Keep your eyes open

Children's librarians struggle to keep a broad range of books and other materials on the shelves for children. Both school and public librarians do most of their purchasing from large wholesalers, but very often less high-demand items are purchased from small suppliers. If a recent move in New York City spreads very far, this source of targeted materials may dry up. According to a recent story in the NY Times, the large wholesalers have offered city schools a 30 percent discount on all materials and thus insured for themselves a monopoly on school purchases. While this arrangement is not for library materials but for classroom supplements, it may cause ripples across the system. Small suppliers often handle foreign-language materials or those aimed at special education students. If they go out of business because of this decision, as some are saying is likely to happen, that source will dry up for libraries as well as classrooms. Decisions made in remote administrative offices often affect the day-to-day activities of children's librarians. It's important to watch what is happening and to raise the alarm through professional associations so that our children will not be shortchanged because of being overlooked by those at the top.