The Gruen Transfer regular was at the library to launch the local National Year of Reading Campaign and she told the audience that her love for reading had begun at a young age.
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As a child her nose was permanently buried in a book and that developed into a lifetime of amateur writing, which eventually paid off, leading to a career as one of the nation’s leading copywriters, a prominent media commentator and renowned author.
However, recent studies have found that this love of the written word is becoming more and more uncommon amongst Australians.
Almost half of the adult population struggles with basic literacy and Ms Caro thinks more should to be done to encourage youngsters to read. She believes parents and teachers should not underestimate the power of technology, graphic novels and politically incorrect subject matter, even if it contains profanity, saying that the most important thing was for kids to be reading and engaging with material that interests them.
Reading is one of the most important life skills a child will learn because it will not only help them to cope better with everyday life but it also broadens their minds to both information and perspectives they would not otherwise encounter.
“Reading is at the bottom of everything,” Ms Caro said after the floor talk.
“As the world changes around us, a novel reminds us of what stays the same. We can read a Dickens novel or an Austen novel or a Bronte novel that was written more than 100 years ago and we realise what it is to be human. What it is to be human hasn’t changed, it is just the trappings that have changed.”
Library manager Sylvia Brook couldn’t have been happier with the way the morning went, saying Ms Caro was an excellent speaker and that the National Year of Reading was very important.
“It is about Australians rediscovering the joy reading,” she said.
“It’s about supporting reading initiatives whilst respecting the oral transitions of storytelling and it’s about enjoying the magic of books.
“But, most of all, it’s about Australia becoming a nation of readers because studies have shown that nearly half of the population struggles with the literacy skills needed to meet the most basic demands of everyday life and work.
“Forty six per cent of Australians cannot read newspapers, follow a recipe, make sense of timetables or understand the instructions on a medicine bottle.
“Literacy skills are the foundation of lifelong learning and libraries are here to help with this important skill – it is never too late to learn.”
The library has a number of educational resources and staff are always happy to help people in any way they can. It will also hold a number of events throughout the year to help promote literacy.
