No doubt that, once again, old fashioned books have become the go-to escape solution for many of us during these times. The new norms of sheltering in place, self-quarantining, or complete lock-down have turned many of us to what we like doing and still can do: reading.
At Rutgers all library buildings are closed indefinitely, but online resources and services are plenty and available not only for instruction and research, but for fun, too. A couple of days after updating Books in the Time of Corona, our new goal at Books We Read became to create virtual reading communities for Rutgers, turning our LibGuide into Books We Read Online.
The first initiative on this platform, RUGRAT, Rutgers University Groups Reading Alone Together was launched earlier this week ago to engage anxious students also confused by the new requirements.
It is our pleasure to announce the birth of its sister, dubbed “Cook Reads”, a community for Cook people, who love reading and who were so enthusiastic about the SEBS Little Free Library when it opened at the beginning of February in Foran Hall.
We embrace the diversity of interpretations to the phrase Cook Reads. Please check out the main page of Cook Reads, which aims to become a gateway to reading, a new Virtual Little Free Library, a community, where Cook people can share their experiences. See some useful tips how to find ebooks at Rutgers and beyond.
We can only keep repeating our strong belief that recreational reading can provide both connection and escape at once. Our role at Books We Read is to promote and facilitate reading even as our physical location is closed.