KVkeshavpuramlibrary

Columns from the Librarian

BEST FRIEND FOR A THINKING SOUL

Surabhi Ghoshmoulick

Librarian Shift 1

Books are the food for soul. A book is the lifeline of a thinking man. Hold a book in your hand and you have a feeling of a friend. It is the repository of all human emotions. You can talk to it, know the unknown things and you can even discuss things with it as you go through the pages. For ages, numerous sources of knowledge have been stored in books. There is no monotony in the world of books as you hop on and off from one book to another. You have the choice of reading a book and not reading a particular book. There are good books and not-so-good books and in some cases, bad books. Young people, especially students, should be guided to read good books on universal subjects and subjects of their own interest.

Books let you fly like a bird. You can ride the imaginary world of a book to go to the days of Mayan civilization, take a cruise with Tintin, unravel the mystery of Space, or simply go down to see the wonderland of Alice. There is endless scope to let your imagination fly without being physically lifted. On the way, you make friends from distant countries in Europe, Africa or Asia. Above all, you get to know that this world is beautiful and full of varieties.

Library is the best source to look for good books. It is the storehouse of different kind of books at one place. It is sometimes difficult for students to buy expensive books but these can be procured by the library of a big institution like a school. Not only textbooks and reference books, libraries maintain a wide range of books varying from novels to sports journals. Libraries provide arrangements for readers to sit comfortably in a room and read the books and magazines; they even lend out books to the beneficiaries. There are two important books which you may not find in a library. We will mention them later.

A library is not complete without a librarian. The librarian has the responsibility of maintaining the books and magazines in good condition, keep record of buying and borrowing of books and labelling the books with a specific number as per the subject matter. Most importantly, the librarian has the responsibility of guiding the readers to good books on different subjects. Students can be vulnerable to subjects which may not be healthy to intellectual growth. Librarian keeps an eye to weed out those bad books and establish a healthy reading habit among the students. The librarian has the privilege to interact with the students directly and listen to their choices. School can make additions in the library accordingly.

Reading a book does not mean abandoning everything. You can be a book-lover and even a book-worm; still you have to connect with the world through various functions. Physical activity, sports, creative pursuits and classroom learning are the most important aspects of a student’s life. As I said, there are two more books to learn from – the Book of Life and the Book of Nature. Once outside the library, you must learn and adopt from the Books of Life and Nature. They are the ones to guide you through. Before that you can store as much knowledge as you can from the repository of a library. The rest is for developing wisdom.

Happy reading. Best wishes to you all.