National Library Week (April 23 - 29, 2023) is a time to celebrate our nation's libraries, library workers' contributions, and promote library use and support.
The theme for National Library Week 2023 is There's More to the Story, illustrating the fact that in addition to the books in library collections, available in a variety of formats, libraries offer so much more. Many libraries, including Pima County Public Library, now lend items like museum passes, telescopes, and seeds.
Library programming brings communities together for entertainment, education, and connection through book clubs, storytimes, movie nights, crafting classes, and lectures. And library infrastructure advances communities, providing internet and technology access, literacy skills, and support for businesses, job seekers, and entrepreneurs.
National Library Week events
The Monday of National Library Week - April 24, 2023 - will mark one year since the launch of the Unite Against Book Bans campaign. To honor the occasion, we're calling on readers, advocates, and library lovers to fight back against censorship in a national day of action to defend, protect, and celebrate your right to read freely. We're calling it Right to Read Day.
On Tuesday, April 25, 2023, it's the perfect time to highlight the critical role library workers play in keeping our libraries running. Let’s celebrate and recognize the amazing STARS who work in libraries.
Nominate a stellar library worker! Nominations may come from library users, students, children, colleagues, faculty, or management.
Thursday, April 27, 2023 is Take Action for Libraries Day, and we invite you to show your support for libraries in however you can! Visit the Library! Donate! Volunteer! Tell a friend.
History of National Library Week
First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and observed in libraries across the country each April. All types of libraries - school, public, academic and special - participate.
In the mid-1950s, research showed that Americans were spending less on books and more on radios, televisions and musical instruments. Concerned that Americans were reading less, the ALA and the American Book Publishers formed a nonprofit citizens organization called the National Book Committee in 1954. The committee's goals were ambitious. They ranged from "encouraging people to read in their increasing leisure time" to "improving incomes and health" and "developing strong and happy family life." With the cooperation of ALA and with help from the Advertising Council, the first National Library Week was observed in 1958 with the theme "Wake Up and Read!"
