Library Week 2008 – What’s Your Story?

News Release
Monday 18 August 2008

Library Week 2008 – What’s Your Story?

Library Week, officially launched tonight in Wellington, is the annual celebration of our nation’s libraries and librarians that has been taking place for over 35 years.

This year’s theme “What’s Your Story? Nou te kōrero” aims to highlight the varying reasons why people use the library and challenges us to think about the library as a place of more than just books.

Glen Walker, President of the Library & Information Association of New Zealand Aotearoa (LIANZA), says ``People visit their library to borrow books, music, movies, and games and to access the internet for information, entertainment and now social networking sites including Facebook, MySpace and Bebo.’’

``Libraries have become a social hub far beyond the book exchanges of the past and those New Zealanders who use their libraries well know that they are getting unparalleled value – our goal with Library week is to tell everyone else about Libraries and invite them in too.’’

Libraries are vitally important to the community and this week public, school, academic and special libraries all over New Zealand will be participating in a range of national and local events to showcase what libraries have to offer.

A first for New Zealand libraries is their involvement in the ‘Living Library’ project where readers are invited to borrow a book with a difference – a living book in the form of a person. The “books” may come from all walks of life and the project is aimed at breaking down stereotypes and prejudices as readers are given the chance to discuss any assumptions and preconceived notions they may have. This concept originated in Scandinavia and has been gathering momentum around the world.

The `What’s Your Story?’ writing competition kicks off on Monday where year 6, 7 and 8 school students will contribute to a national interactive story to win book prizes for themselves and their school library. The theme and introduction for the story was developed by award winning children’s author Bernard Beckett.

On Wednesday 20 August at 10.30am Library Week’s ever popular read-aloud event ‘NZ’s Biggest Storytime’ is back again. Libraries all across the country will be part of a simultaneous reading of Piggity-Wiggity Jiggity Jig by first time New Zealand author Diana Neild and illustrated by Philip Webb. Libraries will be inviting special guests to read the story and past participants have included television and radio personalities, authors and mayors from across New Zealand.

For Living Heritage Day on Thursday 21 August, public and school libraries will team up to celebrate Living Heritage; an online bilingual initiative that enables our young people to be storytellers in their own language by creating websites which preserve New Zealand history and culture in a digital form for future generations.

Library Week is managed by LIANZA (the Library and Information Association New Zealand Aotearoa) and supported by Te Rōpū Whakahau. Library Week is sponsored by Creative New Zealand, the National Library of New Zealand, UNESCO, Caffe L’affare, Anco Print and Scholastic.

For more information about Library Week activities go to www.libraryweek.org.nz.

ENDS

© Scoop Media