Press enter after choosing selection

Sunday School Libraries

Sunday School Libraries image
Parent Issue
Day
23
Month
April
Year
1897
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Edward W. Bok has been makxng a careful aud comprehensivo examiuation of Sunday school libraries, aud iu The Ladies' Honie Jonrual he couf esses himsclf disgusted with the literaturo thus placed iu the hands of onr boys aud girls. A lesa complete iuvestigatiou. Mr. Bok says, would iiot have made it possible for him to believe that the libraries of our Sunday scliools were stocked wiSJfc such piles of rubbish. - "wishy washy literature, " as he terms it. He quotes the titles aud gives the themes of a number of books he obtained frorn Sunday school libraries, aud these seeru to completely wari-ant his conclusious. " Such books, " he couteuds, "are au insult to the iutelligeuce of the young people aud have a pemicious influeuce. Iustead of being liealthy books they are decidedly uuhealthy iu toue aud teaching. Surely we are cultivatiug a dangerous taste for readiug in the youug wheu we feed them ou such rubbish." Mr. Bok unhesitatingly lays a part of the blame upou the publicatiou boards and societies, which are influeuced by a denoiuiuational spirit that narrows their choice of books. Then, agaiu, it is shown that the most mediocre sort of "talent" is eruployed to write these books, and that beggarly prices - less than $80 per book - are paid. A share of responsibility, Mr. Bok asserts, rests tipon the ruen who purchase Sunday school libarries, who, as is most frequently the case, are uot qualified for the task and whose object is to secure a library as cheap as possible. Mr. Bok warmly urges that the selectiou of Sunday school books be left to women, who " instinctively know and feel the kind of a book which a boy or girl will read and eujoy. " He insists that womeu shonld be given carte blanche to make the selections so far as the prescribed amouut of money will go. "A hundred good books, " Mr. Bok concludes, "ai'e far better than 500 books of indifferent interest, ' ' which are bought simply because they are cheap. " A Suuday school library caunot be created iu a day, and no disoouragement should be feit if the fmancial meaus of the church are contracted and necessitate the purchase of ouly a few books at a time."

Article

Subjects
Ann Arbor Argus
Old News