Public libraries: Not only for books anymore – and no shushing | Human Curiosity

Perhaps you need to study the ukulele, take up snowshoeing or get a telescope for stargazing, however you’d prefer to strive it out first?

Head to your native library.

New Hampshire’s public libraries now supply a wealth of things that patrons can borrow. The “Library of Issues,” because it’s referred to as, is catching on within the Granite State.

“Libraries have all the time been very artistic about addressing the wants of their communities,” says Denise van Zanten, director of the Manchester Metropolis Library, which affords quite a lot of artworks that patrons can borrow.

The Library of Issues is simply the most recent adaptation, stated van Zanten, who’s president of the New Hampshire Library Affiliation.

It’s about “gadgets that you just wouldn’t usually purchase for your self as a result of it’s a one-time use,” she stated. “You possibly can go to the library and borrow it now as a substitute of getting to pay for it or lease it.”

Michael York, New Hampshire’s state librarian, says lots of people “have antiquated ideas {that a} library is for fiction on the primary flooring, and nonfiction on the second flooring.”

Each group in New Hampshire has a public library, all 234 of them, York stated. These libraries always reply to group wants and desires, he stated.

Many libraries started lending art work within the Nineteen Sixties, York stated. Within the Eighties, they supplied VCRs and films. About 20 years in the past, some began shopping for specialty cake pans for patrons to borrow.

Now some libraries supply online game techniques, instruments and telescopes.

“I believe that is the pure evolution that we get in libraries on a regular basis,” York stated. “We acknowledge one thing that must be accomplished.”

York is glad to see libraries embrace new concepts. “I began my profession again when the earth was cooling, and I’ve seen these dramatic modifications that libraries have tailored to,” he stated.

One such innovation was the New Hampshire Downloadable E-book Consortium, which now consists of 205 of the state’s 234 libraries, York stated.

After New Hampshire acquired $2.3 million from the American Rescue Plan Act for libraries, the state library despatched the primary spherical of that funding to all the public libraries. A second spherical was within the type of a aggressive grant program, and a few libraries used that cash to buy gadgets for a Library of Issues, York stated.

Mindy Atwood, director of the Abbott Library in Sunapee, stated her library has been constructing its assortment of “issues” over time. “A part of the imaginative and prescient of a Library of Issues is that complete concept that informs every thing we do as libraries: equal entry,” she stated. “A public library is about shared sources.”

One of many first purchases her library made was snowshoes and poles. “Some folks may snowshoe each day and that’s superior, however some folks simply need to do it every now and then or they need to strive it out,” Atwood stated.

The snowshoes have confirmed in style within the seasonal group, significantly when patrons have mates come to go to, she stated.

One other in style merchandise on the Sunapee library is a 6-foot piano mat — just like the one featured within the Tom Hanks film “Massive.”

“Grandparents who’ve grandkids visiting will test it out in order that then there’s one thing enjoyable at Grandma and Grampa’s home,” Atwood stated.

Abbott Library additionally loans cell hotspots, knitting needles and crochet hooks — and a package of voltage converters for worldwide journey.

“That’s one thing that’s nice to personal collectively,” Atwood stated. “As a result of within the city of Sunapee, we’re not all touring internationally on the identical time. It’s housed on the library and other people don’t have to purchase their very own; they’ll simply borrow ours.”

D. Scott Campbell, assistant director at Wiggin Memorial Library in Stratham, has been placing collectively a web based catalog of things patrons can borrow.

Some are what Campbell calls “reverse expertise.”

The library loans private CD gamers, a boombox, cassette tape participant and a DVD participant. “We have now a whole lot of techno gizmos like that,” Campbell stated.

Patrons can also borrow path cameras to see what creatures dwell of their neighborhoods. A transportable PA system is a well-liked merchandise amongst native organizations, who borrow it for conferences.

Wiggin Memorial Library additionally has a radon detector, because of a patron who purchased one for his own residence after which determined to donate one to the library in order that different households on the town may verify for the odorless gasoline, Campbell stated.

Some libraries have shaped partnerships to develop what they’ve to supply their patrons.

Libraries in Northwood, Pembroke, Pittsfield and Epsom efficiently utilized collectively for grant funding to create a Library of Issues for every facility.

“We have been making an attempt to concentrate on gadgets that will be enjoyable for our patrons to make use of,” stated Donna Bunker, director of the Chesley Memorial Library in Northwood.

Her library now has a cotton sweet machine, a cover tent, a scorching canine steamer and a popcorn maker. Extra sensible gadgets embody an electrical backyard tiller and a carpet cleaner.

And if somebody desires one thing that one of many different three libraries has, they’ll borrow it from that library, Bunker stated.

Bunker used the Library of Issues herself when her daughter acquired married final summer season. They borrowed the cover tent and the recent canine steamer for the reception.

Greater than 100 public libraries in New Hampshire now have telescopes to lend, because of a program of the New Hampshire Astronomical Society.

Pete Smith, library telescope program chair for NHAS, stated this system dates to 2008, when considered one of his group’s members determined to donate a telescope to his native library in Tamworth.

Within the 14 years since, NHAS has positioned greater than 150 telescopes in New Hampshire libraries. Counting on donations, the group purchases the telescopes, which members customise to make them simpler for amateurs to make use of, Smith stated. Additionally they keep the telescopes without charge.

Smith stated libraries and his group have a shared objective. “Our mission is about schooling and instructing the general public about astronomy,” he stated “Libraries have an identical mission, if you’ll, in educating the general public on no matter matter.”

This system that began right here in New Hampshire has now gone nationwide and even worldwide, Smith stated. “The idea of libraries lending out telescopes simply actually took off,” he stated.

NHAS is now increasing the library program to incorporate binoculars that can be utilized for stargazing, Smith stated.

Campbell in Stratham stated his library was one of many early adopters of the telescope program. “It’s the granddaddy of loanable issues right here in New Hampshire,” he stated.

That inspired librarians to think about lending out different “issues,” he stated. “In some unspecified time in the future we found out if we are able to flow into a telescope, we are able to completely flow into a CD participant or no matter,” he stated.

A consortium of area people organizations developed Monadnock Grows Collectively, a seed and power library created with grant funding from the Cheshire County Conservation District.

Gail Zachariah, head of engagement and youth companies at Keene Public Library, stated her library affords patrons vegetable and pollinator flower seeds, gardening instruments, seed rising kits and even canning gear. Some deliver seeds again to the library once they harvest their gardens.

The Keene library has embraced the Library of Issues idea, she stated. In style gadgets embody robots, ukuleles, stitching machines, a film-to-digital converter, board video games and a soldering package.

Sunapee’s Atwood, incoming president of the New Hampshire Library Affiliation, sees all this as a pure evolution of the mission.

Public libraries have been created at a time when books have been prohibitively costly for many individuals, she stated. “And so this concept of sharing the sources of books, making it equally and publicly obtainable to everybody, there was an understanding that was good for our society,” she stated.

As society has modified, so have libraries, Atwood stated.

When VCRs have been in style, public libraries invested in films, she stated. Now Abbott Library lends Nintendo Change video games — a choice Atwood defends to skeptics who query why a library would supply such issues to younger patrons.

“It actually goes again to that mannequin of shared sources,” she stated. “Wouldn’t or not it’s a disgrace if solely the households with youngsters who may afford to purchase these video games got the chance to study and develop in that manner?”

Manchester’s van Zanten shares that imaginative and prescient.

“We’ve all the time tailored, and if we see a necessity locally, we attempt to fill it as a lot as we are able to inside our mission,” she stated. “Serving to folks with issues that they both can’t afford or don’t need to purchase is form of enjoyable.”

That makes libraries much more important on this technological age, librarians say.

“So long as we maintain increasing our imaginative and prescient for a way we serve the general public, we keep related to folks.” Sunapee’s Atwood stated.

In the meantime, one stereotype about libraries is historical past, librarians say. “We don’t shush in libraries anymore,” Atwood stated.

Certainly, Manchester’s Van Zanten stated public libraries at the moment are busy group facilities, with lessons and packages for all ages. “We strive to not go round shushing folks,” she stated. “We’re normally those making the noise.”

York pushes again towards any suggestion that libraries are out of date.

“Libraries are right here to remain,” he stated. “This nonsense that libraries aren’t wanted anymore due to the 24-hour information cycle and Twitter and Elon Musk and everyone else — nonsense.”

“We’d like libraries, and libraries will survive.”