Second year of Library Ireland Week starts today

You would not necessarily associate loud and energetic music with a library, but as part of Library Ireland Week, which starts today, that is what you will get in Mitchelstown, Co Cork, this Saturday.

The local Comhaltas group will be giving a session in the library; just one of hundreds of events going on this week.

Library Ireland Week is now in its second year. Throughout the State, libraries will be encouraging more people to use their services by holding a number of celebratory events.

Currently, 850,000 people in the Republic are members of public libraries, and the Library Association of Ireland (LAI) would like to see this number continue to increase.

"We see libraries as being the last non-commercial public space in towns," explains Kate Flanagan, the LAI's president. "Membership is going up all the time, partly because libraries offer more now and because of the growing number of book clubs in the country. This week is a way of reminding people who are not members that we exist."

Refreshingly, it is still the case that public libraries charge only a token fee to join, thus making them accessible to everyone.

Among the events planned around the country during the week are workshops, lectures, exhibitions, story-telling and concerts. Tomorrow, at the DIT in Tallaght, there will be a "walk-in problem-solving workshop". On Wednesday, in Monaghan, members of the African community will participate in story-telling and singing.

It all sounds a bit noisy. So what happened to the concept of libraries being quiet places where you chose your books in silence and were not popular if you spoke above a whisper?

Kate Flanagan admits that noise can sometimes be a problem in smaller, older buildings, but says: "It is more common now when building new libraries to allocate community space to allow for all this activity. Libraries have changed. There are far more community-based activities going on in them now."

For a full listing of events go to: www.libraryassociation.ie