Libraries in Belgium Feel the Love

Ah... Love is in the air, and Belgian library patrons are falling hard. Combining a love for literacy and, well, just plain love, Eric Van der Straeten and Danny Theuwis have created a popular new program called lib-dating that's catching on in libraries around Belgium. It's kind of like literary speed-dating, with a little red wine thrown into the mix for good measure. According to the AP article, this is how it works:

"Upon arriving, participants pick a small piece of paper from a glass with a question on it, such as: What was your favorite book as a child and why? They are instructed to go around the room with the question and mingle.

For the second round, readers take the three favorite books or passages they were asked to bring, and share their thoughts one-on-one with others for a few minutes before switching to a new partner and new books.

At the end of the session, participants are instructed to put their books down and write a note to be placed in the book of the person they would like to meet again."

Ooohhh... it sounds just like high school, doesn't it?

Because many of the initial participants were disappointed that there weren't more lib-dating opportunities, Theuwis and Van der Straeten have held several training sessions at Antwerp's Permeke library to train librarians from more than 300 libraries across the country on how to host a lib-dating session.

Sex in the library. Who'da thunk it?