Association that manages prison libraries

Lire c’est vivre was set up in 1987.  Three years previously Geneviève Guilhem, who played an important role in expanding France’s central lending libraries (BCP), and another librarian called Êdith Bargès, had created the first two libraries at the Fleury-Mérogis detention centre south of Paris. This was following a protocol signed by the justice minister of the day Robert Badinter and the culture minister Jack Lang.  The two women were then joined by a team of librarians to form Lire c’est vivre. With a mission to combat illiteracy,  the association now runs 10 libraries at Fleury-Mérogis, which – with more than 3,000 men, women and youngsters in detention — is the biggest penitentiary in Europe.  The prison has a central library, and nine branch libraries in the separate blocs – a bit like small municipal libraries (60 square metres).  There are five for the men (two for those in isolation, one for women, one for minors and one for young adults in the Young Prisoners Centre).  The libraries have some 5,000 books for lending and 30 or so newspapers and magazines on subscription.  Volunteer librarians are in charge.  In the 1990s Lire c’est vivre entered a partnership with the National Conservatory of Arts and Trades (CNAM) to train prisoners to become auxiliary librarians.  Detainees are taught about library organisation, book requests, attendance monitoring, reception skills and reader advice.  At the same time Lire c’est vivre organises cultural events including reading clubs (one per library per week, chaired by a volunteer), writing workshops,  recitations, philosophy groups, theatre workshops, story-telling, comic-strip drawing and so on.  Writers such as Simone Veil, Peter Brook and Nancy Huston have been invited to give talks.  Between 1991 and 2002 the association co-produced the magazine Liralombre, containing works by prisoners and other authors read out at the  reading clubs.  In 2009, under Geneviève Guilhem’s direction, the association also published the book « In my cell I went round the sun ».

Lire c’est vivre (Reading is living)

Association that manages prison libraries

Lire c’est vivre was set up in 1987. Three years previously Geneviève Guilhem, who played an important role in expanding France’s central lending libraries (BCP), and another librarian called Êdith Bargès, had created the first two libraries at the Fleury-Mérogis detention centre south of Paris. This was following a protocol signed by the justice minister of the day Robert Badinter and the culture minister Jack Lang. The two women were then joined by a team of librarians to form Lire c’est vivre. With a mission to combat illiteracy, the association now runs 10 libraries at Fleury-Mérogis, which – with more than 3,000 men, women and youngsters in detention — is the biggest penitentiary in Europe. The prison has a central library, and nine branch libraries in the separate blocs – a bit like small municipal libraries (60 square metres). There are five for the men (two for those in isolation, one for women, one for minors and one for young adults in the Young Prisoners Centre). The libraries have some 5,000 books for lending and 30 or so newspapers and magazines on subscription. Volunteer librarians are in charge. In the 1990s Lire c’est vivre entered a partnership with the National Conservatory of Arts and Trades (CNAM) to train prisoners to become auxiliary librarians. Detainees are taught about library organisation, book requests, attendance monitoring, reception skills and reader advice. At the same time Lire c’est vivre organises cultural events including reading clubs (one per library per week, chaired by a volunteer), writing workshops, recitations, philosophy groups, theatre workshops, story-telling, comic-strip drawing and so on. Writers such as Simone Veil, Peter Brook and Nancy Huston have been invited to give talks. Between 1991 and 2002 the association co-produced the magazine Liralombre, containing works by prisoners and other authors read out at the reading clubs. In 2009, under Geneviève Guilhem’s direction, the association also published the book « In my cell I went round the sun ».