Along the way, Orlean introduces us to an unforgettable cast of characters from libraries past and present—from Mary Foy, who in 1880 at eighteen years old was named the head of the Los Angeles Public Library at a time when men still dominated the role, to Dr. C.J.K. Jones, a pastor, citrus farmer, and polymath known as “The Human Encyclopedia” who roamed the library dispensing information; from Charles Lummis, a wildly eccentric journalist and adventurer who was determined to make the L.A. library one of the best in the world, to the current staff, who do heroic work every day to ensure that their institution remains a vital part of the city it serves. What utterly intrigued me was the way that exactly what a library is FOR has changed over the centuries. I am a huge fan of the public library, and absolutely uphold its place as a community resource. I do know that in medieval Europe, libraries were the province of monasteries and nobles - not least because that reflects the literacy of the age, and also the aspirations of such people.

The library is a fascinating account the history of libraries and books through the ages. The chapters span from the ancient library of Alexandria to libraries in this day and age. The writing of the library is pretty accessible but it is clearly a scholarly read. The amount of research the authors put in write this book is evident throughout book and manifests itself in an impressive number of references (many of which seem worthy to read on their own). Basically a young disillusioned chap, Tom, finds friendship with Maggie, a lonely ‘old lady’, the friendship, although unlikely turns into a life changing series of events for them both as amongst other things they face alcoholism, past secrets, first love ( Tom ), bullying and the centre piece of the book the imminent closure of their village library I wonder if there’s a term for comedy-dramas that are about finding friendship, rather than romantic love - chum-com?However, while more and more towns seem to finally modernize their libraries and work hard to make more people want to come, some threats have never truly gone away: A library lover's dream! Full of history, from the beginning of the beginning, and a careful tour through the libraries that have shaped our written record of humanity. An encyclopedic read, wrapping a reader roundabout with all those hours of research, the many crooks and crannies investigated and historical detective-diving obvious in every chapter. She also gives us Harry Peak’s story, arrested but never charged with starting the fire and describes the difficulty of proving arson and proving that he was responsible. So much is contained in the book and I felt at times that it was a little scattered moving from the fire to her experiences, to the history and then to the fire and the investigation. But ultimately it was an an emotional book for me as a retired librarian, although not a public librarian, but mostly as a book lover. The scenes described of the burned and damaged books got me in my gut and the coming together of volunteers to do what they could got me in my heart and then when several years after the fire, the library reopened. This fabulous book is an ode to librarians and the public library, which represents the fabric of our society in so many ways. The story is told to us in alternating perspectives of Tom and Maggie. This gives an equal focus to both these lovely characters who are sure to make their mark on your heart. My old regret is that the author chose to write Tom in first person and Maggie in third person. Alternating between the voices again and again is tedious and too abrupt at times. The book would have flowed much better for me had both the characters been voiced the same way, whether first or third.

But of course libraries have only been this wonderful thing for a very short period of time. The idea of all the riffraff of my kind being allowed all that access to books — well, that idea would be very alien to the “connoisseurs” throughout history. Libraries weren’t for the idle pleasure or even the sharing of common knowledge; they were meant for the privileged few. In this book the authors trace the library history and the evolution of library from scholastic monastery collections to university collections and private hoards of book wealth to subscription libraries to wonderful public libraries as we know them. Christine looked affronted. 'That's what it means.' She stabbed the letter with a neat fingernail. 'It came by recorded delivery. They call you to a meeting and that's when they tell you they're closing you down. . .'I recived a copy of The Library from NetGalley and Aria & Aries in exchange for an honest review, Bella Osborne's book is beautifully written, it made me cry in a good way, my heart feels full of hope, and five big stars from me. This book covers the evolution of the Library from the status symbol of the nobility, through professional personal libraries of scholars and merchants, subscription libraries and all the way to the public good that they are today, with additional insights of the value different people place on them. I find it quite surprising just how late fiction was allowed into the hallowed halls of libraries.

This book takes its role as a narrative of library history very seriously, like a true library lover would, of course. It’s detailed and serious, paying attention to details and minutiae. It requires patience and attention and tolerance for academic narration style. The vast majority of it is dedicated to the pre-20th century history of libraries and book trade, so if your goal is to learn more about the library as we know the concept now, you may be a bit impatiently frustrated for a while. But if you care about how libraries used to be before they became what they are — well, then it’s a treat. Famed across the known world, jealously guarded by private collectors, built up over centuries, destroyed in a single day, ornamented with gold leaf and frescoes or filled with bean bags and children's drawings - the history of the library is rich, varied and stuffed full of incident. Tom discovers the joy of reading, he gains confidence, he starts to apply himself to his studies, he wants to pass high school and go to university. When they threaten to close the library, Maggie, Tom, Farah, Christine and the members of Maggie’s book group start a petition and come up with ideas to save the library. An emotional story about an unlikely friendship, Maggie gives Tom the love and attention he desperately needs and she has a new lease on life. Tom learns valuable life skills from Maggie, and also people do make mistakes and you can’t hold their past against them.This was such a heartwarming novel. It effortlessly balances heavy topics with moments of hilarity. Initially, I wasn’t invested in this story, but when the pair’s storyline intersected I couldn’t get enough of these two. Susan Orlean was speaking with the Los Angeles Times about this book before its release....( I enjoyed listening to her speak on NPR as well). It is under these circumstances that Tom and Maggie are destined to meet in an even more awkward moment in the street near the library. This encounter heralds the beginning of a unique friendship that takes the reader on a fragile journey through love and all its guises. Most of all , by empowering the digital revolution, librarians have given up the one unique selling point which they defended so tenaciously for almost as long as we have had libraries: the right to apply their knowledge, taste and discrimination to assisting the choice of their patrons. This has been the key to understanding so much in this book: the idea that in an age of plenty there will always be helpmates to assist readers in making the right choice of book. Can the internet, in all its enormous variety, ever replace this reflective process of deliberation, the slow choosing the eager anticipation, the slow unfolding of plot?" (and while impressive algorithms have made it easy to find "more of the same" - "What if we want something different, rather than more of the same? What if we do not know that we want something different, but a chance encounter sparks our interests?") Naturally, this book is choke-full of names and dates since it recounts history and has to cover one hell of a lot of it. However, the names and dates don't necessarily have to mean too much to you so you don't have to feel intimidated by them. So long as you keep in mind how long the written word and libraries have been around and marvel at the evolution of both, you'll be fine.