My Story 🇸🇻♓📚🧠🧪🎶🐈⬛🌌🖤🌊
Storytelling can help us understand one another in ways a book alone never can. In this module on the Power of Storytelling, Michael Stephens asks us “What is your story” and explains that this question can help us better understand the people we serve (Stephens, 2020). He also writes that, “one of the best ways to gain first hand knowledge of both librarian experience and the specific stories of our community is through narrative inquiry,” which encourages us to ask questions such as “What would make your life easier” or “What would you like to learn about” instead of just questions about finding books. As I analyze the readings for this module I also reflect on how I see storytelling while connecting it to community work. Libraries hold stories in books but today they create community spaces for conversation and learning. Storytelling in terms of surveys or NI can provide librarians with a human centered framework to help connect with patrons and their information needs.
I think my story definitely shapes why storytelling and representation matter so much to me. Being first generation in Los Angeles with parents who migrated from El Salvador often left me feeling unseen, especially since I never heard my story in the books I read or the movies I grew up watching. Even with a strong Latino presence in the city, most of the representation around me was Mexican, Middle Eastern, or Asian. While it was easy to assimilate in school, I drifted from my culture and even from my own language, and I never had the chance to understand my heritage. I grew up feeling like I lived in the middle, not fully American and not fully Salvadoran. As I got older, reading and learning about my culture helped me fill in those gaps. Hearing others talk about similar experiences made me feel less alone and helped me understand my background. Through my psychology background and my experiences with family and students, I learned how unique every person’s story is and how differently people move through the world. These moments shaped how I understand representation and empathy. Storytelling matters to me because I know what it feels like to grow up unseen, and I want to create spaces where others do not have to feel that way.
Storytelling in Libraries- The Human Library
Storytelling in libraries is more than having books. It is about conversations, sharing experiences, and creating a space where people feel safe enough to join in and speak up. One example of this is the Human Library. Erin Wentz explains in The Human Library: Sharing the Community with Itself that in a human library people rather than books are available for checkout, and human books are “people with a particular personal experience or perspective on life” who are willing to speak openly with readers and answer questions (Wentz, 2013). Readers meet with the human books for open one on one conversations. The dialogue unfolds naturally with no script, giving people a chance to ask questions, explore new perspectives, and navigate these conversations on their own. Wentz notes that this model “shares the community with itself,” which makes it a perfect program to host within public libraries.
In Courageous Conversations at the Human Library, Mark Ray explains this experience as an opportunity to “unjudge someone,” because the Human Library is one of the rare spaces where people can approach unfamiliar or sensitive topics with curiosity rather than fear (Ray, 2019). He writes about how quickly we judge by appearance, identity, or background, and how the Human Library allows those assumptions to be challenged through direct dialogue. This form of storytelling is powerful because it turns strangers into teachers. It gives people who are often unheard a chance to speak openly, and it gives readers the chance to understand the emotional truth behind someone’s lived experience.
The impact of events like these extends far beyond the moment. A recent study shared in the Human Library Organization’s article New Study on the Impact of the Human Library found that participants remembered the conversations months later and continued thinking about the stories they heard. The researchers described the reflections as “a significant impact,” noting that readers became more aware of their own biases and learned that inclusion “requires conscious action,” not just good intentions (Aarne Skidmore, 2021). These insights ripple outward, shaping how people treat others in their communities long after the event ends.
Moving Forward
Moving forward, I think libraries should focus on creating safe and welcoming environments where stories can be heard, whether through Human Library events, or other programs and conversations within the library on a daily basis. \Madalina Paxaman’s interview with Michael Stephens, he says that libraries can push back against fear with the power of free information and a space that says no matter who you are, you are welcome (Paxaman, 2019). Storytelling programs like the Human Library make that vision real by creating opportunities for people to listen to each other with intention. They help communities recognize the full humanity of the people they pass every day and show that the library is not only a place to find stories, but a place to share them. Whether through one on one conversations or the quiet discovery of seeing yourself reflected for the first time, storytelling shows that every person carries something worth hearing and libraries provide the space for their stories.
References:
Aarne-Skidmore, E. (2021). New study on the impact of the Human Library. Human Library Organization. https://humanlibrary.org
Paxaman, M. (2019). Challenged but not dying, the public libraries are more relevant than ever. Jutland Station.
Ray, M. (2019, April 12). Courageous conversations at the Human Library. Next Avenue. https://www.nextavenue.org/courageous-conversations-human-library
Stephens, M. (2020). Office hours: Narrative inquiry. Library Journal.
Wentz, E. (2013). The human library: Sharing the community with itself. Public Libraries Online. https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2013/04/human_librar
