Part of Our Lives: A People's History of the American Public Library

Reference Type Book
Year of Publication
2015
Contributors Author: Wayne A. Wiegand
Language
English
Number of Pages
331 pp.
Publisher
Oxford University Press
City
New York, NY
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Region
United States
Library Type
Public Libraries
Social/Subscription Libraries
Chronological Period
1850-1899
1900-1949
1950-1999
21st century
ISBN
9780190248000
Annotation

Contents: 

  • Introduction: So much more than information
  • "Improv'd the general conversation of Americans": Social libraries before 1854
  • For "plain people": The American public library, 1854-1876
  • "The best reading for the greatest number at the least cost": 1876-1893
  • "The liberty to read what they will and when": The Carnegie era, 1893-1917
  • "Habitations on a literary map": 1917-1929
  • "One island of refuge": The Great Depression and World War II, 1929-1945
  • "Winning the battles of daily life": 1945-1964
  • "An individual meaning to each user": 1964-1980
  • "Library paste is a precious part of social glue": 1981-2000
  • Information, reading, and place: 2001-present