Comments on: Terry Deary: a vested interest acting against his own interests. Rebuttal, with main responses so far

By: Sean Black

Sean Black — Sat, 16 Feb 2013 10:55:30 +0000

Like a lot of people, Terry’s comments made me angry. Having had a chance to reflect though, I think Terry might have actually done (albeit unintentionally?) a huge favour to the campaign to retain libraries and protect them from this ideologically extreme coalition government and its slash and burn approach. Certainly, he made me think a lot more deeply about why I think libraries are vital. Like another commenter, and as a fellow author, I think people commenting, especially via social media, should take a deep breath and count to ten before they post the more personal comments about Terry. Channel your anger and energy into the campaign to save libraries at the national and local level. Scottish authors led by Tony Black are beginning to actively campaign against the decision by Moray Council to close half their libraries. What will work is political pressure, and making it clear to politicians, especially at council level, that they will pay a price at the ballot box for this short-sighted cultural and economic vandalism. Even if you leave aside the moral arguments, there is a very strong economic case for retaining and expanding library provision. We desperately need our libraries and library staff so let’s not get side-tracked.

By: LC

LC — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 14:34:56 +0000

What an amazing display of personal insults and hatred aimed at a man, rightly or wrongly, giving an opinion. Whoever thought one author could get peoples blood to boil so? From what I’ve read he isn’t saying CLOSE the libraries hes saying there has to be a change to make them a viable service in an ever changing world. Try aiming your fury at the people who CAN influence a change in the right direction. Shame on all of you.

By: Robert

Robert — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 10:36:44 +0000

Well said, and well argued. In my own experience, father of a three-year-old boy & living in one of the more deprived areas of London, I have been amazed by the excellence of our local library. It is always packed. The childrens’ section is excellent, well run, and thoughtfully managed. It is always full of the little people who will grow into the readers (and even book-buyers!) of tomorrow.

It is not libraries that have damaged book shops, but the growth of internet sales, and the efficiencies of scale with which bookshops (to my regret) cannot now compete. On the plus side, it has made book-buying cheaper and easier for many people.

My son has often loved a library book so much that I have gone on to purchase it for him. But for all the children, not all of whose homes are as madly bookish as mine, the library is no less vital a resource, in so many ways: a place to meet, a place which fosters an excited engagement with literacy, a place where information on all sorts of matters is available to those who most need it and yet are least able to access it elsewhere.

Perhaps an interim solution would be for libraries not to stock any of Mr Deary’s books any more! I can promise him that I will not introduce his work to my children.

By: RB

RB — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 06:27:42 +0000

Neil Gaiman ‏@neilhimself Selfish & stupid, shortsighted & sad. Mostly selfish. Terry Deary gets avaricious & anti-library: http://bit.ly/15de7Ve

He then goes on to have numerous chats with followers on PLR, libraries etc.