Empty shelves are being filled with hundreds of books, from Dr. Seuss to in-depth studies of children’s education, at the libraries of The University of Memphis.
President Shirley Raines has donated 799 volumes from her private collection to the libraries of The U of M. Made up mostly of children’s literature and textbooks concerning children’s literature, the collection is intended to assist early education majors and aspiring librarians, according to Ed Frank, curator of the Library’s Special Collections Department.
The University of Memphis Friends of the Libraries will honor Raines at a meeting Sunday, Sept. 30 at 3 p.m. in the special collections room of the Ned McWherter Library.
“It’s important that we build the collection of books in the library,” said Raines, “and that we work towards building a book endowment for our library for future use.”
Included in Raines’ gift are several books written or co-authored by Raines and her husband, Dr. Robert J. Canady. Canady is now a retired education professor.
Raines, a specialist in children’s literacy and the teaching of literacy, will speak about prospects for The University and its libraries at Sunday’s meeting.
She said the collection took her at least 15 years to accumulate, and that she has written and co-authored one textbook and four books dealing with children’s literature and teaching children’s literature. Some of her books include The Whole Language Kindergarten and The Story Stretchers: Activities to Expand Children’s Books.
Most of the books will be shelved in the McWherter Library, with about 10 percent housed in the library’s special collections department.
The special collections room, located on the fourth floor of the library, holds rare books with unique physical properties, large numbers of illustrations or inscriptions by authors or illustrators.
“Most of the books from Dr. Raines collection that will be added to the special collections room have been inscribed by the author directly to her,” said Frank. He said that any books authored and signed by Raines will also reside in his department.
The meeting of Friends of the Libraries is open to the public, and refreshments will be served.
