CHENNAI: At a time when book stores and libraries in the city are witnessing a slump in readers owing to the latter’s switch to e-books, standing tall despite the challenge is Eloor Library on North Boag Road that still holds the slogan of “For the love of good books” under its name.
The 21-year-old library was established in 1994 in Chennai to satisfy avid readers who needed to have a taste of new books that was not available in government libraries. Imbued with an old-world charm, the library does not fail to impress anyone who visits the place.
Once you enter, you are hooked on to the books and the quiet atmosphere in the library is a delight for book worms.
Ravi, the head librarian, has been part of the library since its inception. Also a witness to the recent collapse in book sales, he says the number of book readers have strikingly declined in the past 15 years. “Both the number of members and the number of books that used to be borrowed have decreased to half of what it used to be. People who used to take three books per visit borrow only one now. Lack of time for the members and technological advancement in terms of e-books are a reason for this drop. The pleasure of holding a book and flipping through the pages cannot be compared to e-books,” he said.
Ravi points out that school children are the most frequent visitors to the library from the time it was established. “A lot of people borrow books from the children and women category. Books that are in the series format are the most regularly borrowed in the Young Adult category. The Geronimo Stilton series, Percy Jackson series, Time Riders and The Maze Runner are some of the regularly borrowed books. The library has about 60,000 books on various categories and subcategories.
With female members preferring romance novels, cookery books and health care over other books, those written by authors Danielle Steel and Sandra Brown get a lot of patronage.
The library has loyal members who have been visiting it for the past two decades. There are 10,600 registered members out of which only 2,000 are active. A `800 refundable deposit has to be paid to get a lifetime membership. The reading charges are just 10 per cent of the original cost of the book and a member can borrow a book for two weeks. One can borrow books worth `1,200 in one go.
Seetha, a graduate who has been a member of the library for the past 10 years, says the library has a major role in shaping her as a bibliophile. The staff in Eloor, who are bibliophiles themselves, do their best to maintain the library and are seen to be in love with the books that have newly arrived.
“The library is the best place for Indian writings and translations. The library lets me explore literature that reflected our society. It developed my interest in books. And the hunt for books is a unique experience here. You get to browse books and rearrange it as you want,” she said.
With authorities having no plans of promoting the library, the edifice stands tall, waiting for more readers who prefer actual books over their digital counterparts available on the internet.