A letter from author host Christopher Paolini
Greetings friends!
Libraries have had an outsized influence on my life.
When I was a child, my parents took me to the public library every week, and each time I staggered out the door with a towering armload of books. I read everything I could get my hands on—to the point that I often lost track of my surroundings—and when I wasn’t reading, I’d stare out the window and dream about various adventures . . . one of which ended up being the story of a boy, Eragon, and a beautiful blue dragon, Saphira.
Books have the power to transport us anywhere and anywhen. We can share the thoughts and feelings of other people (and non-humans as well) in a way that would otherwise be impossible. We can stand on the surface of Venus or swim through the burning heart of a star. Or stare at a drop of dew on the first blade of grass, long before recorded history. Or peruse the collected knowledge of our species.
If not for public libraries, I would have lost out on countless hours of entertainment . . . and I never would have become an author. The librarians in both Livingston and Bozeman noticed my reading habits and recommended book after book. More often than not, they picked novels that I loved reading. In fact, it was one of those—a book called Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville—that directly inspired Eragon.
In addition to the volumes on their shelves and the support of their staff, libraries provide essential community services. They serve as a general meeting place, organize public events, and provide internet access for those who don’t have it at home, which is an indispensable resource in today’s world.
All of which is to say that books, and by extension libraries, rank among our greatest treasures. With the contents of a public library, we could rebuild our entire civilization. And that’s without considering the value of fiction for our mental health, development, and enjoyment.
So I ask that you consider supporting the Bozeman Public Library however you can with this Stay at Home and Read a Book Ball. Every dollar helps, and you never know how the library might change someone’s life for the better. It certainly changed mine.
All the best,
Christopher Paolini
Christopher Paolini is the author of the Inheritance Cycle series of books, including the original, Eragon, which he wrote at just 15 years of age and which was made into a major motion picture. His latest work, the award-winning science-fiction novel To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, was released in 2020. He was raised in and still lives in the Montana’s Paradise Valley.
To learn more about the Stay Home and Read a Book Ball, please contact Jen Shoemaker, Development and Communications Manager, at 406-582-2437 or jen@bozemanlibraryfoundation.org.
Make a tax-deductible donation or purchase raffle tickets and/or a party pack today!