You know, I really love books -especially books for children - and I really love to share them with children and parents and families that come to visit the library. Everyone I talk to is so pleased to get some guidance on how to pick out decent books for their significant little person.
Recently I had lunch with a good friend who is the former principal of my own children's high school. She is a grandmother of 3. A highly intelligent, highly educated woman. She described trying to go into the public library in the San Francisco area with her two grandsons, ages 18 months and 3 years. Well, one little guy went one way and the other little guy went the other way and here was Grandma trying to pick out a picture book. Picture books are spine out and the titles are disguised. So trying to ferret out a winner proved to be nearly impossible.
She needed a librarian.
So where are the librarians? Well, they're over there putting some young person on NickJr.com or trying to help them print outfits from the Barbie website. They're trying to help someone forward an email or print from their Yahoo account. They're cleaning the pee off the chair at the children's computer.... today we're expected to major in technology.
I think of the little minds who are consuming cheese curl computer games. I would much rather be feeding them something truly nurturing- something that will build them from the inside out. A book.
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