It’s not your father’s library anymore.

This week, the East Lansing Public Library played host to “Teen Read Week”, aimed at middle- and high-school teens in the Lansing area. Activities are part of a national campaign to encourage young people to read comic books and graphic novels.

“The library is getting to be a cool place now,” said Mary Hennessy, spokeswoman for the East Lansing Public Library.

Libraries nationwide are gravitating toward acceptance of comic books and graphic novels and are hoping teens will come to the library in response, Hennessy said.

“There’s always something for elementary school kids and something for the adults, but there’s hardly anything to fill in the gap in between,” she said. “We hope that the teens who come in realize the benefits the library has to offer.”

The library, 950 Abbott Road, hosted a number of events, including a discussion with Dan Mishkin, a local freelance comic book writer. Mishkin, a 1974 MSU graduate, spoke to a crowd Thursday about what goes into the making of a comic book.

“I’ve been writing comic books ever since I was a kid,” Mishkin said. “I was always making up stories in my head.”

Mishkin has written for many well-known comics, including “Superman” and “Wonder Woman.” Last year, he joined fellow artist Tom Mandrake in creating “Creeps,” a horror comic.

Mishkin said that comics and graphic-based novels have had a bigger influence on society than most people think. The movies “Spider-Man,” “Ghost World,” “Road to Perdition” and the “Men in Black” franchise all are based either on comics or graphic novels.

“A lot of people take comics seriously nowadays,” he said.

Both adults and children often are surprised about the impact of the comic-book industry and the amount of effort that goes into the production of each edition.

“There’s a lot more to it than people realize,” Mishkin said.