(male narrator) The second full week in April is National Library Week, when we celebrate our nation's libraries and librarians and think about the great ways libraries and books contribute to our lives. Libraries are a quiet place to read, study, and use computers. Libraries also have educational events and classes. And since libraries are funded by national, state, and local government, library resources are free to everyone. You just need a library card, a curious mind, and a quiet voice. The United States' first lending library was founded by Benjamin Franklin and others in Philadelphia in 1731. Today there are more than 16,000 public libraries in the U.S., and Americans check out more than 2 billion books and other resources each year. Libraries are also great for accessing the Internet, joining book clubs, having meetings, and getting help finding a job. The American Library Association sponsored the first National Library Week in 1958. It now includes National Library Workers Day to honor people who work in libraries, Bookmobile Day, celebrating libraries on wheels, and Teen Literature Day, to remind young people that reading boosts your brain power and it's fun. What do you like best about libraries?