Some fear the much loved world of books
Is threatened by Kindles or things called “Nooks.”
But, no new-fangled electronic caper
Can quite replace the printed paper.
No matter how well built or planned,
It can’t replace the heft in hand
Of heavy, hearty, healthy tomes
Stiff coverings and spinal bones.
Remember “Once upon a time”
And illustrated nursery rhymes?
The texture and color of every page
Has broad appeal at any age;
But since the electronic marvels came,
All books have weighed and felt the same.
So, Lord, preserve the books we’ve known,
The texts through which we’ve learned and grown;
The histories and stories true,
Recounting the marvels that others do;
The challenges of men and nations,
Complete with appropriate illustrations.
And finally, I must confess,
I love the escapist books the best:
Novels, especially mysteries, Vampire sagas and E.S.P.
Books about everything in creation,
The harvest of man’s imagination.
Remember, someday if the lights go out,
There’ll be no other way we can learn about
The lore and the lessons of all that’s past,
Except… through printed books that last.
Then rightly librarians will be heroes,
And electronic readers will be…well, zeroes.
So, bless the guardians of our lore…
The record of all that has gone before,
And the intellectual prophecy
Of the wonders and terrors that yet may be..
(And they’re all at the Nineveh Library.)
Amen.
