For 42-year-old Kavitha, who is an avid reader, it is not going to libraries any more to borrow books. “I mostly prefer e-books as it does not cost much, reduces travel and does not occupy space as books,” she says.
Many like Kavitha prefer Kindle or online reading rather than going to a library.
“The number of libraries in the city are rising. But not the number of readers,” says Sathya Raj Kumar, a writer and owner of a private library at Saravanampatti.
P. Thyagarajan, who has a library at RS Puram, shares the same views. “Out of 5,000 members in my library, only 1,200 come regularly,” he says. And, most of the book borrowers are women and children, he adds. Yet, there are many who want to encourage reading habit in children. “It is a good sign that members of my library bring even children as young as four years to my library and leave them here so that I can guide them on reading,” says Jaleel, owner of a library in Saibaba Colony.
A few schools in the city have started taking initiatives to develop the reading habit. But, this should be done in all the schools throughout the city to have a good impact in reading habit, says Mr. Thyagarajan.
“Apart from the storytelling, we conduct writing sessions for children which helps identify their own style of writing,” says Archana Dange, head of Helen O’ Grady International, Tamil Nadu. Once a child starts writing on its own , the urge to read develops. “Children are naturally good story tellers, so we encourage them by suggesting the right books to them. The training programmes which we conduct for librarians and teachers guides them to motivate children towards reading,” she adds. Increase in the awareness among the parents to improve the reading the habit makes them send their kids to library, she says.
Other than subject oriented books schools must start recommending extra books to boost children’s reading habits and to increase their intellect, adds Mr. Thyagarajan.
