Introduction
A number of library websites have a book review section, or a staff recommendations section. There is also information about book clubs and, occasionally, an online book club. An example of this is the Galway County library home page www.galwaylibrary.ie. On this site (also accessible from www.library.ie) there are two sections directly relating to books. One is ‘Reading matters’ which contains a collection of thoughts on reading from a variety of sources, as well as reading-related news. There is also a ‘book review’ section, where a number of selected books are discussed. Readers are also invited to submit their own reviews.
Kids
Children are valued library users. Irish public libraries invest considerable time, effort and resources in developing services for children and young adults. A number of library websites have sections specifically devoted to services for younger users, giving you information on the services available, upcoming or regular activities and recommended books. More libraries are developing similar sections on their websites – check your local library authority websites for more information.
Other Services
Irish public libraries offer a wide variety of online services, and are involved in a number of Internet-based initiatives. The following services are just some examples of the online initiatives offered by Irish public libraries.
Ask About Ireland
www.askaboutireland.ie
Ask about Ireland is a portal site for Irish public libraries, museums and archives. Here, as well as finding information and contact details for these institutions, you will also have access to a large amount of new information on everything from adventure sports to the history of postcards in Ireland. This content is a showcase of material contained in Irish public libraries, museums and archives. There are contact details on the site if you wish to find out more about these materials or how to view the full collections.
A range of articles, or ‘features,’ on different subjects are written by experts in the subject area and illustrated by materials from library and museum collections.
There is also a Student Zone, containing lots of information and activities to help primary and secondary school students with a number of subjects. The content, which includes a large number of images, maps, audio, video and many different games and activities, has been prepared by teams of local studies librarians and primary school teachers and has a local focus.
