“Libraries are screwed….”

I just finished reading an article in the March/April 2012 of The Horn Book Magazine written by Stephen Roxburgh about The e-Future.  In this article Stephen quotes a librarian named Eli Neiburger by saying that “Libraries are in the business of owning and sharing content.  The faster the format becomes outmoded, the faster libraries are screwed.  The brand of libraries is books: the library is ‘the book temple.'”

I disagree with this statement and frankly get annoyed when someone says to me “Oh, you’re a librarian?  Are you scared you won’t have a job in 10 years?”  Libraries are in indeed a “book temple,” but they are also so much more than that!  Libraries are a place to learn, be entertained, meet new people, etc.  Libraries today are community centers offering programming for infants to seniors, offering Internet access to citizens who don’t have access at home, and yes even offering books.

Although libraries continue to buy books, many libraries also offer digital content and even e-books.  I, myself have battled with the idea of e-readers and yes, I do have one, but honestly, I continue to read books in the physical form far more often than I read books on my e-reader.  This may be in part because I am a children’s librarian and children’s books are not as easily accessible on e-readers, although they are getting better by the day.  And I don’t buy books for my e-reader either, I only borrow what is accessible from my library’s Overdrive options.

Thankfully, Stephen goes on to say that he’s not worried about librarians because “librarians have always understood that their job is to provide content …we’ll always need librarians to organize, track, and deliver content.”  So, for now, I guess I don’t have to worry too much about my job!