Celebrate Books This Week at GRPL
This week the library is hosting the 2nd annual "Celebration of the Book" featuring lectures & workshops with authors, poets, librarians, scholars and storytellers. Ok, I know what you're thinking. Books? Shouldn't we be hosting the "Slow, Painful Demise of the Book", you say? Not so! It is true that electronic media like radio, the internet and television have come to dominate much of our attention and play a more active role in learning over the past few decades. But like those newer media, the book has its own positive attributes that have helped it stand the test of time.
Since the Gutenberg Bible started rolling off the presses at a blistering speed of 2 pages an hour, books and reading have flourished (to put it mildly) around the globe. Books are symbols of learning,
free speech and culture. They still affect our social and political discussions (look no further than Washington Post columnist Bob Woodward's recent book) and play a part in shaping public opinion. These effects are increasingly being created by other media like the internet, but not to the exclusion of the printed page. The book has a unique tactile quality, lending to a very different reading experience from scrolling on a computer screen. There is also the artistry and workmanship of the books themselves. These things make books desireable as collector's items as well. Try getting Lemony Snicket to sign your e-book. It ain't happenin'.
New media are wonderful tools for learning and discovery. They have their place in the ever-increasing list of communications technologies and will shape the future of our world. But there is still room for the humble and powerful book. The library is a perfect example of how all types of media can coexist to offer us the broadest possible well of information. So that is why we celebrate. We celebrate the mass medium that started it all and continues to retain it's power in our electronic world. We celebrate reading, writing, drawing, collecting, binding, printing and everything else involved in the creation and use of a book. And most importantly, we celebrate the quest for knowledge books represent.
This week we'll be featuring an amazing list of lecturers and programs for all ages. Tonight author Thomas Dilley speaks on Grand Rapids history through postcards. Tomorrow, Tim Skubick, host of the television program Off The Record and a 35 year veteran of Michigan politics, will discuss his new book and the 2006 gubernatorial race. Then on Saturday & Sunday we offer over 25 authors, poets, lecturers, children's performers and presenters with a variety of topics and activities. This is not to be missed, and it is all free.
So take some time out of your busy week of e-mails, talk radio, blogs and TV shows to celebrate the art form that started it all. Join is at the Main Library for the "Celebration of the Book". Maybe even pick-up a book while you're here. They are portable, powerful and don't have Google ads in every margin. Imagine that.
Visit our October programs calendar for a complete schedule of the week's programs.