Books, believes Hernando Guanlao, need to live. And they're only alive if they are being read. Thought and effort, time and money went into making them; they will never repay it lying idle in a cabinet or on a shelf. Books need to be set free. So walk by his home on Balagtas Street in Makati, downtown Manila, and it seems books are pretty much all you'll see. Thousands of them, on shelves and in crates outside on the pavement, piled high in the garage and on the stairs, each one free to anyone who wants it.
"People can borrow, take home, bring back or keep," says Guanlao, 60, a former tax accountant, ice-cream salesman and government employee known by all as Nanie. "Or they can share and pass on to another. But basically, they should just take, take!" Guanlao reckons books "have lives, and have to lead them. They have work to do. And the act of giving a book …it makes you complete. It makes your life meaningful and abundant."
Thankfully for Guanlao's faith in human nature, people also give – often people he has never previously met, or doesn't even see: they leave boxes of books outside his door. "What's taken gets replaced many times over," he says. "I don't keep an inventory. But there are a lot of books. They want to be read, so they come here."
The Reading Club 2000, as it is called, began 12 years ago as a tribute to Guanlao's late parents, both civil servants. "They gave me my love of reading," he says. "I wanted to honour them and to do some kind of community service. So I put my old books – and my brothers' and sisters', maybe 100 in all – outside, to see if anyone was interested."
It took a while for people to work out that this was, as Guanlao puts it, a library "open 24/7, and with no rules", but the scheme, offering everything from battered crime paperbacks to fashion magazines, technical manuals, arcane histories and school textbooks, is booming.
It is helped by the fact that despite a 1994 act pledging "reading centres throughout the country", the Philippines, with a population of 92 million, has fewer than 700 public libraries, and buying books is a luxury many cannot afford.
Fortunately, the Reading Club is spreading. Guanlao takes boxes of books into Manila's neighbourhoods himself, on a specially adapted book bike. He has also helped friends set up similar schemes at 10 other sites around the country, and inspired student book drives.
Aurora Verayo, from a town several hours drive from Manila, says she came to see Guanlao to donate books, but he persuaded her to open her own centre. "I'm going a step further and offering reading sessions for children," she says. "This is the start of a movement." Mark, a 16-year-old accountancy student at the Philippine Christian University in Manila, is organising a book drive with friends. "We've collected 90 books so far, and we expect many more," he says. "We're taking them to the barrios next month. Books open minds. A book can take you anywhere."
Taken from HERE.
I think this is a very encouraging story. One has the will to empower the many by doing something others often taken for granted, providing books. And by providing books to borrow, or bring back, or even keep, Mr. Guanlao gives out knowledge to all. Especially those who are unfortunate and unable to buy books. He gives out books for free, without any price to pay. Nowadays as the internet reaches further and furthermore places along the globe, people tend to forget about written books and give less appreciation. Well yeah we can find e-books easily but for those who cant and still unable to acces the internet, written books are still the main resource. What Mr.Guanlao has been doing is just simply touching. In a growing country at vast major city such as Manilla, where the diversity is seen significantly, knowledge is more than just important. It is crucially needed. To build strong generation, education is the strongest weapon. Which is why books lead the way. Because they provide views and knowledge about the world, that’s what youngmen need. And his actions open the way for others to enliven books. Books are just useless written-papers with various covers when they are not being read. Good man Mr. Guanlao for his ideas and actions .
ReplyDeleteThe library made by Mr. Guanlao is very helpful, most especially to the lower class citizens or those with no device that could access the internet. Moreover, It is mobile, is free of charge and provides a variety of books. Adding to this is that the library has over a hundred books and so the people that come over to pick out some books and there would still be an abundance of books left for the other visitors to use. The fact that this idea is being taken further and developed by the likes of Aurora Verayo shows how ones action can inspire a sort of movement that would help the later generation's development. The lack of libraries in the Philippines mean that smaller libraries like this can help smaller communities like villages and towns. Should it be a success, then the Philippine government would take more actions to promote or create more libraries.
ReplyDeleteAccording to a study conducted by Central Connecticut State University in the US, Indonesia is the second worst among the world's 61 most literate nations, only higher than Botswana. It is very disappointing due to the fact that literacy rate in Indonesia is 95.4% (ages 15 and over) taken from index mundi.com. According to my opinion, one of the reason behind this is because citizens in Indonesia especially teenager are still unaware of the importance of reading. Teenagers would rather go on their social media rather than reading news on the newspaper or even magazines. The digital era has taken over way more than what people expected. The article about the free library in Manila had opened my eyes to the possibility that there could be a future for Indonesia’s future generations to be more aware about the benefits that we get from reading. First of all, by reading we could definitely improve our knowledge and fill our minds with information that might come in handy. Besides, reading could improve our vocabulary and analytical thinking skills that will be very helpful in the future. Lastly, I believe that young generations in Indonesia do have the potential to be more critical in the future and we can achieve that by reading more and more books in the future.
ReplyDeleteTo read a book and have your views on the world and your life changed because of it is a great feeling. To share and donate a book that has changed your life, in hopes that it will do the exact same to someone else’s life provides it’s own beautiful and heartwarming feeling. Guanlao’s library is a such a moving story. Reading and being educated through books is a luxury that unfortunately not everyone can afford, as books are expensive to purchase and not everyone can read. But Mr. Guanlao’s library changes that, he provides a platform that allows everyone to read and share books of their own, promoting literacy and the habit of reading for all the citizens of the Philippines. Being a bookworm myself, I agree greatly with his perspective on books. They are timeless beings that carries ideas and worlds of their own, generation to generation, enlightening and opening a person’s mind in one way or another. In the future, I hope not just for Indonesia, but for the whole world to have a free library of their own, so that everyone may be able to experience that wondrous feeling of reading and sharing books and come to appreciate literature more.
ReplyDeleteWhat Guanlo has done is truly an inspiration for other people. As we know that nowadays people are very rare reading a physical book, especially Indonesian. Most people now are prefer to holding their precious gadget rather than a piece of book. Perhaps, what Guanlo did could be one of the solution for the millennial generation to be able to aware of reading books. In Indonesia, the behavior of reading books is constantly decreasing every year. More people prefer to read e-books rather than physical book. Well, we may call it innovation; but sometimes reading through our gadget may easily distracting us from reading. Like for example when there’s notification, we tend to open the messages; when we gets bored we can leave the e-book and start listen to music; or sometimes we prefer to play online games rather reading the e-books. Meanwhile, when we read using a physical book, it can certainly avoid us from those distraction. We can read our book and keep away our gadget from us, so we can really feel the enjoyment of reading book.
ReplyDeleteI believe that reading provides a window to the world. Book is something that will give expand your view of something, broader your perspective, and improve your understanding about something. And what Hernando Guanlao has done is simply astonishing and inspiring. Although opening a small library is not something that will give huge impact to the country, it will certainly give the society – especially the poor – the chance to get more knowledge, develop their way of thinking, and improve the interest of people to read books. Another thing to admire from Guanlao is his belief that books need to live. And his belief that they are only alive if they are being read. With his belief, he lends his books to people and let them borrow without the need to pay or return the book. I think opening library like what Guanlao has done is something that also needs to be done in Indonesia. Being the fourth most populated country in the world, only a fraction of it are aware about the importance of reading. There might be some reasons that cause this to happen. It’s probably because these days, people tend to put more attention on their gadgets and the notifications they receive, or people might not be able to afford books because they are quite expensive and there aren’t a lot of libraries in Indonesia. By providing people the free platform for reading, it is likely that the youngsters would be more interested in reading and gaining knowledge. Through this, hopefully they could later on bring Indonesia to be the leading country of the world.
ReplyDeleteHow often do we hear the saying ‘Reading is a window to the world’? Indeed, reading is powerful, it brings us knowledges and it takes you places without us even having to move an inch. Reading is proven to develop our minds and it also lets you discover things you’ve never been aware of. Sadly, not everyone has the resources to read, some people who are less fortunate may even consider reading books as luxury. Meanwhile millennials are slowly stepping back from reading due to all the comforts surrounding them. Lots of them no longer see reading as a necessity although technologies are advancing and we are now provided by E-books that we can read conveniently everywhere in our own devices. For me personally, reading a book in their physical condition brings its own pleasure. Libraries, especially like these, must always be preserved. Guanlao’s intention was to share his love of reading to those who aren’t as privileged. This is an inspiration for all of us to don't stop learning and reading, and never ever take things for granted.
ReplyDeleteGuanlao’s brilliant idea to make a ‘library like no other’ (which means it lets anyone borrow and keep the book) is amazing. He increased the value of reading through a small action. By building the library, although the place is not as good as other libraries, but it successfully influence and spread knowledge about the importance of reading to society. It is also a profitable action, especially for those people with low economic levels. It is proven that books are made for everyone, not only those who are able to buy it. His simple action inspires many other countries, and brings great impact to society as they began to think that knowledge is gained by reading. In addition, Guanlao played a prominent role in spreading The Reading Club, which is very necessary. Books that are provided in that library are very diverse, due to that, people with lots of different reading taste can choose any book they want to read.
ReplyDeleteIt's saddening if we look at the young generation of this century tends to lose their interest into reading books. What happened to "Books is the Window of the World?" In this 21st century, books are getting replaced by digital technologies which believed as much cooler and fancier than the thick old books. Well, of course, globalization era forced us to keep up with the new technologies, but does that means we have to rip off our love of books? Hell, no!
ReplyDeleteWhat Mr. Guanlo did was so inspiring. Not only the Manila's Reading Club maintain the love of reading book, but it also teaches children to read and spell more practically and easier. It doesn't matter what the topic of the book is, the most important thing is that we can consistently retain the classical tradition into reading books to satisfy ourselves with knowledges and experiences that we get from the books. I personally read and collect a lot of books, so I can escape reality for once in a while in order to refresh my own mind. Sometimes, even if the book we read considered as a heavy reading, if we like the topic so much, it's still ease our thoughts and calm us. Therefore, never stop reading books, even if it just in the digital form of books. Let's make Manila's Reading CLub expanding as World's Reading Club.
This is an amazing and inspiring story. Hernando Guanlao in his old age could has just enjoying his remaining life playing with his grandchildren but instead he chooses to create this reading club to spread interest in reading for his society in Manila. Not only that, he manages to spread this library with no rules concept to the younger generation, encouraging many to open their own library with no rules in their own society. It would be really great if this kind of library exist in every single neighbourhood all over Philippines. Imagine how great its impact for the future of the country.
ReplyDeleteIn Indonesia, we do have some social service community that aware of this literacy problem and they have try to create similar libraries like Hernando Guanlao’s. There is a mobile library(a van filled with books) that goes to many remote places in Indonesia and there is also village’s library in some village with limited access to book and reading materials. In the future, I hope that there is more public libraries all over Indonesia.
This is a very inspiring story by Mr.Guanlao, especially because he helped a lot of people in Philippine, since Philippine is a developing country, many of its people don’t have access to the internet and could not read in a digital library and don’t have any money to buy books. This idea by Mr. Guanlao should be spread around the world, because in Indonesia I know a lot of people who sees book just as a decoration and don’t touch them or even read them, those kinds of people should be encouraged to donate their books to a public library such as one owned by Mr. Guanlao. One action like this could inspire a lot of people to do goodness and serve the society. Lack of books and library in Philippines is the main concern for Mr. Guanlao, because I really think that he wants to empowers the young generation of Philippine by reading and broadening their knowledge, ideas like this should be preserved and continued in hope for smarter young generation.
ReplyDeleteWhat inspires me most from Guanlao is how he has a heart of gold; how in his later years he still thinks about others. I'd say that by having a library, especially a free one with no rules, allows access to knowledge for people who have financial constraints and are not able to access education. Ever seen a pedicab driver reading newspapers? I believe that it is human nature for someone to have curiosity, regardless of their education degree, and books can quench the thirst for knowledge.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I hope that the Indonesian government will consider making decent libraries across the country. I notice that in developed countries, their government invest lots of money on books and library but have never seen a sufficiently good one in Indonesia. I think the library will drive an impact towards the knowledge of Indonesian since the limitation of buying books roots to their cost which is considerably expensive, and the presence of library may allow more opportunity for everyone to read books without thinking about the price.
I think it is a very touching and a really encouraging act. I heard from a friend of mine in Philippines that, like how the article has stated, buying books is indeed a luxury many cannot afford. Even there are some kinds of book that are so massively published in Indonesia but aren’t so easily found in Philippines. The kind of book that’s scarce is comics. In Indonesia, some people are introduced to the world of books by the kind that is easy to read, and comics are one of them. People from young age, or even the adults one are still reading comics because it’s quite fascinating to them. As a late-bloomer in the world of books, the kind that is just full of words might be overwhelming to read. But comics are the bridge to make people fall in love and adjust themselves to books and words, and then they could step further to the next stage, the novels or even the biography.
ReplyDeleteBooks, as the old saying, are windows of the world. Even if you’re sleeping on your couch back in the town, when you’re reading a book, it’s like you’re traveling to unknown world. What’s more, reading books also adds your knowledge and it shapes your way of thinking to be more advanced and more considerate to others.
What Mr. Guanlao does is very generous and inspiring. What he does needed to be appreciated and praised. Level of interest in reading in Indonesia is very low, it is only 0,01%. This means from a thousand of people in Indonesia, only one who reads book. And Indonesia’s rank for the level of interest is in 60th out of 61 countries in the world, which is the second last rank in reading interest. Whereas, there are so many benefits that we could get from reading. Three benefits that I can tell you are you can improve your vocabulary either in your native language or your foreign language, you achieve more knowledge, and escalate your imagination. I believe imagination is very important. Back then human can only imagine if they could fly so they can go to see the other side of the world. And now there is airplanes that can bring us to the other side of the world. It is all started from imagination.
ReplyDeleteI think that Mr Guanlao’s library is a very good initiative. First of all because it gives a free access to culture. I believe that reading is very important, to learn about different topics, to improve our grammar skills, and for our culture in general. Unfortunately, too many people around the world don’t have access to books, because they don’t know how to read or because they don’t have the financial resources necessary to buy them. So, this library represents for people, even with low income, an easy way to access reading. Then, I think that this library is a great example of mutual assistance and generosity. People there, borrow or keep books, but they also bring new books that they want to share with more people. Overall, I think that more libraries like this should be created all around the world so that a maximum of people could take advantage of them, discover new books and share with others the ones they like.
ReplyDeleteI'm incredibly touched by Mr.Guanlao's action. Being the millenial generations, I think we could all agree on one fact that kids these days don't really find the reading activity appealing. If they wanna know something or look up something online, they would rather watch a video about the informations than reading an article or some writing about it. This had happened to me to. If this continue to happened, Mr. Guanlao's fear would come true. That books and writings would end up dead, we just left them in our shelves, storages and never be touched again. I think he's action could inspire people so that parents with young or newborn child, could teach them to love books, to love writing and reading. I suggest them to not give any kind of gadgets, either a phone or a tablet, pc and laptops at a very young age. Trust me, it does more harm than good to give children any type of electronical devices at such a young age. Whereas reading to them, tell them a good bed time stories before bed about dragons and princesses would help them to love writing tales and books in general.
ReplyDeleteBooks, as we all know are good sources of information that bring knowledge toward its readers. Reading books can also be a source of enjoyment, for those who enjoy reading. There are several benefits one can get from reading books. You can develop your grammar skills and as well as your writing skills. By reading books, we can also know more about subjects or topics that we haven’t even learn before. Sadly, not everyone could afford books since some books can sometimes be expensive. This is why Mr. Guanlao decided to break that barrier by providing a free library for everyone. By providing a free system library, everyone has the equal opportunity to read books and increase their knowledge. Everyone is also free to borrow as many books as they want and have the option to keep them if they want. I think this is a great system because Mr. Guanlao had made the people around his area, especially those who have limited access to education, became more educated and smarter. Also, by not charging fees to the borrower, everyone could enjoy reading the book for free without having to worry about the cost and returning the book late.
ReplyDeleteWhat Mr Hernando Guanlo does was amazing. He is helping people from what he has for everybody that need books. We know from the article, in Philippine it is hard to find or buy a book, because it is expensive and not everyone can afford one. Whereas reading books can give so much benefit. By reading books, we can get so much knowledge that maybe can become handy in the future. From an article that I found, reading can improve our memory. Sometimes when we are reading a novel, we have to memorize characters, their backgrounds and ambitions, history, and nuances of the story. Every new memory, we create new forges synapses and strengthen existing one. Others benefit is we can be more focus and also improve our writing skill. From the same article that I found, well written work has a noted effect on one’s own writing. When we observe the writing style of the authors, cadence and fluidity it will influence how we write. Reading for me become an entertainment when I am waiting for someone or have nothing to do.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I would like to thank Mr. Guanlao for making the library. I am really proud of him and I wish that there were more people like him so that everyone can read books freely. What Mr.Guanlao did here is exceptional, it has helped many people in Manila.But Mr.Guanlao library here is really vulnerable to robbers, I really think that he could do better than that. Maybe for the sake of mobility yes it is good to make your library mobile but I don't think that is a good idea because what if someday a person come and decide to rob or burn the books, That's not good right?. So I think although his idea and his motivation is really good, I really hope that he will increase the security around his library and maybe start to upgrade his transport rather than having to ride a bicycle. Last but not least I do hope that not just people but every contry develop this kind of library. -DImas Aditya Permana
ReplyDeleteReading a book can open the eyes of hundreds people. That is what I believe in reading a book. What Guanlao does is letting people read as many books as they want. What Guanlao does is creating a chance to open the eyes of hundreds people. Opening the eyes of people means giving new knowledge to the people. If there are a lot of people who has more knowledges, they have a greater chance to change their life into a better way of living. If there are a lot of people who have more chance to be better, they will create a better life for their neighborhood and their environment. After reading the chain reaction made by Guanlao, we may conclude that Guanlao gives a chance to the people in Makati, downtown Manila to get a better life. I do agree to judge Guanlao as an incredible man. Because he does a noble effort by giving a great chance to the people around him.
ReplyDeleteStuff like this make my faith in humanity still strong. It’s not that we don’t see kindness being performed nowadays, but everywhere we look there are always a lot of negativity. Even in social media, all i see are mostly people bickering and pretending that they are the most knowledgable in every subject of discussion that comes up. It’s like the positive vibes are covered by the negative vibes. Why cant people just lay off and do something simple like this guy? I mean, sure anyone has ever thought of giving away books. But I don’t think everyone has done it in reality. He has helped me realized that there are good in people, and that we don’t have to do anything extravagant just to help people in need. He has become a primary source of inspiration that by doing simple good deed, you already contributed to improving the quality of life around you.
ReplyDeleteMargaret Fuller once stated, “If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it”. Knowledge is a free good that everyone deserves to access regardless of gender, social class, race, etc. However, it is very much apparent that many people still do not have access to learn as they might be limited due to access, socioeconomic condition or many other factors. It becomes a responsibility for those with better access to knowledge to share and empower others for the benefits of humanity. Guanlao’s way of empowering the society is rather unique and enlivening. He sees knowledge as free goods and he gives opportunities for the people around him to access it through his Reading Club. The fact that the books in his Reading Club are free suggest that he does not discriminate. This means that a very rich businessman and a very poor individual have equal access to the books in his Reading Club. His Reading Club serves as a platform of knowledge and perspective. Moreover, I believe that Guanlao’s faith in humanity as reflected in his Reading Club will continue to empower and inspire the society.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting story. Mr. Hernando Gualo is a very generous man that the world needs. The fact that he lets people go there without any notice anytime proves that he really wants the books to live and this can be done by people reading it. In my opinion, most people will bring back the book because those who are really into books will come back again to read for another book. It is also very nice to see people helping Mr. Gualo in this matter. With this, there will be lots of book varieties in the library. The other great thing about this library is that it opens every day for 24 hours straight, so people can go to the library anytime they want. There is a possibility that people do not actually read the book and in fact they will sell it. This is the disadvantage of having a book that opens without any rules
ReplyDeleteThis one is an epic library, the ideas from Guanlao to make a library with no rules must be highly appreciated, he really had a good intention for his country, as you read before he wants all the people to read the book to keep it alive. And his idea to make a mobile library using his bike actually isn't something new in our country except its rule. We have to build up the urge of reading because actually many good kinds of literature are well wrapped in one big sized book and it does contain so many information. Therefore we have to pass on the spirit of Guanlao in our country, so our future generation could study from the past and improvise their way of thinking. And yes I do believe that old saying about "the book is the window to see the world"
ReplyDeleteThe ideas to make a small mobile library is very good and helpful to people who basicly cannot provide books. It's a very kind motivation that Mr. Guanlao. He wants all people to read books. He even willing to mobile the books by bike. It's uncommon to find this kind of library which is mobile library. But, mobile library usually uses car, and there's a rule which oblige us to obey it when we borrow books. For example, we have to return it before the deathline. In Mr. Guanlao's library, there is no such rules. People can freely borrow it without any rules. On the other hand, there's still a plenty of book for people to read in Mr. Guanlao's library. In my opinion, all people have to read. At least they spend a little of their time to read a book, because yes, the book is the resource of knowledge even though there's internet nowadays. So, what Mr. Guanlao does here is very good. He provides books for people, so people can read.
ReplyDeleteThe action of creating a “no-rule” library deserves a high appreciation from the public. This kind of action shows that Mr. Gualo is such a kind man who is very passionate about books, and the fact that he spread his passion towards people through implementing the concept of no-rule library just proves how much he trusted the faith of humanity/nature. This might seemed as a simple idea, however the benefit that it brings towards the society is very critical. As we know, literacy is one of the essence of life, and sadly there’re still a large number of people who couldn’t afford this essence. Therefore, this platform provided by Mr. Gualo would not only gave these people a new opportunity to access this “luxury”, but it’ll also motivates other to implement the similar concept and hopefully could create a reading habit towards the society all over the world.
ReplyDeleteMr. Guanlao's noble act encourages people-especially those who don't have access to libraries-to read more books. They are very lucky to have Mr.Guanlao as their neighbour. Nowadays, books are a little less appreciated compared to the previous era. According to cnnIndonesia the rate of our interest to read books is rather low compared to other countries in the world. Generation Y and Z chose to read books digitally, through technological devices such as laptop, iPad, phone, etc. I agree with Mr. Guanlao's statement that said books need to be read in order to live, he also said "The act of giving a book makes you complete. It makes your life meaningful and abundant" and I think that it's very inspiring thing to said, because I do take books that I have for granted. After reading the article I realised that I have the privilege to read books whenever I want. Knowing that giving books makes us feel meaningful and abundant, it makes me think that maybe I should donate some of my books that I've read the orphanage or simply giving it for free to the homeless, to spread the knowledge and happiness.
ReplyDeleteI think the article is tremendously inspirational. It is true indeed that literacy is very crucial in order to broaden pupils’ knowledge. I am truly captivated by Mr. Guanlao’s movement and how he really cares about books. His idea of how books have lives is just simply so pure. I think his movement should be supported by the government there so the library could grow and spread faster. After that, the library could also provide a kind of annual program for the local communities. The program could be a talk show about how important literacy is. The aim of the program is to raise awareness among people about literacy and to spread the news of the library’s existence. This way, more will know about the library and more will participate to be either readers, donators, or borrowers of the library. More active contribution to the library means higher growth of the library itself.
ReplyDeleteWith the rise of e-books, audiobooks and other platforms to read, what Mr. Guanlao has accomplished is without a doubt very inspirational. Sooner or later the existence of physical books will be replaced with the electronic ones because nowadays it is easier to access e-books and audiobooks, also it is more convenient to carry them around in our gadgets. The idea of opening up a space where people can come and take or read books is very simple yet impactful. This is one way of preserving the existence of physical books. I, personally, enjoy reading physical books. So it’s pleasant to know that people are responding to The Reading Club 2000 by coming from afar just to donate books, and students are also collecting books. This indicates that there are still people who care about physical books, and are making the effort to preserve it. I hope The Reading Club 2000 will continue its good deeds, and keep on inspiring people.
ReplyDeleteBooks are the key to any kinds of knowledge. I believe that knowledge is something that we should share and by using the concept of ‘reading club’, the purpose of each book will be delivered throughout the society. I was amazed by Mr. Guanlao’s perspective towards books. Through his faith in human nature, he dedicates his old books and share it to the communities. His purpose is purely to make a reading center in his country and has no pretension to make any profit from it. Also, in the era that full with technology, people tend to have less interest in reading books. The idea of reading centers may encourage people to start reading books again, as a result they can experience the real process of learning and become less depended to the internet access that develop rapidly. In short, from the article we learned that book is still matter and at the end book is the main source of knowledge and this article also raised our awareness towards the community.
ReplyDeleteTaken from the statistics that UNESCO made in the year of 2011, the literacy rate among the population aged 15 years and older in Indonesia is approximately 92.81%. And in the year of 2016, the literacy rate among the population increased by 2.57%. Based on the statistics that was given from the UNESCO, we could see that Indonesia has became a literature country. But here’s the thing though, from the people’s perspective, we see that so many children in Indonesia rarely read a book or a novel in their spare time. What I’m trying to say is, when we look at the statistics and then we look at the people’s perspective, we could see that there is some funny correlation between the two of them. When people think that they saw most of the population in Indonesia won’t even read a book or a novel, they would start reading some books so that they won’t be an illiterate country. And when the experiment was conducted, the rate would increase because people is starting to read some book or some novel. However, this does not mean that our literacy rate won’t decrease any time soon because there’s still a probability that the rate will decrease. And what Mr. Guanlo did in Manila, was an amazing effort to keep his country from becoming an illiterate country.
ReplyDeleteResearches have proved that the literacy rate in Indonesia is still very low. Two possible reasons for this problem are that the importance of reading has been understated, and a small number of people who have the affordability to buy books. People in Indonesia prefer to play with their gadget, scrolling through their social media rather than spend their free time by sitting and reading informative books. They don’t realize how important books are. In addition, many of them who likes to read cannot afford books, since books are expensive to buy. There are many people who are interested to read but cannot afford books. Due to these reasons, the literacy rate in Indonesia is low. Therefore, for me, this idea of a library with no rules can be one of the solutions for literacy problems. Free books might encourage people to read, and it will benefit those who wanted to read books but cannot afford them. This free library is a great thing to do because it gives access to people who cannot afford books.
ReplyDeleteWhat Mr Guanlao did is super inspiring. He opened an “open” library just because he wants to honour his late parents who encourage him to loves reading. I think it is amazing because despite of his simple thinking, his act of compassion reached a lot of people and helps those who can’t afford books. In a developing country like Philippine, there are still a lot of people who can’t afford a good education. Opening an “open” library like this could be a great opportunity for everybody, since everyone could get an easy (and free) access to education and also encourage other people to donate. I believe there’s a lot of people who also did this kind of community service here in Indonesia. Well shout-out to Mr Guanlao since he taught us that a small act of compassion could bring a great effect to others as long as we turn that concern into action.
ReplyDeleteAs a student, I strongly understand the importance of reading. When we read, we open our mind to the world, we see things through different perspective and just simply see the world itself. I completely agree with the saying “books open windows to the world and have the power to transform lives”. The best way to learn when we’re unable to attend formal education is to read as much books as possible. When I read this article, it touched my heart because I know that there are many people out there that cares and understands the importance of education. It is important for everyone to be able to read, so, having someone like Hernando Guanlao that facilitates people who are unable to afford books is something that should be respected and looked up to. I believe that having a good education is a good investment for the future. Knowing there are people out there who are as generous as Hernando Guanlao, I still have faith that our world can build a better education environment and therefore, build a better world.
ReplyDeleteWhat Guanlo did in this article is probably one of the greatest and nicest things a human being can do which is helping people that is in need of knowledge. In a way, what he did also gave us the solution for one of the biggest problem of the library itself which are the rules. In this modern era the reason why we borrow books from the library is to get the physical form of the book without buying it, other than that we can just download the ebook version or even listen to it in an audiobook form. Sadly the reason for us to borrow books from the library is eclipsed by the amount of rules that we have to follow, making it the least convinient out of the other choices that we can take. Yes, this idea may backfired if a lot of people decided to keep the books that are displayed, but I believed that there are a lot of people that also has a lot of books that they don’t read, therefore the idea itself may thrives.
ReplyDeleteBooks popularity has been declining these past few years. I’m not talking about those e-books and PDFs and whatnot, but the kind of books that you can feel, smell, and touch. Personally, I prefer reading books rather than e-books. Not that there’s anything wrong with e-books but reading a hard/soft cover book has a different sensation that you cannot get anywhere else. Unfortunately, not a lot of my friends like reading books. Well, reading in general. I think that it is unfortunate that they do not read often because reading is an important way of obtaining new information. Although I do like the whole electronic ways books have been going about for a while now, I still do think that reading an actual book will be more useful and we can retain the information longer. It is such a shame that reading culture is not as big here in Indonesia. The amount of illiterate citizens here is unbelievable and very unfortunate. If we are able to increase the popularity of reading and convince people that reading is fun, I think Indonesia has a chance of growing even better compared to the past few years.
ReplyDeleteSuch a generous deed has been done by Guanlao. His love of books doesn’t escalate his desire to acquire more books –instead he shares his ownership to be read and anyone even has the opportunity to take them home. Lots of Philippines may see books as a luxury good, but it will no longer be that way anymore. This is such an inspiring story on how an activity as simple as just a hobby, can be so influential and create a much positive outcome to society around. From the sympathy of the book-donors and the book-taker, we can see that the interest in reading in the area is pretty high. Previously, it might be the inaccessibility of the facilities that hinder those craves of knowledge. Aside from the initiative of other philanthropists over the country, the government should look up to build another reading resources in other places. The state officials should also take account for helping and giving appreciation on what Guanlao has done.
ReplyDeleteThis is the reason why people should realize that kind people like Mr. Hernando Guanlao do exist. The fact that he let anyone come to his library and take everything they want is amazing. Also, I am amazed at how he made the library as an honour to his parents. It is such a pure thing to do. Another thing that I like about this "Manila's Reading Club 2000" is that how people came to Mr. Guanlao library and just put their book outside and let other people take or read it. It shows that there is still so many people who cares and would like to share what they have. People should learn from this story and spread kindness just like what Mr. Guanlao did. If you love to do something, it is better to shares what you love with others. Starting from only 100 books to thousands. One step at a time. His desire to share will always be remembered in Manila's Reading Club 2000.
ReplyDeleteI see Mr. Guanlao as a hero because he helps people by giving free knowledge, this type of action was very rare since a lot of people doesn’t care about what others really needs. What Mr. Guanlao do is really helpful to the young generations or society because Mr. Guanlao encourage people to read a book and find knowledge inside it by lending a book for free, this action really empower people to develope by reading a book, it means that this action really help and have big impact to the society just by doing simple things like Mr. Guanlao already done especially when its free of charge and u can borrow it or keep it. Hope there will be other Mr. Guanlao spread around the world in order to helps people by giving free knowledge since the millenial generation tend to enjoy the internet like social media, games, etc more than books
ReplyDeleteA book is much, much different than the other forms of media (TV, music, paintings, video games). Because it's the only type of media that will make us use our brain to visualize what is happening in the book. I'm not saying that movies, video games and etcetera can't make us think, but the fact is, books have the best capability to make us more creative.
ReplyDeleteWhat Mr. Guanlo did was a tremendous push for this generation. Because of our instant access to information and our short attention span, Millennials have relatively less chance to start reading books and become literate. The aftermath of this is that there could be a declined in the quality of print media, books could be filled with provocative “read bait” and substance-less material. “The library with no rules” can be one of the ways to combat this it’s such a great concept that should be implemented all around the world
The idea Guanlao had of opening a 24/7 “public” library with no rules is a very great idea to me because since it was said that buying a book was a luxury that many cannot afford, this gives opportunities for anyone in Philippines when visiting/living in Manilla to read as many books as they want and even take those books home with them. Sure, there is no guarantee that the same book can be acquired when a book has been taken by someone but there are still many possibilities of finding even more interested and useful books because donations keep on coming to replace the taken books. I would really like to visit Manilla one day and visit The Reading Club 2000 to find some books that I might be interested in and/or take some of them with me to be given to my younger cousins that need books to learn more about many things.
ReplyDeleteMr. Guanlao is one of those inspiring people that have courage to stand what they believe in. In this case, mr. Guanlao believes that books are needed to live, and they are alive if only being read. I do agree with Mr. Guanlao,for me books make me even more alive. It encourages empathy. For example, novels. In a novel You became the character of the story, you feel what they feel, and with each page you turn, you are taken deeper into their world. Different from the movie, you are just a distant observer. I would like to say that Mr. Guanlao must be raised well-educated, this idea is advantageous and brilliant, how could a man like him came up with this thought and open the library for free? I believe that his action will gain something even better for him in the future. One thing I get from this article is that no matter who you are when you are kind to people surround you there will always be some people that would do the same, just like Mr. Guanlao, Aurora Verayo and Mark.
ReplyDeleteAccording to this millennial generation who prefers to read on their gadgets and not reading a physical book, this guy’s action is really needed right now. These millennials who claim to read books on their phone, sometimes they could’ve been lying. Because what is it on the gadget is not only that particular book or journal to read, there are a lot of things. So if people asked them whether they like to read or not, they probably would say yes. Because that “read” statement can be just “reading” tweet jokes on Twitter, “reading” Instagram captions that sometime is not important, or many more. Do you get what I mean? I hope so. We should appreciate physical library more, and support it by donating any physical books that aren’t used anymore in our house. I believe physical books were there when we were younger. It’s just because of this technology again, that it’s dead.
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting indeed, I never knew anything like this before. This place would be perfect for people who likes to read, and for those who would like to develop the habit of reading. As far as I know, most Indonesians have little interest on reading, including myself. To be precise, I rarely read actual books. The only novel I was able to finish was the first book of the Harry Potter collection "The Philosopher's stone" six years ago. Currently, I read stories in Line Webtoons, which is literally an app where you can read free comics made by artists from around the world. Of all the things I read right now, they are mostly comics. At high school, I rarely read my textbooks as I often get distracted or bored while reading, and I find it easier to get my tutor to explain the materials of the book to me or ask my friends if I don't understand a particular matter. You can consider me lazy, but I want to start to change from now. I want to develop the habit of reading, in order to expand my mind.
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting indeed, I never knew anything like this before. This place would be perfect for people who likes to read, and for those who would like to develop the habit of reading. As far as I know, most Indonesians have little interest on reading, including myself. To be precise, I rarely read actual books. The only novel I was able to finish was the first book of the Harry Potter collection "The Philosopher's stone" six years ago. Currently, I read stories in Line Webtoons, which is literally an app where you can read free comics made by artists from around the world. Of all the things I read right now, they are mostly comics. At high school, I rarely read my textbooks as I often get distracted or bored while reading, and I find it easier to get my tutor to explain the materials of the book to me or ask my friends if I don't understand a particular matter. You can consider me lazy, but I want to start to change from now. I want to develop the habit of reading, in order to expand my mind.
ReplyDeleteHe really is an inspiration. It not only encourage people to read more directly by established Manila’s Reading Club 2000, his story encouraged us to read more an more. But there are scientific explanation why we, or most human are reluctant to read. The most basic of why people are reluctant to read is, they are impatient. Most people are looking for something instant, and with this multi-media era everything is so instant and so simple and making more people more and more impatient. Also, they afraid that their minds might wander in the wrong way, the afraid to find answers, they think that cool people don’t read and they understand what reading can do. This is certainly a really big problem, we as a young generation, need to remind people the importance of reading and we need to make our younger generation loves reading. Starting from our-self, we can spread the love of reading.
ReplyDeleteMr. Guanlao is possibly one of those, who people often refer to as heroes with no capes. He has opened the windows to the world of infinite possibilities and abundant knowledge for those people who are unable to open by themselves. Thousands or even millions of opportunities have been made possible by Mr. Guanlao for people to endeavour. By allowing people to take books and not haunting them with due dates of when to return them, Mr. Guanlao therefore knows full well that it takes different durations of time for different people of varying capabilities to finish a book of the same amount of pages. Moreover, for those who fear that some books might be gone forever once they’re given to someone who decides to keep them, just have faith that the people who triumphed over you in the race will be good-hearted enough to return the books back once they’re already certain that any affirmation of knowledge is no longer needed. What I mentioned just now often happens when the books that you are reading are historical or any non-fiction books where it has become normal that some knowledge tend to slip out of your brain from time to time. In terms of fiction books, there’s no reason for not returning the books you have borrowed. I mean, they consist of only stories that are meant to teach you a thing or two on how to become wiser in life. It is something that adheres strongly with your feeling and hence, stays longer in you.
ReplyDeleteI personally love what Mr. Hernando Guanlo does. He doesn’t seem to take any profit from what he does except a joy when somebody could have an access to a free library where there is no rules so the book can be kept. For a people who doesn’t have the access to the library or book, it is so meaningful. What he does is kind of a champagne to have a book reading habit. I am inspired to do a same thing as him. Not as big as him but I could start from support that kind of champagne. Perhaps by doing book donation or lend our private book collection to anyone who need it. And if there are people join this kind of activity probably we could make a people library same as the one that is owned by Mr. Hernando Guanlo where the library has no rules and people coulod take what they need.
ReplyDeleteThis story is very interesting for me. As we know,books are the bridge to a wider knowledge, so for me reading books are very important aspect in our life. To be honest, I do not really like reading books, I only like reading books of a certain topic. This library without rules is a very interesting concept for me, I think it will encourage people to read more books. As we all know, Indonesian people do not really like reading books, so I think that Indonesia should provide library just like this, but in my opinion with rules applied of course, because in my opinion, libraries without rules will result in a chaotic system. I think by following the rules of libraries, it will also train our discipline. So in my opinion, Indonesia should open many more libraries, because libraries will support our young generations to read more books, and it will also really help people with no internet.
ReplyDeleteHernando Guanlao really did a good job by making a library. This Manila’s Reading Club 2000 library doesn’t aim for any profit. Guanlao thinks that reading a book could make your life meaningful, and that people can borrow, take home, bring back or even keep the books that they find in the library. This is for me, is a faith in humanity restored. I personally think that reading is very important for our knowledge and by reading, what I meant is reading a book not an e-book. There are differences between reading those two things. The actions on reading a book could enlighten your mind and also create new perspectives on what you see towards the world. I really hope that there are lots of people like Guanlao in the future so that we could have this kind of library, not just in Manila but also in different sides of the world. Reading is important for our life no matter what age that we are in.
ReplyDeleteHernando Guanlao’s library starts a new movement in the Philippines. His love for books made him open up this library with no rules where people could borrow, take home, or even keep some books from his thousand collections. In modern times, books can be forgotten and replaced by movies and electronic devices to keep us entertained. Most people ignored their old books and it could be more of a dusty display than a reading material. A lot of people donated their books to Guanlao’s library because they want the books to be read or to be ‘set free’. Since there aren’t many public libraries in the Philippines, this kind of libraries are really helping people who want to read but unable to buy books. This is also an inspiration to many people since Guanlao encourages people to open reading centres with a similar concept. I think this is a really great idea because kids nowadays tend to be given electronic gadgets instead of books since young age.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of a free library without rules is a wonderful idea in my opinion, it will help people to have an easier access to book and encourage them to read more or even start reading, because book can be expensive and become a real budget especially for people with lower income or students, buying book is probably not their priority, but having access to book is important for self-development and growing as a person, it help to open your mind and give a new perspective about things in life.
ReplyDeleteIn France we have a concept a bit similar, in many cities, even small one like my hometown, we have like a “book box” in parks or public space, where people can leave book and others can borrow it for free, just like the library of Mr. Guanlao there is no specific rules and people can take book or just borrow it, but are encourage to leave a new book if they take one from the box to keep sharing new books.
This fact about the library which does not use the payment or some strict rules to borrow or read the books such unique things that I ever know. I have never found the library without any rules and rent tuition like in that place. Effortless, like in our university, the rules are very strict. From the time that you borrow the book and you return the book until how much you pay the fine when you late to return the book, there’s a detailed rule that’s given. However, this library is totally different. they just spread their books there and let the people surrounding to read or borrow the books. Even you want to have the books, the owner let you have it. what he wants just to share what they have, although it’s an old book, it will be something meaningful for those people who need it. But, I actually curious if this kind of library is available in Indonesia, will people use it as well or they use it to make more money? Hmmm, I think the answer is from the second choice. HAHAHA.
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