Review: The Man Who loved Libraries - The Story of Andrew Carnegie

The Man Who Libraries - The Story of Andrew Carnagie
by  Andrew Larsen, Katty Maurey (illustrator)

Edition: 2017

Publisher: Owlkids Books

Summary: When he was a child in the 1840s, Andrew Carnegie and his family immigrated to America in search of a new beginning. His working-class Scottish family arrived at the height of the Industrial Revolution. Carnegie worked hard, in factories and telegraphy. He invested in railroads, eventually becoming the richest man in the world during his time.
Carnegie believed strongly in sharing his wealth, and one of the ways he did this was by funding the construction of over 2,500 public libraries around the world. His philanthropy completely revolutionized public libraries, which weren't widespread at the time

Rating: 4/5

Review: 
I will start by saying that I received an online copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange of a honest review.

Being a bookworm, there isn't any possibility of not liking libraries. In fact, I love them and frequent my local ones quite frequently. That's why I wanted to discover more about Andrew Carnagie and how his life was related with these community places.

 It was a strong surprise (but a quite pleasant one) to discover how his vision could create means to develop such important projects to improve the access of books to everybody.

I didn't know Andrew Carnagie before reading this small book so just the story by itself was amazing. But let's not forget this book was written to be read by children and to children. It was quite evident the language was simple (and adequate) as well as catchy to get the attention of the target group.

The illustrations were sweet but effective and very engaging. I finished this little book in 30 minutes and felt satisfied, it was a good instrument to introduce the libraries as a place to enjoy to the children, not only as a personal experience, but as a place to grow and develop new skills with family and friends.

Cláudia

About the author:
 

Addicted to the library Claudia loves to read on the move and we can usually find her sitting in a train or bus reading while commuting to and from work. But don't be fooled she is also keeping an eye on the landscape and all around her. She is an avid defender of sustainability and volunteering and it's as easy to find her starting a new project as it is to find her chatting with her friends. She is a dreamer and loves good stories so she keeps looking for them in her personal life.