Libraries Are for Showing Our Kids That Books Are Important 

Libraries are for showing our kids that books are important before we could ever explain it to them. So we build them a library in every town, a library in every school, an unmistakable giant mothership library in the middle of downtown, and we show our kids that these buildings aren't filled with Pokemons or Skittles or Star Wars Legos, or any of the things kids think are important. These buildings are filled with books. And when you walk in there, you are quiet. Like in a church. And when you leave with a book, you take care of it. Then you bring it back. Because what's in that book is a valuable thing we all share.

When I was a kid growing up in Pittsburgh, my Mom used to take me to the library every couple of weeks, and I would bring a box to take the books home. I don't know why I didn't bring a bag, which would have been easier to carry, but I can remember the thrill of unpacking this box of books when I got home. This morning, I started reading a new book, and I opened it with the sense of excitement and anticipation that I learned from unpacking those cardboard boxes from the library.—Kevin Guilfoile

About Kevin Guilfoile

Kevin Guilfoile worked briefly in media relations for the Houston Astros baseball club before becoming a founding partner of a Chicago design firm. He is the bestselling author of two novels, Cast of Shadows and The Thousand, which have been translated into more than 25 languages. His latest book is A Drive Into the Gap, a memoir about fathers and sons, baseball, and a 40-year-old mystery surrounding Roberto Clemente's 3,000th and final hit.