Sue Taylor, library supervisor at Mark Twain Library in Long Beach, above left, and Lyda Thanh, a library homework helper who speaks, reads and writes Khmer, prepare for their January trip to Cambodia to purchase books for the library s large Khmer collection. (Scott Smeltzer / Staff Photographer)COMMUNITY: Grants to finance library's search for, purchase of Khmer-language works.
By Kelly Puente, Staff writer
12/30/2007
LONG BEACH - Mark Twain Library staff members Susan Taylor and Lyda Thanh were on a mission to buy more than 1,000 books in the Khmer language.
They scoured Long Beach's Cambodian markets, searched through Khmer Web sites and even called a publishing company in Cambodia.
"We tried everything," said Taylor, a library supervisor who began planning the project two years ago. "But all the Cambodian shops in Long Beach hadn't gotten anything new in the last five years. We'd exercised all our resources."
The women discovered that the only way to find such a large quantity and variety of material was to travel to Cambodia and buy the books themselves.
On Wednesday, Taylor and Thanh will fly to Cambodia with a $20,000 grant to replenish the library's aging collection of books in Khmer, the country's official language.
Over the next two weeks, they will visit more than two dozen bookstores in the cities of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap.
Thanh, a homework helper in the library, speaks, reads and writes Khmer and will act as the purchaser. For the past seven years, she has been responsible for cataloging all the Cambodian books at Mark Twain.
Thanh plans to have the new books cataloged and ready by Cambodian New Year in April.
"It's going to be a lot of work but it will be so rewarding," said Thanh, 26, whose father was a Cambodian monk and scholar.
'A mega display'
Long Beach is home to one of the world's largest populations of Cambodians outside of Cambodia.
Mark Twain, at 1401 Anaheim St., sits in the heart of the city's newly designated "Cambodia Town," a stretch of restaurants and shops along Anaheim between Junipero and Atlantic Avenues.
"With the new Cambodia Town, the spotlight is going to be on us," said Taylor, an employee of the Long Beach Public Library system for 40 years. "Why can't Long Beach be the premier place for Cambodian books in the U.S.?"
Mark Twain, with 1,094 Khmer books, already has one of the largest collections of Cambodian material in the state. The library is hoping to double that collection.
"We want to have a mega display," Taylor said.
The trip was made possible through grant money set aside five years ago when the city was planning the new Mark Twain Library, Taylor said. The Helen Fuller Cultural Carrousel, a committee of the Friends of Long Beach Public Library, will cover all the travel expenses.
Interest surges
Since its grand opening in August, Mark Twain, the city's first new library in more than three decades, has had 2,222 new library card holders, Taylor said.
The library has also seen a surge in circulation of Cambodian material.
But many of the books are damaged after years of use, she said. The library has not purchased any new Cambodian books in the last five years.
Taylor and Thanh said they've carefully researched what books are in demand by looking through the library's computer system.
Cambodian history, customs, culture, folklore and children's stories are top on the list, Taylor said. "But we'd also love to get books like Anne Frank and Harry Potter, if they have it," she said.
Although they plan to buy mostly new material, they also hope to get some extra copies of old favorites.
One of the library's most popular Cambodian books is a fairy tale called, "The Beast of BongBot Forest," which has been checked out 53 times over the last five years.
Heavy load
Lugging more than 1,000 books back to the U.S. will be a challenge, Taylor admits. The women plan to carry some on the plane and will possibly FedEx the rest.
The women said the reaction from the Cambodian community has been that of pride and excitement.
"People keep coming in and asking, 'Have you gone yet?"' Taylor said.
Thanh said the surge of books can help new Cambodian immigrants and will encourage young adults to get back in touch with their culture.
Parents will now have more options to read to their children in Khmer, she said.
"It really bridges the gap between generations."
By Kelly Puente, Staff writer
12/30/2007
LONG BEACH - Mark Twain Library staff members Susan Taylor and Lyda Thanh were on a mission to buy more than 1,000 books in the Khmer language.
They scoured Long Beach's Cambodian markets, searched through Khmer Web sites and even called a publishing company in Cambodia.
"We tried everything," said Taylor, a library supervisor who began planning the project two years ago. "But all the Cambodian shops in Long Beach hadn't gotten anything new in the last five years. We'd exercised all our resources."
The women discovered that the only way to find such a large quantity and variety of material was to travel to Cambodia and buy the books themselves.
On Wednesday, Taylor and Thanh will fly to Cambodia with a $20,000 grant to replenish the library's aging collection of books in Khmer, the country's official language.
Over the next two weeks, they will visit more than two dozen bookstores in the cities of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap.
Thanh, a homework helper in the library, speaks, reads and writes Khmer and will act as the purchaser. For the past seven years, she has been responsible for cataloging all the Cambodian books at Mark Twain.
Thanh plans to have the new books cataloged and ready by Cambodian New Year in April.
"It's going to be a lot of work but it will be so rewarding," said Thanh, 26, whose father was a Cambodian monk and scholar.
'A mega display'
Long Beach is home to one of the world's largest populations of Cambodians outside of Cambodia.
Mark Twain, at 1401 Anaheim St., sits in the heart of the city's newly designated "Cambodia Town," a stretch of restaurants and shops along Anaheim between Junipero and Atlantic Avenues.
"With the new Cambodia Town, the spotlight is going to be on us," said Taylor, an employee of the Long Beach Public Library system for 40 years. "Why can't Long Beach be the premier place for Cambodian books in the U.S.?"
Mark Twain, with 1,094 Khmer books, already has one of the largest collections of Cambodian material in the state. The library is hoping to double that collection.
"We want to have a mega display," Taylor said.
The trip was made possible through grant money set aside five years ago when the city was planning the new Mark Twain Library, Taylor said. The Helen Fuller Cultural Carrousel, a committee of the Friends of Long Beach Public Library, will cover all the travel expenses.
Interest surges
Since its grand opening in August, Mark Twain, the city's first new library in more than three decades, has had 2,222 new library card holders, Taylor said.
The library has also seen a surge in circulation of Cambodian material.
But many of the books are damaged after years of use, she said. The library has not purchased any new Cambodian books in the last five years.
Taylor and Thanh said they've carefully researched what books are in demand by looking through the library's computer system.
Cambodian history, customs, culture, folklore and children's stories are top on the list, Taylor said. "But we'd also love to get books like Anne Frank and Harry Potter, if they have it," she said.
Although they plan to buy mostly new material, they also hope to get some extra copies of old favorites.
One of the library's most popular Cambodian books is a fairy tale called, "The Beast of BongBot Forest," which has been checked out 53 times over the last five years.
Heavy load
Lugging more than 1,000 books back to the U.S. will be a challenge, Taylor admits. The women plan to carry some on the plane and will possibly FedEx the rest.
The women said the reaction from the Cambodian community has been that of pride and excitement.
"People keep coming in and asking, 'Have you gone yet?"' Taylor said.
Thanh said the surge of books can help new Cambodian immigrants and will encourage young adults to get back in touch with their culture.
Parents will now have more options to read to their children in Khmer, she said.
"It really bridges the gap between generations."
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