Visitors to the Canadian War Museum and the Ottawa Public Library will have a chance next week to “borrow” living books – about 60 individuals ranging from a stripper and a prostitute to a judge – and have one-on-one conversations with them about their life stories.
The Human Library, to be held Jan. 28, was created for a festival in Denmark 12 years ago. It follows the same concept as borrowing books from the library, but instead of reading to gather information, “readers” are encouraged to ask questions and have conversations with the living books they sign out. Sometimes having a conversation with someone who has lived through an experience can provide more insight than a book, say organizers.
Since 2000, Human Libraries have been held all over the world, attracting a wide variety of living books and readers.
More than a year ago, the Canadian War Museum got together with the Ottawa Public Library and the CBC to start planning the one-day event.
Lynda Fish, the program planner at the Canadian War Museum, initially proposed the event as part of a peace exhibition. Though the exhibition has since been delayed, Fish says the Human Library is a way to “reach out to the community and increase public understanding.”
The goal of the Human Library is to “break down the barriers of prejudice,” she says. “We all make a difference but you have to believe in what you do.”
Nineteen living books are scheduled to be “on reserve” at the War Museum, including a refugee from Somalia, a messenger for the Polish resistance during the Second World War, and a warrant officer who has a school in Afghanistan named after her.
While “books” at the museum have a link to the military in some way, there are a wide variety of people who will be available to sign out for 20-minute conversations.
Julie Delaney was one of the people responsible for finding and interviewing books for the Ottawa Public Library. She says visitors can expect “to hear some really good storytellers with a wide range of experiences.”
Delaney interviewed almost 40 living books who will be spread out over five of the library’s branches. A few “book titles” include an urban aboriginal from the Attawapiskat Reserve in Northern Ontario, an OC Transpo bus driver, among others.
News that a prostitute and stripper are among the living books has generated national media attention and some controversy.
But one of the event planners from the CBC, Ruth Zowdu, says the Human Library is all about “storytelling, dispelling stereotypes and connecting people.” She says even if the Human Library doesn’t become an annual event, there is a safe bet that it will happen again. She says she hopes people “come away from it feeling excited.”
Amber Lloydlangston, an assistant historian at the museum, attended a Human Library event in Kitchener as a reader. She said she enjoyed the opportunity to have frank conversations with a variety of people, including a Vietnam War draft dodger, a cancer survivor and a woman with spina bifida.
“It’s a safe and organized environment to engage with really interesting people,” she says.
Readers should “expect something really unique and fun,” Lloydlangston adds.