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The Atlas of New Librarianship 1st (first) Edition by Lankes, R. David
Libraries have existed for millennia, but today the library field is searching for solid footing in an increasingly fragmented (and increasingly digital) information environment. What is librarianship when it is unmoored from cataloging, books, buildings, and committees? In The Atlas of New Librarianship, R. David Lankes offers a guide to this new landscape for practitioners. He describes a new librarianship based not on books and artifacts but on knowledge and learning; and he suggests a new mission for to improve society through facilitating knowledge creation in their communities.
The vision for a new librarianship must go beyond finding library-related uses for information technology and the Internet; it must provide a durable foundation for the field. Lankes recasts librarianship and library practice using the fundamental concept that knowledge is created though conversation. New librarians approach their work as facilitators of conversation; they seek to enrich, capture, store, and disseminate the conversations of their communities.
To help librarians navigate this new terrain, Lankes offers a map, a visual representation of the field that can guide explorations of it; more than 140 Agreements, statements about librarianship that range from relevant theories to examples of practice; and Threads, arrangements of Agreements to explain key ideas, covering such topics as conceptual foundations and skills and values. Agreement Supplements at the end of the book offer expanded discussions. Although it touches on theory as well as practice, the Atlas is meant to be a textbook, conversation guide, platform for social networking, and call to action.
Copublished with the Association of College & Research Libraries
The vision for a new librarianship must go beyond finding library-related uses for information technology and the Internet; it must provide a durable foundation for the field. Lankes recasts librarianship and library practice using the fundamental concept that knowledge is created though conversation. New librarians approach their work as facilitators of conversation; they seek to enrich, capture, store, and disseminate the conversations of their communities.
To help librarians navigate this new terrain, Lankes offers a map, a visual representation of the field that can guide explorations of it; more than 140 Agreements, statements about librarianship that range from relevant theories to examples of practice; and Threads, arrangements of Agreements to explain key ideas, covering such topics as conceptual foundations and skills and values. Agreement Supplements at the end of the book offer expanded discussions. Although it touches on theory as well as practice, the Atlas is meant to be a textbook, conversation guide, platform for social networking, and call to action.
Copublished with the Association of College & Research Libraries
Hardcover
First published April 4, 2011
34 people are currently reading
690 people want to read
About the author
R. David Lankes
17 books38 followersR. David Lankes is the director of the University of South Carolina’s School of Information Science, and recipient of the American Library Association’s 2016 Ken Haycock Award for Promoting Librarianship.
His book, The Atlas of New Librarianship, won the 2012 ABC-CLIO/Greenwood Award for the Best Book in Library Literature.
Lankes is a passionate advocate for librarians and their essential role in today’s society.
His book, The Atlas of New Librarianship, won the 2012 ABC-CLIO/Greenwood Award for the Best Book in Library Literature.
Lankes is a passionate advocate for librarians and their essential role in today’s society.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
July 18, 2013
This is one of those 3-star reviews where the stars mean nothing, because I'm just averaging highs and lows. Some was so good, like wanting to rejigger library education. Some was so nonsensical, like ditching artifacts. A lot was contradictory to reality, especially this insistence on demoting artifacts in a world where people ask me EVERY DAY where the books are. Some was thoughtful and insightful, like his deeply felt desire to improve conversations between and among librarians and patrons. The truest review of this book, though, is that I respect his passion but see next to nothing that I would trouble myself to pursue in my current workplace. Oh, and there were more typos in it than I have ever had the displeasure of finding in one book.
***Edited 7/17/2013: I am so happy to say that I have recently started two projects at work where these ideas are closely entwined with the work. I was right that troubling myself to implement them - in a vacuum - would have been a waste. But! It turns out the thoughts have been percolating these last few months, and with the MOOC in full gear and these serendipitous projects, these ideas are all over my work now. Yay! But I still am skeptical about his artifact minimizing.
***Edited 7/17/2013: I am so happy to say that I have recently started two projects at work where these ideas are closely entwined with the work. I was right that troubling myself to implement them - in a vacuum - would have been a waste. But! It turns out the thoughts have been percolating these last few months, and with the MOOC in full gear and these serendipitous projects, these ideas are all over my work now. Yay! But I still am skeptical about his artifact minimizing.
June 1, 2015
This book is hard to rate because it had many good qualities and also many bad qualities. I did not care for the Atlas format. I think I would have rather read a narrative. I found the images tedious and ineffective; however the author made many great points throughout the text. I think this book serves as a great way to keep the collective dialog running among librarians and library professionals.
May 16, 2011
Though Lankes provides a lot of valuable insight into librarianship, his epistemological constructivism is simply incoherent, inconsistent, and untenable. I'll post a longer analysis on my blog (Sense and Reference), but the short version is that (1) we can adopt most of his recommendations without adopting his Conversation Theory, (2) his treatment of knowledge (the core of new librarianship) is incoherent, inconsistent, and based in fallacious reasoning, and (3) his theory of knowledge is more likely to be harmful to librarianship than beneficial. Strong words, I know, but if knowledge creation is going to serve as the core of new librarianship, we owe it to ourselves to adopt a consistent and coherent account of knowledge.
September 27, 2011
It is the textbook for librarians today - our collection is our community (not books) and the improvement of society is our goal.
July 10, 2017
Hace unos días, un compañero me dijo que era una pena que estuviese leyendo este libro porque no serviría para nada si algún día ejercía la profesión; lejos de entristecerme, me cabreó tanto que ahora solo quiero dedicarme a ella para mostrar que, a pesar del entorno conservador en el que lo haría, hay posibilidad de entrar en el siglo XXI con mucha sangre, sudor y lágrimas.
El autor establece desde el principio del libro que la misión de los bibliotecarios es mejorar la sociedad facilitando la creación de conocimiento en sus comunidades, y propone que este conocimiento se cree mediante la conversación, entendida no solo de forma colectiva, sino también de cada persona internamente mediante el uso de libros, Internet o lo que le resulte más eficiente. A mí, que desde hace años estoy obsesionado con que la sociedad se ilustre para tener un futuro mejor, esto me parece maravilloso, me motiva a seguir con mi carrera universitaria y, a la par, me enfrenta a un sistema decimonónico de entender la profesión que, si no fuera porque estoy acostumbrado a chocar con espesos muros de hormigón, me echaría para atrás.
Desenrollando el ovillo creado por ese hilo, encontramos múltiples digresiones filosóficas y metafísicas (¡e incluso alguna concreta!) sobre el futuro de los estudios de Información y Documentación (en decadencia en España), el uso de las nuevas tecnologías, la necesidad de romper con modelos anticuados basados estrictamente en libros, o por qué hemos de saber gestionar las bibliotecas como empresas aunque no tengamos finalidad lucrativa. Quizá esto último sea lo que más me ha ayudado, llevaba años sin entender por qué mis temarios tenían tanto contenido empresarial y empezaba a estar harto. Qué diantres, sigo estándolo, pero al menos ahora entiendo a qué se debe.
Por otra parte, se propone un modelo semántico y ontológico de creación de conocimiento mediante una herramienta llamada Scapes (que no llegó a buen puerto), que ahora podríamos sustituir por mapas mentales de objetos, aunque vaya Vd. a saber cómo. ¡Necesito profundizar más en estas cuestiones!
En definitiva, probablemente mi libro favorito de esta temática en lo que llevo recorrido de ella. Si tan solo algunos ejemplos y enlaces pudieran actualizarse como si fuera digital, sería un libro perfecto.
El autor establece desde el principio del libro que la misión de los bibliotecarios es mejorar la sociedad facilitando la creación de conocimiento en sus comunidades, y propone que este conocimiento se cree mediante la conversación, entendida no solo de forma colectiva, sino también de cada persona internamente mediante el uso de libros, Internet o lo que le resulte más eficiente. A mí, que desde hace años estoy obsesionado con que la sociedad se ilustre para tener un futuro mejor, esto me parece maravilloso, me motiva a seguir con mi carrera universitaria y, a la par, me enfrenta a un sistema decimonónico de entender la profesión que, si no fuera porque estoy acostumbrado a chocar con espesos muros de hormigón, me echaría para atrás.
Desenrollando el ovillo creado por ese hilo, encontramos múltiples digresiones filosóficas y metafísicas (¡e incluso alguna concreta!) sobre el futuro de los estudios de Información y Documentación (en decadencia en España), el uso de las nuevas tecnologías, la necesidad de romper con modelos anticuados basados estrictamente en libros, o por qué hemos de saber gestionar las bibliotecas como empresas aunque no tengamos finalidad lucrativa. Quizá esto último sea lo que más me ha ayudado, llevaba años sin entender por qué mis temarios tenían tanto contenido empresarial y empezaba a estar harto. Qué diantres, sigo estándolo, pero al menos ahora entiendo a qué se debe.
Por otra parte, se propone un modelo semántico y ontológico de creación de conocimiento mediante una herramienta llamada Scapes (que no llegó a buen puerto), que ahora podríamos sustituir por mapas mentales de objetos, aunque vaya Vd. a saber cómo. ¡Necesito profundizar más en estas cuestiones!
En definitiva, probablemente mi libro favorito de esta temática en lo que llevo recorrido de ella. Si tan solo algunos ejemplos y enlaces pudieran actualizarse como si fuera digital, sería un libro perfecto.
May 26, 2011
I have been reading many of Lankes posts and presentations and have really enjoyed them. I am very interested in Lankes voice and his talks and presentations always hold my attention. He seems to be right on the pulse of what libraries should be doing and where they are going.
When I saw that he was publishing a book called The Atlas of New Librarianship, I knew I had to get it. I was pleasantly surprised that the book takes a general approach that would put any library student or anyone interested in a fresh approach to librarianship into the right mindset. I realized that the flow of the book is very general and uses language that is easily digestible (and it is more like 200 pages, not over 1,000)
Communication and conversation are the keys to serving the library community according to Lankes. Knowledge is created through conversation. The book is purposely ambiguous so that all fields are covered, but also puts you into the right head space. I wish that I had this book in library school. I didn’t really learn about strategic planning and collaboration as is discussed in this book until afterward. I didn’t even know of the benefits until I became a director.
This book allows any librarian the ability to think critically and open these conversations with their community, whoever that may represent. This is a book that should be available in all library schools. There should be one class that encourages this kind of community focused conversation and collaboration as I believe that’s the secret to a sustainable future. If we don’t have support from our communities, or viewed as an integral part of them, then we appear to be very dispensable.
Great Passages:
"Don't waste your precious gift of fresh perspective by reading these words or listening to the voices of your faculty and assuming we are right. We are preparing you to be librarians not clones." p.11
"I have long contended that a room full of books is simply a closet but that an empty room with a librarian in it is still a library." p. 16
"The effect of this on the mission of librarians is at least two fold: Librarians must understand that they are only one source among many for a community, and librarians must be at least aware of the view of many sources on topics. This is not new by any means. One could argue that this is exactly how librarians have become seen as honest and credible agents. Not by seeking to be the authority on a source but rather by openly and transparently guiding members through multiple sources seeking consistency. This would indicate that as librarians move forward, they must be willing to move beyond any one class of resources (such as artifacts over experts)." p. 24
Ever wonder why only drug dealers and computer scientists talk of users? Because early models of information systems put the person asking questions outside the bounds of the system. The modern equivalent is the use of the term "customer" or "client". It is a model in which one sets up a system that is used by an actor outside of the system. "Patron" and "member" in contrast, imply that the beneficiaries of library services are part of the service and help to shape it. Remember that the word "patron"comes from "patronage"--to give support. This will loop back to the use of language soon in how the system deals with different language levels (after all, if you are part of a system, the system had better be able to handle your language). p 36
Here is how NOT to stop a rumor: tell people that the rumor is not true. I know it sounds counterintuitive, but brains have a hard tie keeping track of pesky little sdetais, such as the word not. According to Sam Wang and Sandra Aamodt,the brain re-creates and then re-stores the information we recall. In the process, it often loses track of the context from which it came. It also tends to remember things it writes down often. So even though you are refuting something, you are also repeating the falsehood, thus strengthening your recall of it. p.42
Identifying needs:
1. Identify key member groups
2. Identify key conversations within and across member groups.
3. Identify regularities in the conversation.
4. Map any existing librarian services
5. Assign a value to the potential benefit librarians can bring to the conversations.
6. Assign a value to the potential value the conversations have to the librarians.
7. Align librarian services to the high-priority conversations (p. 110)
The skills we must retain from public service and integrate throughout all librarian-provided services, are the ability to assess community needs and to be flexible in providing them. We must also take these services and incorporate them into a unified view of the library and take them outside physical walls to the community itself. p 154
When I saw that he was publishing a book called The Atlas of New Librarianship, I knew I had to get it. I was pleasantly surprised that the book takes a general approach that would put any library student or anyone interested in a fresh approach to librarianship into the right mindset. I realized that the flow of the book is very general and uses language that is easily digestible (and it is more like 200 pages, not over 1,000)
Communication and conversation are the keys to serving the library community according to Lankes. Knowledge is created through conversation. The book is purposely ambiguous so that all fields are covered, but also puts you into the right head space. I wish that I had this book in library school. I didn’t really learn about strategic planning and collaboration as is discussed in this book until afterward. I didn’t even know of the benefits until I became a director.
This book allows any librarian the ability to think critically and open these conversations with their community, whoever that may represent. This is a book that should be available in all library schools. There should be one class that encourages this kind of community focused conversation and collaboration as I believe that’s the secret to a sustainable future. If we don’t have support from our communities, or viewed as an integral part of them, then we appear to be very dispensable.
Great Passages:
"Don't waste your precious gift of fresh perspective by reading these words or listening to the voices of your faculty and assuming we are right. We are preparing you to be librarians not clones." p.11
"I have long contended that a room full of books is simply a closet but that an empty room with a librarian in it is still a library." p. 16
"The effect of this on the mission of librarians is at least two fold: Librarians must understand that they are only one source among many for a community, and librarians must be at least aware of the view of many sources on topics. This is not new by any means. One could argue that this is exactly how librarians have become seen as honest and credible agents. Not by seeking to be the authority on a source but rather by openly and transparently guiding members through multiple sources seeking consistency. This would indicate that as librarians move forward, they must be willing to move beyond any one class of resources (such as artifacts over experts)." p. 24
Ever wonder why only drug dealers and computer scientists talk of users? Because early models of information systems put the person asking questions outside the bounds of the system. The modern equivalent is the use of the term "customer" or "client". It is a model in which one sets up a system that is used by an actor outside of the system. "Patron" and "member" in contrast, imply that the beneficiaries of library services are part of the service and help to shape it. Remember that the word "patron"comes from "patronage"--to give support. This will loop back to the use of language soon in how the system deals with different language levels (after all, if you are part of a system, the system had better be able to handle your language). p 36
Here is how NOT to stop a rumor: tell people that the rumor is not true. I know it sounds counterintuitive, but brains have a hard tie keeping track of pesky little sdetais, such as the word not. According to Sam Wang and Sandra Aamodt,the brain re-creates and then re-stores the information we recall. In the process, it often loses track of the context from which it came. It also tends to remember things it writes down often. So even though you are refuting something, you are also repeating the falsehood, thus strengthening your recall of it. p.42
Identifying needs:
1. Identify key member groups
2. Identify key conversations within and across member groups.
3. Identify regularities in the conversation.
4. Map any existing librarian services
5. Assign a value to the potential benefit librarians can bring to the conversations.
6. Assign a value to the potential value the conversations have to the librarians.
7. Align librarian services to the high-priority conversations (p. 110)
The skills we must retain from public service and integrate throughout all librarian-provided services, are the ability to assess community needs and to be flexible in providing them. We must also take these services and incorporate them into a unified view of the library and take them outside physical walls to the community itself. p 154
November 11, 2012
So far this book is amazing. Just like Lankes vlogs, talks, and blogs he sets out simple yet profound statements that make you think. I was joking with another librarian about how we practically transcribe everything he is saying! Lankes is a brilliant wordsmith--no extraneous verbage.
This book is really an atlas. After the short, pithy intro it is all atlas. I am currently learning how to use the atlas portion. I will update my review once I have done that and have a better idea of what they comprise. Because it is Lankes I am confident that it will be profound. :)
This book is really an atlas. After the short, pithy intro it is all atlas. I am currently learning how to use the atlas portion. I will update my review once I have done that and have a better idea of what they comprise. Because it is Lankes I am confident that it will be profound. :)
August 31, 2016
This tome will encourage all librarians to embrace a new era for libraries. Think community-learning-enrichment. Yes, all the things we usually think of, and though many of us know libraries are and have been more than books, this offers substantial guiding principles and inspiration. A must read.
August 18, 2012
While I confess to not reading the Atlas of Librarianship from cover to cover, I'm not sure author David Lankes intended it to be. It is better to dip in and out of it and give yourself room to digest and cogitate on each new discovery along the way.
July 7, 2018
Save for a school resource later!
December 30, 2022
Took a library/archives career seminar this quarter in career panic mode!
June 1, 2016
I just finished reading Michael Gorman's "
Our enduring values revisited : librarianship in an ever-changing world" and wanted to return to Lanke's "Atlas" to compare the two. I had originally purchased this book back in 2013 in order to take his MOOC, which I couldn't finish as work was far too hectic. I have read a number of reviews, with particular interest in the mediocre ones. I believe that I tend to agree with Gorman (and the critical reviewers) that preserving artifacts, the human record, is a core mandate for all librarians. Ranganathan's "Five Laws of Library Science" are noted below. (From Wikipedia 6/1/2016). To Lankes' benefit, his theories appear to be aligned with all five:
Five laws of library science
The Five laws of library science is a theory proposed
by S. R. Ranganathan in 1931, detailing the principles of operating a library
system. Many librarians worldwide
accept them as the foundations of their philosophy.
These laws are:
1.
Books are for use.
2.
Every reader his / her book.
3.
Every book its reader.
4.
Save the time of the reader.
5.
The library is a growing organism.
As an academic librarian in a newly renovated library and information commons, I sense an obligation to peruse the Atlas and seriously contemplate how my service can be improved, enhanced and shared.
A bit about myself: I am the primary steward of electronic reserves for undergraduate and graduate studies. I am a member of a handful of professional library organizations and a mentor to both librarians in transition and library students in about half of them. I have a passion for our profession dating back to my childhood and hold the conviction that it is education and lifelong learning that provide humans with dignity, choice, sanity and peace. I understand that the Atlas is a reference tool, a handbook, a visualization/map to keep our thinking clear as we brainstorm and think-tank our way to 21st century information creation, preservation and sharing.
Our enduring values revisited : librarianship in an ever-changing world" and wanted to return to Lanke's "Atlas" to compare the two. I had originally purchased this book back in 2013 in order to take his MOOC, which I couldn't finish as work was far too hectic. I have read a number of reviews, with particular interest in the mediocre ones. I believe that I tend to agree with Gorman (and the critical reviewers) that preserving artifacts, the human record, is a core mandate for all librarians. Ranganathan's "Five Laws of Library Science" are noted below. (From Wikipedia 6/1/2016). To Lankes' benefit, his theories appear to be aligned with all five:
Five laws of library science
The Five laws of library science is a theory proposed
by S. R. Ranganathan in 1931, detailing the principles of operating a library
system. Many librarians worldwide
accept them as the foundations of their philosophy.
These laws are:
1.
Books are for use.
2.
Every reader his / her book.
3.
Every book its reader.
4.
Save the time of the reader.
5.
The library is a growing organism.
As an academic librarian in a newly renovated library and information commons, I sense an obligation to peruse the Atlas and seriously contemplate how my service can be improved, enhanced and shared.
A bit about myself: I am the primary steward of electronic reserves for undergraduate and graduate studies. I am a member of a handful of professional library organizations and a mentor to both librarians in transition and library students in about half of them. I have a passion for our profession dating back to my childhood and hold the conviction that it is education and lifelong learning that provide humans with dignity, choice, sanity and peace. I understand that the Atlas is a reference tool, a handbook, a visualization/map to keep our thinking clear as we brainstorm and think-tank our way to 21st century information creation, preservation and sharing.
July 14, 2013
As this is a somewhat difficult book (although an excellent read for librarians, new or seasoned!!) to describe, I am going to quote what is listed at Amazon.com: “David Lankes “The Atlas of New Librarianship” describes a new librarianship based not on books and artifacts but on knowledge and learning; and he suggests a new mission for librarians: to improve society through facilitating knowledge creation in their communities. The vision for a new librarianship must go beyond finding library-related uses for information technology and the Internet; it must provide a durable foundation for the field. Lankes recasts librarianship and library practice using the fundamental concept that knowledge is created though conversation. New librarians approach their work as facilitators of conversation; they seek to enrich, capture, store, and disseminate the conversations of their communities. To help librarians navigate this new terrain, Lankes offers a map, a visual representation of the field that can guide explorations of it; more than 140 Agreements, statements about librarianship that range from relevant theories to examples of practice; and Threads, arrangements of Agreements to explain key ideas, covering such topics as conceptual foundations and skills and values. Agreement Supplements at the end of the book offer expanded discussions. Although it touches on theory as well as practice, the Atlas is meant to be a tool: textbook, conversation guide, platform for social networking, and call to action. Copublished with the Association of College & Research Libraries."
Here is a link to a review by Elaine Harger (8 pages) that provides a good summary of the contents: http://progressivelibrariansguild.org...
Here is a link to a review by Elaine Harger (8 pages) that provides a good summary of the contents: http://progressivelibrariansguild.org...
June 10, 2011
So far this book is living up to my hopes. I think it would be useful on any librarian's professional development shelf in their home library. It uses "soaring language" to help support and renew librarians spirits. I got it by mail from the Multnomah County library to see if I should buy it, and I think I will.
"This atlas is written for you. It seeks to bolster the defiant who stand bravely before the crushing weight of the status quo and seeks to give hope to those silenced by the chorus of the mediocre and resistant to change. It seeks to show the way for for librarians in a time of great challenge, change, and opportunity. It is also a statement that you are not alone, you are not crazy, you are right: It is not about cataloging, or books, or buildings, or committees - it is about learning, knowledge, and social action."
"The ultimate goal of this book is to enumerate and express the inexpressible: that stripped of your collections and policies and organizations, you still stand noble. Your nobility comes from a mission no less that the preservation and improvement of society... That nobility is in inspiring someone to read, in helping someone find a job, in connecting an abused wife to social services to save her life, and in a Philadelphia cafe at the central library staffed by dedicated personnel in transition from homelessness to work."
"Although is has been cloaked in an air of service and hidden away behind quaint and romantic stereotypes, it is time for that nobility to shine and be brought into clear focus for our communities."
That's just from the introduction.
"This atlas is written for you. It seeks to bolster the defiant who stand bravely before the crushing weight of the status quo and seeks to give hope to those silenced by the chorus of the mediocre and resistant to change. It seeks to show the way for for librarians in a time of great challenge, change, and opportunity. It is also a statement that you are not alone, you are not crazy, you are right: It is not about cataloging, or books, or buildings, or committees - it is about learning, knowledge, and social action."
"The ultimate goal of this book is to enumerate and express the inexpressible: that stripped of your collections and policies and organizations, you still stand noble. Your nobility comes from a mission no less that the preservation and improvement of society... That nobility is in inspiring someone to read, in helping someone find a job, in connecting an abused wife to social services to save her life, and in a Philadelphia cafe at the central library staffed by dedicated personnel in transition from homelessness to work."
"Although is has been cloaked in an air of service and hidden away behind quaint and romantic stereotypes, it is time for that nobility to shine and be brought into clear focus for our communities."
That's just from the introduction.
August 22, 2013
The author of this book recently taught a massive open online course with this book as the central textbook. I started the MOOC, but only made it about halfway through before busyness with life and work caused me to drop out since finishing it was at the bottom of my priority list. I did stay in the course long enough to complete the reading assignments in this book though. The book centers around Lankes idea that librarians need to evolve from dealing with many of the things that have been historically envisioned as librarianship to adopt a new mission statement "to improve society through facilitating knowledge creation in their communities".
It's a very theoretical book, but it does have a lot of food for thought. I don't necessarily agree with everything he has to say, but I definitely think the book can be the basis for some great conversations and encouragement to really think about what our mission should be. I do like that he comes at the issue in reference to librarians and not libraries. Though library buildings are still important I think it's good to note that the building is not necessarily what makes the library what it is.
It's a very theoretical book, but it does have a lot of food for thought. I don't necessarily agree with everything he has to say, but I definitely think the book can be the basis for some great conversations and encouragement to really think about what our mission should be. I do like that he comes at the issue in reference to librarians and not libraries. Though library buildings are still important I think it's good to note that the building is not necessarily what makes the library what it is.
April 16, 2014
I always wondered what librarians study or do when they're not helping us find books. The Atlas of New Librarianship changes the way I think of libraries. Access to books (referred to as artifacts) are important to me, but lending books and maintaining collections are just part of librarians' many responsibilities. I also learned information science isn't the same thing as library science. The book is more of a mission statement and guide for library professionals on serving their communities. It contains more information than I want as a non-scholar, but makes me appreciate librarians even more.
I recommend this for librarians. The rest of us won't find it entertaining. If I were a librarian I'd probably rate this 5 stars, but I'm just an average reader.
https://www.facebook.com/CatOverlord
http://catoverlord.blogspot.com/2014/...
I recommend this for librarians. The rest of us won't find it entertaining. If I were a librarian I'd probably rate this 5 stars, but I'm just an average reader.
https://www.facebook.com/CatOverlord
http://catoverlord.blogspot.com/2014/...
November 17, 2014
read the first few chapters and watched some online videos for the online course. Interesting concepts about the librarian as a knowledge creator -- responsible for creating and maintaining the knowledge of communities by working with others to setup the tools, environment, and training to make this happen. It sounds fun in theory, and would require more social skills on the part of the librarian. It reminds me a little bit of the participatory art movement, because this theory requires the librarian to jump in and create a social situation in order to make something happen (in this case its the creation of knowledge rather than the creation of social practice art... or are they very different?).
December 1, 2013
I really enjoy Lankes, his vision, and thoughts of the profession. I am only giving this 3 stars because Lankes is a much better orator than a in book format. I think the book version doesn't do his lectures justice.
I think the content is pretty expansive and could use some editing. I enjoyed the read, and he has a really funny sense of humor.
Do check out his website. His lectures are also thought provoking and his passion comes across even more. So invigorating.
I think the content is pretty expansive and could use some editing. I enjoyed the read, and he has a really funny sense of humor.
Do check out his website. His lectures are also thought provoking and his passion comes across even more. So invigorating.
Currently reading
July 21, 2011So far, I'm puzzled. I'm a theoretical thinker, and have been in this field for 35 years, but I'm puzzled. It puts me in mind of a conversation I had with Eugene Garfield (founder of ISI) many years ago, after which I decided he was either brilliant, or insane.
But, I will reserve judgment until I finish it.
But, I will reserve judgment until I finish it.
September 27, 2012
Whew! A lot of very useful information and interesting discussion points. Hard to get through all at once. This is definitely one of those books where you get more out of it every time you read it.
July 27, 2016
This was an effort but well worth it. It was slightly difficult to read and should be treated more like a reference book than anything else. Those not in the library trade might not find it as interesting but I think it's still pretty fascinating on a few levels.
Read
December 17, 2015Somehow both two stars and four stars. I found the reading quite dense by while I didn't agree with Lankes in everything I thought he presented a nicely broad range of ideas of how libraries can evolve their services and work with their communities.
December 22, 2011
So far, this book is incredible. I regret that I have to read it too fast so that I can write a review by Dec. 20. UPDATE - finished the review Dec. 21. Great book, very inspiring for librarians!
August 31, 2016
Over the top, meta.
Currently reading
August 24, 2012Based on a strict definition, I don't think I can "finish reading" this book, ever.
January 1, 2013
Decided to return this to the Library and buy a copy for my own.
February 1, 2013
Thought provoking book that challenges us to think more broadly about the mission of librarianship. I'm with him most of the way. (But the complicated diagrams didn't help.)
August 4, 2013
Some very thought provoking writing on librarianship. As with all Lankes, can go over the top at times but in the end it always inspires further thought and new directions.
August 11, 2013
This was thought-provoking, but not the be-all, end-all I was hoping for. Still, there's a wealth of useful thought and theory here for future discussion.
January 7, 2014
I read this book as part of the New Librarianship MOOC! It is a definitive must-read for every librarian in opening up new horizons for librarianship in the future!
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