The Librarian at Play

Pearson, Edmund Lester, 1880-1937Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 211K words
Chapters: 22

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 Librarian at Play by Edmund Lester PearsonAuthor: Pearson, Edmund Lester, 1880-1937,Language: English, Class: Z: Bibliography, Library science, Release Date: Sep 22, 2014

Editor's review

The Librarian at Play is a collection of library-themed essays by Edmund Lester Pearson; the "at play" in the title signals that it is not a serious library science textbook but a light-toned discussion of librarians' work, reading tastes, and everyday observations. Sources classify it under bibliography and library science, but readers are more likely to find in it the charm of old-style literary essays: talk of books, borrowing, and the various characters found in libraries. Its value lies in presenting the cultural atmosphere and humor of the library profession in the early 20th century, making it suitable as marginal material for library history or the history of reading culture. Read it without expecting systematic theory and treat it as essays and sketches; if you are interested in the changing image of the library profession, excerpt its depictions of librarian identity and reader relations and compare them with contemporary library practice.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Library practitioners and library science students
Readers who enjoy book talk, essays, and old-style humorous prose
People studying early 20th-century reading culture and professional image
Ordinary book lovers who want to learn about the everyday pleasures of libraries

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking systematic library science theory or operational guides
Readers who prefer strong plot novels or fast-paced narratives
People uncomfortable with English essay style and unwilling to read slowly

Reading tips

Read selectively by essay, starting with chapters related to borrowing, readers, or reading tastes.
Take notes on interesting professional observations as you read and compare them with contemporary library settings.
Keep it at hand as short essays for bedtime or commuting, reading one or two pieces at a time.
If using it for research, first survey the themes of each essay, then excerpt passages concerning librarian identity and reader relations.

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.

FAQ

Is this book a library science textbook?

No. Sources classify it under bibliography and library science, but the title and the author's identity suggest it is closer to a collection of essays on library topics. It is suitable for learning about the pleasures and cultural atmosphere of the library profession, not for use as a systematic textbook or operational manual.

Do I need library science knowledge to read it?

No. The book mostly discusses library daily life, reading tastes, and professional observations, which ordinary book lovers can also enter. Some library work experience will make it easier to resonate with; readers without that background can read it slowly as essays and need not pursue a theoretical thread.

Is the English version difficult to read?

The author wrote in an earlier era, and the language carries an old-style essay flavor; sentence patterns and allusions may feel somewhat remote to contemporary readers. It is advisable to try one or two essays first; if it feels difficult, read with annotations or close-read selected passages, and do not force yourself to finish it in one go.

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About the author

Pearson, Edmund Lester, 1880-1937 Author

Edmund Lester Pearson (1880–1937) was an American author best known for his essays and narrative works. Public information about his life is limited, and the four titles held in this collection are not enough to reconstruct a full biography. Judging from the surviving titles, his interests were fairly broad: The Librarian at Play discusses the daily life of librarians and the pleasures of reading in a light-hearted tone, showing a firsthand familiarity with books and library culture; Theodore Roosevelt offers an account of the American political figure; The Believing Years and The Voyage of the Hoppergrass are narrative works whose titles suggest a strong imaginative strain. On the whole, his writing tends toward the essayistic, moving between book culture, biography, and storytelling, in a plain and engaging style.