In a brief turnover ceremony at the Antonio Camacho Atalig Memorial Library, Sablan said the books are surplus volumes from the U.S. Library of Congress.
“Our constituents here need books to read, and my office is happy to be able to respond to this need,” Sablan said.
He said they had to sort out the books from a big warehouse to select which would suit the needs of the libraries in the CNMI.
The books, both fiction and non-fiction, cover different subjects such as health, science, English and general materials.
Sablan said last year, about 80 percent of the surplus books of the U.S. Library of Congress went to the CNMI.
His office also facilitated the donation of 50 boxes of assorted books to the Joeten-Kiyu Public Library on Saipan.
He will donate more books to the Tinian Public Library soon.
Librarian Lynn Atalig, who accepted the book donation with Rota Mayor Melchor A. Mendiola and his wife Estrella Mendiola, told the Variety that they are hoping to open the library to the public very soon.
She said they already have many books to fill shelves.
“We still have to put barcodes on the books for cataloguing before the library will be ready for the readers,” Atalig said.
She said they are also looking forward to receiving computer units from the Joeten-Kiyu Public Library.
“The computers can help our readers with their research work,” Atalig said.
