Community library just outside Brasília boasts 10 thousand books
A book in one hand and a football in the other. For nine-year-old André, the cellphone screen does not appeal as much the illustrated story of Romeo and Juliet. As a matter of fact, he found the story of this William Shakespeare guy rather fun—fun enough for André to set the device aside.
“On a cellphone, things are always the same. But books are different,” said the boy, who lives in São Sebastião, 35 kilometers from downtown Brasília.
André is one of the regular readers at the Biblioteca Comunitária do Bosque, an initiative brought to life by a couple of literature lovers: retired security guard Sebastião José Borges, 52, and housewife Dilma Mendes, 58. Its collection boasts more than 10 thousand books, all donated.
Community libraries such as the Biblioteca Comunitária do Bosque may be benefited by the Pontos de Leitura (“Reading Spots”) Award 2023, launched in August 17 by the Ministry of Culture. Under its rules, BRL 9 million will be allocated to reward 300 community libraries for their efforts to promote reading and literature, with a gross amount of BRL 30 thousand for each.
The couple did not expect their idea, conceived back in 2004, to take shape just the following year. Unhappy with the lack of spaces dedicated to culture and entertainment where they lived, the two started to get the entire neighborhood in action—first, with sports.
Next, they saw that books could move the community in novel ways. Little by little, the library room opposite their house was taken over by a myriad of stories that took people on fantastic journeys, just as they had always done with Sebastião, who was always fascinated by Guimarães Rosa and the hardships facing the characters in his novel Grande Sertão: Veredas. “I like reading about the lives of the people from the countryside,” he remarked.
The library was originally meant to open from Monday to Friday, but the knocking on the entrance gate can be heard from Sunday to Sunday. “Our work’s simple. We feel triumphant whenever someone says they’ve put aside their cellphones and computers because they’re excited about the books.”
“Excited” is the also the word used by 54-year-old retiree Lucivalda Lopes when she talked about the books she carries with her wherever she goes. “I don’t watch soap operas anymore. I’m more of a novel person these days. And I often lose track of time!” Now, she is trying to get her son and grandchildren to follow the same path. “I go to the community library on a daily basis,” she noted.
For locals, the library has taken on an even greater significance than the simple collection of books. The cultural center also promotes fairs, festivals, and solidarity campaigns that have made the place famous in one of the most underprivileged regions in the Federal District, where the Brazilian capital is located.
A stomping ground for action takers
In the view of Jéferson Assumção, director for books, reading, literature and libraries at the Ministry of Culture, because of the role played by libraries, they need initiatives to support them—like the call for proposals launched in August. “It’s a step toward the recognition of this mobilization, which brings books to locations that often lack facilities dedicated to cultural activities,” he argued.
A community library, he pointed out, can build connections autonomously. “It promotes diversity and helps tackle inequality. This is crucial. Community libraries are found all over Brazil. The creativity of Brazilians is just huge.”
He believes that a community often starts organizing itself around such places, which serve as a stomping ground for the promotion of culture, going beyond book rentals
“As we read a book, we become more and more equipped to read the world in all of its complexity,” he stated.
Community libraries, he went on to say, “are key to understanding an increasingly fragmented, noisy world, where disinformation abounds.”
