: How I Started a Library for Kids in Bengaluru When I Couldn’t Find Any for My 4-YO #IndiaNEWS #Bengaluru The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more

How I Started a Library for Kids in Bengaluru When I Couldn’t Find Any for My 4-YO #IndiaNEWS #Bengaluru
The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go,??? Dr Seuss, from ‘I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!’
As a parent, what do you do to ensure that your child becomes a reader? Let me share some things that I do – introduce various kinds of books to them, make outings to bookstores a part of their routine, ensure that they see me read as much as possible to set an example.
Bhakti Shah (51), a resident of Bengaluru, did all this and more. Yet she found that her then three-year-old, Parth Shah, was still not taking to reading as a habit. So she decided to take the ultimate next step in the next few years start a library!
ThinkBox, a children’s library for books and toys started in 2008 in Bengaluru’s Malleshpalya main road. For more than a decade now, it continues to function, though her son is now 21 years old.
Parth and one of the first library members.
“To start a community library, you dont need a degree in library science or business management. All you need is an abundance of passion and a desire to get people, especially children, into the habit of reading. ??? Bhakti encourages. Here is how she did it.
Setting up a library
Playschool students visit the library.
“One of the first few books that I read was ‘Fountainhead’ by Ayn Rand, and this was when I was almost 19 years of age. So, in a sense, I started reading rather late in life, and I wanted to make sure my son started early. I realised how beneficial it would be to start on reading early on in life – the earlier, the better,??? she says.
“I would read as much as I could to my child – the voice modulation, the expression, it all left a mark on him. Thinking back, I remember handing him a picture book when he was just six months old, which he would chew on for hours, giving me those few precious moments to finish my book,??? she says.
Bhakti believes that if one has to be a reader, there must be ample exposure to books. And libraries are the best place for that to happen. Some of Bhakti’s favourite memories revolve around books and being in libraries with her son. “We would pack a picnic basket, go to the British Council library in Bengaluru and spend at least four to five hours pouring over books,??? she says.
It was during these visits that Bhakti understood the importance of letting the child pick their own books.
Bonding over stories.
She says, “It made a lot of difference to take my son to the library and let him pick the books he wanted. Not just to empower him but also let him choose books that interested him, rather than force him into reading what children his age were reading.