Touring library exhibit invites students to revisit childhood memories

Michael Todd

Staff Writer

The touring exhibit “Books You Carry with You” gives VCU students an excuse to procrastinate reading textbooks and writing essays just a little bit longer in favor of a stroll down memory lane to revisit childhood favorites.

Created by and on loan from the Friends of the Richmond Public Library, “Books You Carry with You” features approximately 50 titles selected by prominent Richmond figures who then contributed personal essays about how these books shaped their childhood and adult lives.

The aim was to have a cross-section of Richmond’s various professions,” said Kelly Kyle, the Exhibit Chair for the Friends of the Richmond Public Library.

VCU President Michael Rao, basketball coach Shaka Smart and singer/songwriter Jason Mraz are just a few of the individuals who opted to share their childhood favorites, like The Sneetches by Dr. Seuss and Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein.

The exhibit title was inspired by Anita Silvey’s  “Everything I Needed to Know I Learned From a Children’s Book.” Many of the books featured in the exhibit can be found in the children’s book collection of the Martha Davenport Special Collections Room in the Richmond Public Library. With recognizable titles that seem to transcend generations, the exhibit appears to be achieving its goal of appealing to as broad an audience as possible.

“A lot of the same titles…seem to kind of resonate and are lasting across generations,” said Sue Robinson, the director of communications and public relations at Cabell Library. “It’s kind of a nice way to bring people together.

The interactive exhibit encourages the participation of the entire Richmond community, ranging from VCU students and faculty to all those who viewed the exhibit at its first home at the Richmond Public Library.

Sophomore sculpture student Elizabeth Henderson, who contributed to one of the white boards open to library visitors, was surprised by the number of both the titles of books and names of Richmond leaders she recognized.

Free and open to the public, the exhibit is currently housed on the first floor of Cabell Library, which can see up to 10,000 visitors a day.

According to Robinson, Cabell Library is an excellent display venue because of its location on campus, which exposes it to a youthful demographic that Richmond Public Library might not have reached.

Participants are invited to contribute their own thoughts on personal favorites via commenting on the Cabell Library Facebook page, twitter (@VCUcabell, #VCUreads), completing the short survey listed on the library’s page for the event or contributing a Post-it note to one of the white boards located just inside the library’s front doors.

“(These stories) have the power to shape us and… our future,” said University Librarian John Ulmschneider. “(They) can make a real difference in how we understand the world around us.”

“Books You Carry with You” will be on display from now until Sept. 27. CT