Lots of travel books are being checked out of Irish libraries as an annual drive gets under way to encourage adults and children across the country to “squeeze in a read”.
Friday was Ireland Reads day – on which people were encouraged to pledge time to read. By Friday evening more than 230,000 minutes of reading had been promised. However, organisers emphasise that reading is great daily habit and not just for one day in 365.
“It seems a lot of people are going away, there have been lots of requests for guide books and our travel section is now half full, indicating that people are travelling again,” said Tracy McEneaney, executive librarian at Waterford Libraries.
Ms McEneaney has also managed to reunite some library members with lost belongings. She recently found €300 in cash tucked into a book returned to Waterford’s Ardkeen Library.
“We did a bit of investigation and found out that a woman had put the money in the book to pay for a relative’s headstone; we managed to track her down through her membership number and she was delighted to get it back,” said Ms McEneaney.
The librarian said they often find money in books because many people use the pages as a safe places to store belongings.
She added that many people are surprised that accessing the 12 million books in Ireland’s library network is free, and there are now no fines for late returns. This benefitted one member who recently returned a book originally borrowed in the 1960s.
The Ireland Reads drive, backed by Libraries Ireland and Healthy Ireland, has a host of ambassadors, including broadcasters Joe Duffy and Rick O’Shea, authors Liz Nugent, Sarah Webb and Marian Keyes.
Ms Keyes said discovering Enid Blyton books at the age of six was “her saviour”.
“From then on, and right to this day, reading is the way that I mind myself. If you think you don’t like reading, trust me, you just haven’t met the right book yet,” she said.
Ms Keyes said reading is her constant companion when she has insomnia. “It takes away my anxiety when I am worried about stuff, which is always, because that’s the way I am.”
She encouraged people who don’t read to not be afraid of books. “It’s meant to be something nice for you, not the opposite.”
Libraries across the country have been holding events to encourage everyone to pick up a book, with more details at: irelandreads.ie.
Library members can borrow 12 million items for free or use the BorrowBox app to choose from over 40,000 ebooks and 30,000 audiobooks. Library members also have free access to online newspapers and magazines.
Ireland Reads is a public libraries initiative in partnership with booksellers, publishers, the National Adult Literacy Agency, Children’s Books Ireland, the Arts Council and Healthy Ireland.