In addition to Valentine’s Day, February is the month for self-proclaimed library lovers. What could be better than an entire month dedicated to libraries?

Beacons of information and cozy reading corners, libraries are “like an island in the middle of a vast sea of ignorance, particularly if the library is very tall and the surrounding area has been flooded,” as Lemony Snicket said. In 2009, the Wisconsin Library Association convinced Governor Jim Doyle to proclaim February to be Library Lovers’ Month.

There are a handful of National Days to honor the library, as well as librarians and their patrons, which you can check out here. Otherwise, you can simply visit the library and read your personal selection of loaned books. Or, lend someone else a book of your own.

Armijo’s librarians have reached out to Solano County Library in regards to a more formal recognition of the month’s theme this year. “School libraries sometimes do acknowledge February as ‘library lovers’ type promotion, sometimes giving a shout out to teachers and students that are frequent users of the library,” said Ms. Denise Monegato. “February is also a month that most libraries will feature romance books, of course, as well as highlighting books by and about African-Americans as it is National Black History Month.“

February is a great month to visit your local library to read immersive stories, not only about love, but also of a genre of the Young Adult (YA) category called “problem novels,” described as books that address “personal and social issues across socio-economic boundaries and within both traditional and non-traditional family structures” (Morris, 2014).

Black History Month is a perfect time to read prize-winning novels such as The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas or Dear, Martin by Nic Stone; and guaranteed to be available at your local library.

Anytime you’re able this February, show your local library some love, even if it’s your own at home. As Lemony Snicket, has also said, “A good library will never be too neat, or too dusty, because somebody will always be in it, taking books off the shelves and staying up late reading them” (A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Ersatz Elevator).

Sources

• FRIENDS & FOUNDATIONS of California Libraries. (n.d.). Library Lovers’ Month. Library Support. Retrieved January 19, 2021, from http://www.librarysupport.net/librarylovers/#:%7E:text=The%20Wiconsin%20Library%20Association%20
• Library Lovers’ Month. (n.d.). Days of the Year. Retrieved January 18, 2020, from https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/library-lovers-month/
• Ideas and activities for Library Lovers Month. (2020, January 31). Softlink. https://www.softlinkint.com/blog/february-is-library-lovers-month/
• Monegato, D. (2021, January 19). Email Interview.
• Morris, M. (2014, May 29). Is YA a Genre or a Category? Margarita Morris. https://margaritamorris.com/is-ya-a-genre-or-a-category/