I LOVE LIBRARIES for the most basic reason. Books. I love to read. And, for me, Buckham Memorial Library, only blocks from my home, is my go-to source for reading materials.
The week of April 6-12, National Library Week, I’ve been celebrating public libraries and all they offer. And that’s well beyond books. Libraries have evolved from a shushed setting of a stern librarian sitting behind a desk to warm and welcoming community spaces. I so appreciate the way libraries connect and grow community. I value the vast and varied services and programming they offer.
Through the years, I’ve enjoyed many author talks in the Great Hall at Buckham. I’ve even participated myself in a poetry reading and a local authors event. Likewise, I’ve attended author talks at the public library in neighboring Owatonna. In Northfield, I’ve gone to a Hispanic Heritage Month celebration. I’ve checked books out from both those nearby libraries and from all over Minnesota through the inter-library loan system. Almost any book is available to me with only the click of my keyboard and mouse. You’ll even find my writing in books available at the library. That includes This Was 2020: Minnesotans Write About Pandemics and Social Justice in a Historic Year, an award-winning book published by the Ramsey County Public Library.
If I didn’t have access to books through libraries, I would struggle. Many evenings I settle into the recliner and read. Reading is an escape for me and a source of information. That I have the freedom to walk into a library and choose a book is not something I take for granted. As a child, I didn’t have easy access to books given my small rural Minnesota community did not have a library. And now, as public and school libraries face book bannings and funding cuts, I hold even more dear the freedom to choose books from the shelves of a well-stocked library.
I can also choose a whole lot more like movies and music CDs. My library also offers Adventure Kits which hold yard games, hobby-focused items (for bird watching, cake decorating, rockhounding, etc) and more. There are 3D printer labs, a Makerspace, ukulele lessons, art and gardening classes (even a community garden), a seed library, free state park passes… The list goes on and on.
Libraries truly are hubs for learning, and not just from books, magazines and newspapers.
Occasional art exhibits in the hallway linking my library to the Faribault Community Center also teach me. Currently, the traveling exhibit “Testify: Americana Slavery to Today” spans that space. It’s an informative and emotion-evoking panel display of photos and information that left me deeply touched and near tears. In the past, I’ve viewed portraits of immigrants and second-generation immigrants by local artist Kate Langlais as part of her “I Am Minnesota” project. Creating an art gallery in a corridor that would otherwise serve as simply a functional connector between two buildings seems a wise use of space.
Libraries truly are about connecting. Connecting us to stories, knowledge, information and ideas. Connecting us to each other. Young parents gather in libraries for storytime. Youth meet in my library for pizza and book discussions. The library brings music and other entertainment to the community for kids. Years ago, my son learned to yo-yo from Dazzling Dave, a national yo-yo master. Dave is still teaching Faribault kids to yo-yo during summertime library programming.
My son, who now works in software research and development, taught himself to code by checking out thick books on coding from the library. And that was in junior high. I’ve checked out books on writing and photography to grow my skills. But mostly, simply reading improves my writing.
I could go on and on about how much libraries offer and how much I value, appreciate and love them. So much draws me to the library. “Drawn to the Library” themes National Library Week. Whether the library in my community or one in a nearby city or a Little Free Library in a front yard, libraries are vital to our communities, to our country, and to me personally. They are an open and (mostly) uncensored place to access knowledge, to widen our world, to connect and grow community.
© Copyright 2025 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Your local library sounds so wonderful, Audrey. You did a great job explaining that so much more happens at a library than just checking out books. They offer their communities many valuable resources. Thank you for supporting all the libraires!
Like you, I love libraries and will always support them.
Libraries are an integral part of the community and offer so many services. My local library has a seed library for planting a garden. I love the museum passes offered too. There is always a jigsaw puzzle in play on one of the tables. The librarians really get into a theme as well as the appreciation of art, community, local authors, et. al. – the sky is the limit in what they can get up to. Thanks for sharing – this made my day since I love to read and explore libraries and bookstores 🙂 Happy Reading, Happy Exploring, Happy Adventuring – Happy Day!!!
Your local library sounds like a fabulous place centering community, art, etc. Thanks for sharing this. Happy reading!
Thank you for this tribute!
— From a retired librarian who, too, as a “farm kid,” did not have easy access to books.
You are welcome, dear former librarian. I think if I had not become a writer, I would have become a librarian.
You’d make a good one!
Awwww, thank you.
I so agree with you about the very important roles that libraries play in a community. in a way they are a hub, offering a place of respite in a storm, when we lose power, a place of learning when we want to know about something, a place of beauty and culture and community… I even picked up some native plant seeds there. it is a place where I still meet children to help them when they need support or tutoring,where I find movies and books and art and music and so much more. I feel that we are so much richer for it. my post tomorrow is about ah international library in a rather unusual place and it serves the same purpose, bringing books to people visiting from all over and connecting them through books.
You summarize well all that libraries encompass. I’ll read your library post shortly. What would we do without our libraries?
We are so incredibly important
🙂
oops, they )
I’m with you, Audrey. Libraries ROCK! They’re essentially cultural depositories. Our collective selves, history, progress, flaws, and achievements can be found in the stacks. In a way, they’re like the best colleges in the world. So much information at your fingertips, waiting to be learned.
Well summarized. I fully agree.
I love libraries for all the reasons you mention. I will be posting a blog piece tomorrow and referencing this post. 😉
Thank you, Valerie. I look forward to reading your blog post.
[…] to celebrate libraries. I love libraries, for all the same reasons my friend cites in her blog: In celebration of public libraries. She’s a great writer. Read it if you can by clicking on the title. I also posted a blog about […]