EDITORIAL: Libraries help build sense of community

The Joplin Globe, Mo.
·2 min read

Mar. 1—According to those motivational posters that have become ubiquitous, Albert Einstein is credited with saying: "The only thing that you absolutely have to know, is the location of the library."

If he didn't say it, he should have. It's a good quote. And true.

1901 E. 20th St., in case you're wondering about the location of our library.

Joplin is blessed with an active, energetic library with a host of programs and initiatives. One of the newer programs is "Joplin Reads Together," now in its second year.

Call it a monthlong community book club that allows people to discuss the book on Facebook (Joplin Reads Together), join in related programs, and then ends with a visit from the author.

Last year, it was Shelby Van Pelt, author of "Remarkably Bright Creatures."

This spring, the book is "The Henna Artist," written by Alka Joshi, who will be coming to Joplin on Tuesday, April 23. (You can read a review of the book this week on Page 7A by Sarah Turner-Hill, the adult programming coordinator at the library.

This sounds like a great opportunity to bring the community together, which is what libraries do.

"Bad libraries build collections, good libraries build services, great libraries build communities," according to R. David Lankes, Virginia and Charles Bowden Professor of Librarianship at University of Texas at Austin.

This month at the library there's a chess night (actually 6-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 5). There's a book swap, and a Pokemon Party and a Lego Build-A-Thon, as well as numerous programs for children and for others.

Author Sidney Sheldon said, "Libraries store the energy that fuels the imagination. They open up windows to the world and inspire us to explore and achieve, and contribute to improving our quality of life."

We applaud Joplin Public Library for all the energy it stores up and brings to this community.

(For more information on Joplin Reads Together, contact Sarah Turner-Hill or Lori Crockett by phone at 417-623-7953 or email at sturnerhill@joplinpubliclibrary.org or lcrockett@joplinpubilclibrary.org. The Joplin Public Library has purchased additional copies of "The Henna Artist" in physical, ebook, and audiobook form. Books are also available for purchase at the Library from the Friends of the Joplin Public Library.)