Part of Our Lives
A People's History of the American Public Library
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4875477 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Tom Glynn (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2016 |
| Volume | 103 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 737-738 |
| Publication date | 2016-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of American History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0021-8723 • E-ISSN: 1945-2314 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/jahist/jaw358 |
| OpenAlex | W2401260450 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 10 |
In Part of Our Lives Wayne A. Wiegand provides an engaging narrative of a ubiquitous civic institution—the public library—from the eighteenth century to the present. As the book title suggests, Wiegand, the author of, among many other works, a biography of Melvil Dewey and a history of the American Library Association, adopts a bottom-up, patron-centered approach: “the library in the life of the user” (p. 2). Wiegand contends that public libraries have been part of our lives for three reasons. “Useful information” was more valued by librarians than library users (p. 3). It is the cornerstone of what the founders of the American Library Association called the “library faith,” the conviction that public libraries are essential to democracy (p. 54). Wiegand tends to gloss over the value that the profession also attached to literature, the presumption that reading canonical authors promoted not just good taste but also good morals, but he is nonetheless correct that little evidence exists that “good reading,” however defined, is fundamental to democracy. Second, readers loved their libraries for the stories they provided. Although for much of their history public libraries have discouraged the reading of popular fiction (in 1935 the director of the New York Public Library pronounced it “ruinous to taste and morale”), Wiegand holds that it served a constructive purpose because of its “ability to ... inspire, bond, entertain, socialize, empower, and educate” (p. 151). Third, while public libraries may not be vital to democracy, they certainly foster a sense of community. Their public spaces and events have served as a “robust commons” that promotes sociability and community involvement (p. 265
Art · Democracy · Literature · Media studies · Narrative · Political science · Reading (process · Sociology · History · Law · Library Science and Administration
A History of Information in the United States since 1870
The Literature of American Library History, 2012–2013
“Could My Dark Hands Break through the Dark Shadow?”
Not the Shark, but the Water
Library Spaces and Architecture
Sites of Educational Conflict
Scholarly research, then and now
Envisioning Libraries as Collaborative Community Anchors for Social Service Provision to Vulnerable Populations
The Public Library as Resistive Space in the Neoliberal City
Creating welcoming spaces
| Unique citing works | 10 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2016 - 2024 (9) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 8 |