
AUGUST 21, 2015 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, AUGUST 21, 2015, 12:31 AM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
The Ridgewood Public Library has hosted a number of interesting events aimed at all age groups over the summer.
A brand-new program that proved to be very popular was the Summer Reading Club for Adults.
“We had 100 adults register within the first week,” said librarian Kerri Wallace.
In addition to being a good place for adults to meet and discuss literature, the club also served as an opportunity for its participants to earn rewards for reading.
“Participants received a raffle ticket for every book/magazine/ audiobook/ebook that they read or listened to,” Wallace said. “We had weekly drawings for prizes like a new bestselling novel and computer class passes.”
While the club didn’t follow an exact theme, it did offer a few events focused on famed author Harper Lee.
“We ran a week-long series to celebrate the release of ‘Go Set a Watchman,’” Wallace said.
The club also hosted a book discussion on “To Kill a Mockingbird” and showed the film.
For children, the library has been following a theme for many of its events called “Every Hero Has a Story.”
https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/reading-club-joins-adult-league-1.1396017
A raffle ticket?
They are trying to bring readers in with a prize, like children.
The mission of the Library must have shifted to community programming. We have access to books and research info on our home computers.
The library offers an array of group activities as they try to stay relevant. They partner with outside businesses as they promote the programs. The line between business sales/development and library program is not clear. Does the library endorse the services of a UBS financial advisor? Should every small business operator in Ridgewood have access to library resources as they pitch their product?
In their advertising of events, how do they separate programs that are sales pitches from those that are library programs?
When I get tickets to a free dinner at a restaurant sponsored by someone from Morgan Stanley I know what the agenda is.