The Library and Society: Reprints of Papers and Addresses

Project GutenbergProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.0
Word count
955K words
Chapters
96

Tags

English Originals Social Sciences Public EducationLibrarianshipKnowledge TransmissionSocial ObservationHumanistic CareCivic AwarenessSocial CritiqueAcademic MonographIntellectual CommentaryPolicy Analysis

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971, and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today. The Library and Society: Reprints of Papers and Addresses by Arthur E. Bostwick. Author: , Language: English, Class: Z: Bibliography, Library science, Release Date: Aug 22, 2010

Editor's review

This book is a reprinted collection of papers and addresses by library science pioneer Arthur E. Bostwick on the relationship between libraries and society, prepared and published by Project Gutenberg. The pieces discuss the public function of libraries, their educational mission, and their role in the progress of civilization, offering both historical documentary value and professional reference value. Written in an earlier era, the essays have a formal style and a framework marked by their time; precisely for this reason, readers can trace the development of early twentieth-century library science thought and understand how the idea of the public library gradually took shape. For readers studying library history, reading history, or public cultural services, this is primary material to be read alongside other sources. Approach it with a questioning mind, situating it in its historical context, attentive both to its insights and its limitations. It suits thematic study or reference consultation rather than casual reading.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. Read the table of contents and the opening paragraphs of each piece first, then select chapters relevant to your research topic for close reading.
  2. Keep a pen to note key statements reflecting the period's views, for later comparison with secondary research.
  3. Read alongside background material on the development of public libraries in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
  4. Compare the book's views with contemporary library service concepts and write reading notes.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42
  43. 43
  44. 44
  45. 45
  46. 46
  47. 47
  48. 48
  49. 49
  50. 50
  51. 51
  52. 52
  53. 53
  54. 54
  55. 55
  56. 56
  57. 57
  58. 58
  59. 59
  60. 60
  61. 61
  62. 62
  63. 63
  64. 64
  65. 65
  66. 66
  67. 67
  68. 68
  69. 69
  70. 70
  71. 71
  72. 72
  73. 73
  74. 74
  75. 75
  76. 76
  77. 77
  78. 78
  79. 79
  80. 80
  81. 81
  82. 82
  83. 83
  84. 84
  85. 85
  86. 86
  87. 87
  88. 88
  89. 89
  90. 90
  91. 91
  92. 92
  93. 93
  94. 94
  95. 95
  96. 96

FAQ

Is this book in Chinese or English? Is it hard to read? The original is in English, released as an ebook by Project Gutenberg with no Chinese translation. The text consists of academic papers and addresses with long sentences and formal wording, requiring some English reading ability. It is recommended for readers at university English level who are familiar with basic library science concepts, with a dictionary and background materials at hand.
What are the core issues discussed in the book? The book centers on the relationship between libraries and society, covering the public educational function of libraries, their role in civilization, and the idea of library services oriented toward the public. The pieces are reprints of papers and addresses from various occasions; their themes are related but their angles differ, making them suitable for reading by topic.
Is this book suitable as a textbook for systematic study? Not really. It is a reprinted compilation of historical documents, lacking the systematic organization and theoretical updates of a modern textbook. It is better used as research material or thematic reading, in conjunction with courses or research projects on library history or public cultural services.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Project Gutenberg Author

Project Gutenberg is not a single author but a nonprofit digital library founded by Michael Hart in 1971 and one of the world's earliest free ebook platforms. It relies on volunteers to digitize, proofread, and freely distribute public-domain works and is now operated by the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Its collection contains 2,692 works, mainly religious texts, epics, and story collections, including the King James Bible and the Douay-Rheims volumes, the epic Mahabharata, a literal translation of the Arabian Nights, and Danish editions of the Old and New Testaments. Public information is limited, and its nature is closer to a public-interest compiling and dissemination body; these texts are open to the public, easy to consult and circulate, and have had a profound influence on the spread of ebooks and the preservation of public-domain resources.