LibrarianActivist.org

There was a very thoughtful article in last week’s online Library Journal, about the disconnected adult population in the United States, and how (public) libraries can and should be helping them.

The article states that “roughly 3.8 million people nationwide between the ages of 18 and 24 are neither in school nor employed,” or one in six. Many groups call these young people - who identify as adults and are often facing very adult library information needs, such as materials on parenting, job finding resources, information about going back to school, etc. - the “disconnected youth.” They may bring their kids to our storytimes, or use our public Internet terminals, but we can do more by helping them build literacy skills and social networks, and by linking them up with community agencies for job or education assistance.

The article also astutely notes that we often “lose” these groups of adults when they are in middle school, so we should also focus on programs and services to this age group to, in part, help maintain and strengthen links to the community and to literacy at this age.

Britain’s biggest specialist book chain, Waterstone’s, asked its 5,000 staff to name their favourite five books written since 1982, the date Waterstone’s opened its first store. The list features the cream, both male and female, of the modern international literary world of the last quarter of a century - from Umberto Eco and Bill Bryson to Robert Harris and Ian McEwan, from Margaret Atwood and Jung Chang to Zadie Smith and Zoe Heller.

- JH

A 100-year man from Huntsville, Ontario, who only learned to read at age 93, is being called a “poster boy for literacy.”

“In an emotional acceptance speech, after which he received a standing ovation, Brazier said he decided to learn to read after his wife of 64 years died. She had read everything to him.”

The man was one of many winners in this year’s annual Canada Post Literacy Awards.

(Thanks to Karina for the tip.)

- JH