Summary of the Essay "On Libraries" (Class 12: Com. English/With Questions-Answers)

On Libraries

- Oliver Sacks

Brief and Simple Summary:

The personal narrative essay 'On Libraries' written by Oliver Sacks is about the writer’s childhood memory. According to him, he was bookworm. While growing up, the writer grew up in an oak-panelled library left by his father, where there were many books. His father was a scholar, so the shelves of his library were full of books written by different writers. Not only his father but also his mother loved reading, so she had a large collection of literary books.

The essayist had a good habit of reading books in libraries. While spending his time in libraries, he found his natural curiosity for reading. When he was there, he was the master of his own time and mind. He even got many ideas through his reading. Through his habit of spending time in libraries, he also knew that learning could be possible without any specific structure of education. In fact, he did not like school because he had to listen to the teachers passively and obey their instructions. So, he liked to learn in libraries freely by choosing the books of his choice. Besides, he achieved liberation through his self-directed learning.

The writer moved to New York City in 1965 where he started living in a small apartment. In the small place, he had difficulty to read and write. But he went to other libraries, where he sat at a table surrounded by piles of books. At the same time, he was awarded a full scholarship at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, where he found his reading and writing comfortable. In the college, he made a strong bond with a fellow reader, who was also a bookworm. They had a close connection because they shared their knowledge with each other. He continued reading books in the library. At that time, students ignored bookshelves because of their access to the materials on the computers. Some libraries started throwing or destroying old books, but he didn’t like that. For him, that was a murder or crime. In fact, libraries became his source of learning, achievement and freedom.

Some Questions-Answers

a. Where could the author be found when he was late for lunch or dinner?

- The author could be found in an oak-panelled library when he was late for lunch or dinner. The room where there was the library was his favourite room, so he could be found absorbed there.

b. Why did he dislike school?

-He disliked school because he had to listen to his teachers passively and obey their instructions. In fact, he liked to learn freely in libraries by choosing the books of his choice.

c. What did he feel about at the library?

-At the library, he felt free to read many books of his interest. The environment of the library was so comfortable and quite, so he roamed through shelves and enjoyed reading as many books as he could. He also enjoyed quiet companionship of other readers.

d. Why was he horrified when he visited the library a couple of months ago?

-He was horrified when he visited the library a couple of months ago because most of the books were thrown out of the shelves and digitized. He was also deeply saddened in the loss of centuries of knowledge. Besides, thought the books was digitized, he didn’t know how to used computers. So, he was horrified.

e. A proverb says, “Nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library.” Does this proverb apply in the essay? Explain.

-The proverb “Nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library” is a beautiful proverb, which talks about the beautiful and colourful experience of spending time at a library. It is true that any libraries give wide range of knowledge and information about any topics to any studious people. If people make their habit of spending time in libraries, they get extreme joy, peace and satisfaction. In the essay, the writer Oliver Sacks, who is a bookworm, spends much time in libraries in different places and gets extensive knowledge, joy, peace and satisfaction. Like any studious people, the writer spends much time in libraries and enjoys the library environment to enter into the world of knowledge, which is not achieved by attending any formal education.