Review by Choice Review
Authored by one of the titans of American library history, this volume is a celebration of the transformative role public libraries have played in US society since the second half of the 19th century. The ten chapters delve into the gist of why Americans love their libraries, tracing the history of the public library as an emblematic institution that has contributed to promoting democratic civic values and maintained social diversity by providing commonplace reading materials and public spaces available to all. Wiegand (emer., Florida State Univ.) investigates primary historical sources dating from as early as 1850, which, coupled with contemporary accounts, results in a dynamic canvas that pinpoints the development of the US public library and its significance in the lives of the two-thirds of citizens who carry a library card. Genuinely welcoming places for people seeking information and leisure reading, or for those who want to further their education and acquire new skills, public libraries remain open to all ages, genders, and races. They unite their supporters to fight censorship and defend the core value of intellectual freedom. A good read for anyone, librarian or not. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readers. --Hermina G.B. Anghelescu, Wayne State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* In this eminently readable history of the American public library, Wiegand focuses not on the founders of libraries but on the users from the eighteenth century to the present and the role of the library in everyday lives. This bottom-up approach allows him to bring in both the praises and the criticisms of the people who used libraries. He uses quotes from famous people, such as Pete Seeger, Hamlin Garland, and Philip Roth (as well as anonymous patrons), to show how they used and felt about their libraries. This focus also reveals the type of material patrons wanted namely, popular fiction and how librarians often tried to discourage this reading by not stocking these titles and encouraging them to read what were deemed good books. Censorship controversies over such classics as Huckleberry Finn, The Jungle, the Nancy Drew series, and Sexual Behavior of the Human Male are related from the point of view of the library, the reader, and the community. This book also gives an excellent history of readers' advisory in the public library by showing what people were reading and how libraries' collections became more inclusive over the years. This is a must-have book for all public, library-school, and college libraries and one that should be read by all librarians.--Jacob, Merle Copyright 2015 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Reviewed by Eric Norton. As this work's subtitle suggests, Wiegand, a professor emeritus at Florida State University's School of Information, takes a user-centered approach in this history of American public libraries. Wiegand does a superlative job of featuring the voices of average community members as well as famous individuals who, by and large, have loved their public libraries. Other histories of the institution and the profession are written by and for librarians, and they concentrate on supplying information as libraries' sole raison d'être. In seeking the patron's perspective, Wiegand finds that the library's role in popularizing reading and providing community spaces is just as crucial to the people the library serves. Throughout the book, Wiegand points to the importance of fiction in the lives of library patrons. In the early 19th century, at the beginning of the public library movement in the United States, librarians were reluctant to stock fiction of any sort, but over time novels have become central to library collections. Popular formats such as comic books, romance fiction, and even series books for children took much longer to be accepted. By providing fiction, Wiegand argues, libraries connect readers to the "personal histories and emotional roller coasters others experienced." Furthermore, he feels that giving patrons a choice of reading material reinforces the democratic ethos and provides the bedrock of a strong community. The push and pull of the community and the library over materials is another of Wiegand's major themes. Libraries are often, but not always, more permissive than their communities' majorities. Faced with McCarthyism, some libraries avoided buying certain titles, while other librarians resisted community pressure to shun books seen as linked to communism. Passages even more painful for this reviewer to read include a section on one Southern library refusing to issue cards to African-Americans on a technicality, and another in which a library removed a local gay newspaper after the passage of a local referendum found a vast majority of citizens in favor of banning any materials depicting or advocating homosexual acts. But in general Wiegand sees the value in this interplay, and he feels community standards should outweigh any standards that librarians may set, such as the Library Bill of Rights as championed by the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom. Along with the information service championed by the profession and the reading loved by the public, Wiegand also tells the story of the library's importance as a gathering place in one example after another. From libraries' beginnings in this country, communities large and small have come together in their local public libraries for lectures, art exhibits, classes, movies, and all manner of programs. The author ably demonstrates that it is this participation in an institution, rather than simply visiting a physical building, that forms the strongest component of people's love for libraries. In my own experience, the heartfelt words of thanks from patrons of all ages for programs at my local library certainly validate Wiegand's findings. (Sept.) Eric Norton is head of customer services at the McMillan Memorial Library in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
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Review by Library Journal Review
Compared to most other major institutions, Americans hold their public libraries in high regard. Wiegand (emeritus, Sch. of Information, Florida State Univ.; Main Street Public Library) explains why by tracing the history of the public library from the social libraries of colonial times to the modern institutions of the present. Uniquely, he emphasizes the perspective of patrons rather than that of professional librarians and managers. By searching digitized newspaper articles, published memoirs, and biographies, he unveils the voices of generations of library users (including those of famous patrons such as Oprah Winfrey, Kurt Vonnegut, and Sonia Sotomayor). From this collected data, the author concludes that libraries remain important because they provide reading materials, information access, and a valuable public space. Furthermore, public libraries adapt to the wants of patrons; for example, in finding a resolution to the longtime conflict of what constituted proper reading material. For years, many librarians disdained popular fiction as being beneath the needs of an educated, civilized society. However, Wiegand explains, libraries discovered that circulation declined when fiction was removed and as a result relented to the wishes of their patrons. VERDICT A compelling and oftentimes amusing read that will satisfy anyone interested in public libraries or in American history in general.-Dave Pugl, Ela Area P.L., Lake Zurich, IL © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
