The Librarian of Basra
Posted by: Alan in Book Reviews, Books, Easy Non-Fiction, Libraries
While I posted an Easy Books roundup just yesterday I felt this Easy Non-Fiction title I stumbled upon last week rated a post of its own. The Librarian of Basra is a true story about Alia Muhammad Baker who is the librarian in Basra, Iraq. When war comes Alia fears that her library and its 30,000 books may be destroyed. She begins taking the books home and storing them safely and arranges for other library staff members to do the same. While the library does end up getting burned and destroyed Alia and her colleagues are able to save fully seventy percent of the library’s collection.
I found this to be an exceptionally effective example of good Easy Non Fiction that manages to convey relatively complex information in a sufficiently simple way to be accessible to our youngest readers. And reading the story of this remarkable librarian I couldn’t help but wonder to what extent the librarians and other staff I work with would go to to protect our collection. I dunno but it made me think. For both library staff and the kindergarten crowd this one is Highly Recommended.
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April 10th, 2008 at 10:17 pm
There is an excellent book on cultural destruction. It covers many examples of library destruction in Iraq, India, Bangladesh, and many other places. Burning Books and Leveling Libraries: Extremist Violence and Cultural Destruction (Hardcover) by Rebecca Knuth (Author) . I think Ali Muhammad Baker is also mentioned in this book. Libraries are important for managing a cultures integrity.
April 12th, 2008 at 1:01 pm
The librarian’s effort to keep the knowledge intact will be handed down from generation to generation.
April 12th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
Well, Onchong, given the emphasis and resources the library I work for devotes to children’s materials and programming I certainly have hope that we are raising a new generation who will in time run the library as well as we do today. It’s a happy thought. I will see if I can put in a hold or an ILL for Burning Books and Leveling , BC Might be an especially good fit in the fall we observe banned books week….
April 15th, 2008 at 3:55 am
As the saying goes: if you want to erase the culture of a nation; burn, destroy, ransack, pilfer, or whatever, their libraries.
Look, where’s the Library of Alexandria now. The famous library of Ashurbanipal? Gone. What a pity. Poor Iraqis, it happens before and it happens again..