pages and I especially I love the feeling of cracking open the cover and turning the pages. I DON'T WANT TO LOSE THAT MAGIC!!!! My mom made a good point on this subject. She told me that she doesn't think it would be possible for literature to go all digital simply because of the fact that its easier for digital files to get destroyed or lost. I think that's true to an extent but what if someday they just make a couple of physical copies or maybe just one to put into the Library of Congress? I hope this never happens but what if it does?
I don't honestly think that what my dad said is true but what if it is? Maybe it won't happen for a long time but what if someday there really aren't anymore Libraries? What if someday children aren't reading books and instead just staring at screens? What happens then?
LITERACY FOUNDATION Cinderella (english) from Bleublancrouge on Vimeo
Without Libraries around or physical books for children to enjoy how will stories and the magic of literature live on?
I'm curious to hear your thoughts on this subject. Do you think Libraries are here to stay? Or do you think there is a slight possibility that they could cease to exist? And what about books? How do you feel about the possibility of them becoming all digital?
Julia :)
This is one of the things I am most scared of! We must think alike because a world without real books would be one of the worst things I can imagine. I strongly oppose the use of e-books, and I feel that not only does this technology detract from the rich history that paper copies have, but they ruin our eyes. Staring at a screen all day? Isn't that exactly what doctors tell parents not to do to their kids? People say how selfish it is to waste paper on books, but it's selfish of e-book companies to introduce such a hazardous product, in my opinion. For all of our sake, I hope that libraries and paper books never become obsolete.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. I absolutely love my shelves of books and I can't stand reading on my iPad. It gives me a headache and it just doesn't have the same feel.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the whole 'it's killing trees' argument is just stupid. For one, we can always plant more trees. We ARE planting more trees. Secondly, trees aren't as important as everyone says they are. Most of the oxygen on earth comes from microscopic organisms. Trees barely contribute anything. So, frankly, any time people talk about trees being essential for oxygen production, it's complete hogwash.
So, basically, I love paper books. I love the look and the feel of them. To me, something just feels so much more official when it's an actual book. As weird as it may sound, the writing actually feels more professional when it's a book rather than an ebook. Ebooks just feel unprofessional to me. Maybe I'm behind the times, but I'm in no hurry for ebooks.
Your comments on "there being no books" and "having children just stare at screens" remind me of the books Fahrenheit 451 and Matched xD
ReplyDeleteAs a librarian, I really hope this is far from the truth. I do think libraries are going to change, they're changing now, and we're well aware of the changing roles that we have as librarians. The sad truth is, that when our computers are down for any reason, the library is very quiet but it isn't dead. There are so many other things that we do! We have programs for kids, teens, and adults. We teach people how to use resources, both on and off line. We search for things they have no idea how to find. We act as a community center a lot! We also offer eBooks and so we offer classes on how to use eBooks and eReaders. As long as people need help, information, want a place to go, want their kids to have a good place to socialize, are in need of free resources, I don't think libraries are going anywhere. They might not always look the same but we have so much more than books.
ReplyDeleteI also love books and can't seem to get involved in them on my nook the same way that I can get involved in a physical book so I hope books never go away.
I'm on the same page as you on this matter... I don't want real books to dissapear, and I don't think it will. Not now anyway. But I fear it will happen in a few years.
ReplyDeleteI mean, it's like car, we're so much expecting cars to fly and seeing this in our future that people are trying to make it true. I don't want that, and I don't want people stop making books and just make digital books.
Let's hope really hard it won't happen and that people will fight for it.