Save libraries day #savelibraries

5th February is Save Libraries day, organised by the UK's Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) "looking for help from across the globe with a day of action in support of UK public library services" which are being seen as soft targets in the current swathe of public sector cuts. The webpage with suggestions is at http://www.cilip.org.uk/savelibraries. You can tweet about it using the hashtag #savelibraries, to say why public libraries are important. The poster on the right is one of a set created from old wartime posters by Phil Bradley: the complete collection is here. There are a whole range of reasons why public libraries are worth saving: not just in terms of books, but for internet access, as a comfortable "third place" to learn and relax, a place to come across new ideas and so forth. However, just as important is the work of librarians in helping people to get the most out of information and books, for all aspects of peoples' lives.