This week is national Libraries Week (8–13 October), which affords us all an opportunity to celebrate the nation’s much-loved libraries.
Libraries are about so much more than books and this year, with a focus on wellbeing, libraries across the country are showcasing how they bring communities together, combat loneliness, provide a space for reading and creativity and support people with their mental health.
I think this is a brilliant initiative. A few weeks ago, I was privileged to be appointed as one of the Crime Writers’ Association Libraries Champions. We have three Champions based in England, Scotland and Wales; I am the Scotland Champion because I live in Dumfries and Galloway.
Key elements of our role include linking libraries who want crime writers as speakers with the CWA’s local chapter convenors, encouraging libraries to spread the word about the Crime Readers’ Association, supporting libraries under threat where appropriate, while remaining apolitical, and seeking further ways to build closer links for the good of libraries and CWA members.
Libraries have always been close to my heart because my father was a librarian. Indeed, my first summer job was in a library and I grew up surrounded by books.
We should always remember that libraries are precious and, at a time when public sector cutbacks threaten so many of them in the UK, writers need to do all they can to support and celebrate them.
You can find out more about Libraries Week at http://www.librariesweek.org.uk/
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