The Library Book

This nonfiction book about libraries got me weirdly emotional, though to be fair, I was already intensely passionate about libraries. I recommend picking it up. Preferably a library copy, so you can say you're reading the library book The Library Book.

In The Library Book, Orlean describes the history of public libraries, but more specifically the Los Angeles Central Library, which was devastated by an enormous fire in the spring of 1986. She looks at the impact of the fire and the arson investigations following it. She also writes about the contested and evolving role of public libraries, with research spanning centuries.

She runs through past and present senior staff members at the Los Angeles library, and how their perspectives each impacted the library. She talks about building rentals, renovations, and construction, before and after the fire. She details library programs created in response to LA's development and larger political and cultural factors.

Given the number of topics addressed and interviewed integrated, this book could have easily been a scattered mess. But Orlean skillfully weaves together different subjects and settings. She creates a layered and complex sense of what libraries are—the purposes they serve, the challenges they face, how they have changed.

I especially enjoyed a short chapter (22) about reference librarians answering calls in the InfoNow department. It was a brief but accurate glimpse into what it's like to field questions from library patrons. It was consistent with my experiences, anyway.

I was glad Orlean took a moment to showcase the value of there being a place people can contact/visit to ask...well, pretty much anything. And I was glad that she took that same moment to share how bizarre and funny patron interactions often are. I believe work in a library requires viewing and treating people with patience and dignity. But also, work at a free public institution invites an abundance of weird, dumb possibility. The Library Book captured this ambiguity well.

This is a compelling text about the history and future of public libraries, including their connections to technology and social services. But it also discusses arson at length, so it gives you a lot to consider. I really enjoyed it.