New Zealand's young library assistants are passionate about reading and love recommending books to their peers. As it is the time of year our young people make decisions about leadership opportunities in the year ahead, we thought it was high time we featured some.
Student librarians posing for the 2016 Raroa Normal Intermediate yearbook.
Joshua H, Year 7, Raroa Normal Intermediate I wanted to be a school librarian to help people and be around books. I don't know why I love reading, I just do. My favourite book is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
Malachi from Raroa Normal Intermediate
Malachi H, Year 7, Raroa Normal Intermediate
I love being a student librarian because I love reading and can relate to many of the people that come to the library.
I enjoy reading because you can go into new worlds just by flipping some pages. You can forget about problems and troubles and just relax.
My favourite book at the moment is Stormbreaker, from the Alex Rider series.
I enjoy reading because you can go into new worlds just by flipping some pages.
Claire S, Year 7, Raroa Normal Intermediate I wanted to be a librarian because it sounds really fun seeing what other people like and having fun.
What I love about reading is that you always gets to go on a adventure no matter what story it is. There is always an adventure in the book.
Right now I am reading Rainbow Magic. It’s about these two friends, Rachel and Kirsty, who discover that they are friends with the fairies and go on an adventure to stop the evil Jack Frost and his goblins.
Milla S, Year 7, Raroa Normal Intermediate I wanted to be a student librarian because I love books and libraries.
My favourite thing about reading is the guarantee that you will escape your world and jump into another.
My favorite book right now is called Eclipse. It is the second book in the Twilight series.
Emma and Michael from Fendalton Open-Air School
Emma S, Year 6, Fendalton Open-Air School
I became a librarian because I’ve always wanted to help out in the library. I like to read and love the variety of books and I like helping people find the good books. I also like the busy library at lunchtime.
I love reading because sometimes you can get stuck in a book and it pulls you into the story.
I love the Percy Jackson series because they are full of different adventures. I love reading by the fire in winter.
I like to read and love the variety of books and I like helping people find the good books.
Michael B, Year 6, Fendalton Open Air School
I like getting involved. I like getting books ready for other classes. It’s the best place to be. It’s relaxing. I like being part of all that.
I love books and reading because they take you to a proper adventure. Much better than seeing the movie.
I’m reading the Famous Five books now and like the adventures they have. I love reading on my bed.
Te Huiatahi at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary
Te Huiatahi G-S, Year 5, Our Lady of Lourdes
I wanted to be a school library helper because I like books and I also like helping out in libraries. I like libraries.
In chapter books, I love that you can make your own pictures inside your head and you can make them as interesting as you want.
My favourite book is The Neverending Story by Michael Ende. I really liked that book. I'm reading lots of books right now. My favourite one of them is called Ever After High: Next Top Villain by Suzanne Selfors. I like it, because it's really fun and interesting.
William M, Southland Boys College
William M., Year 13, Southland Boys High School I am a Year 13 prefect this year, and one of the student librarians that helps out during my lunch time. I put books away and give recommendations to other students that are looking for a good book to read.
The thing I love about reading is the mystery behind each book and knowledge it holds. Because no matter if it’s non-fiction or fiction, it allows us to look in to our hearts and perceive the world in a different way. Non-fiction gives us a sense of the emotions an author is feeling about a certain matter at the time it was written, and fiction can do the same but through a fictional and a more understandable context. I love reading because I learn something new with every book I read, as well for as the satisfaction it provides.
Because no matter if it’s non-fiction or fiction, it allows us to look in to our hearts and perceive the world in a different way.
My favourite book at the moment is One More Thing, by B.J Novak. I love this book because it is made up of well-known stories like the race between the hare and turtle, but written in a more complex and amusing way.
Vere J, Year 10, Southland Boys College
Vere J, Year 10, Southland Boys High School
My role in the school library is to shelve books and make sure that the shelves are tidy and organised.
What I love about reading is the sense of adventure I get without having to leave the room. Being able to make connections to stories and never wanting to put a book down.
My favourite book right now is Unwind by Neal Shusterman. The story follows three runaway kids fighting the system in a dystopian future. I read this book for an English assessment and loved it so much, I decided to continue reading the entire series.
Jamie M, from Garin College
Jamie M, Year 13, Garin College
My official title is head library assistant (though in years before now the position has been called head librarian). My role involves organising events of significance to literary tradition within the library (e.g. organising a Shakespearean performance on Shakespeare's birthday), sorting bookshelves and training younger library assistants!
My love of reading is a natural extension of my love for stories in all their forms - be that stage shows, films, music, video games or books. The gift of an insight into another person's mind is only truly possible through the lens of stories and, really, that is the peak of the human experience.
The gift of an insight into another person's mind is only truly possible through the lens of stories and, really, that is the peak of the human experience.
My favourite book is Stoner by John Williams. It is and will forever be a relevant critique of the 'you won't find a job with that degree' attitude that seems to be so prevalent these days.
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Find more of our School Librarians of Aotearoa series here.