The Library Book
Ratings81
Average rating4
15
Ratings81
Average rating4
Susan Orlean’s bestseller and New York Times Notable Book is “a sheer delight…as rich in insight and as varied as the treasures contained on the shelves in any local library” (USA TODAY)—a dazzling love letter to a beloved institution and an investigation into one of its greatest mysteries. “Everybody who loves books should check out The Library Book” (The Washington Post). On the morning of April 28, 1986, a fire alarm sounded in the Los Angeles Public Library. The fire was disastrous: it reached two thousand degrees and burned for more than seven hours. By the time it was extinguished, it had consumed four hundred thousand books and damaged seven hundred thousand more. Investigators descended on the scene, but more than thirty years later, the mystery remains: Did someone purposefully set fire to the library—and if so, who? Weaving her lifelong love of books and reading into an investigation of the fire, award-winning New Yorker reporter and New York Times bestselling author Susan Orlean delivers a “delightful…reflection on the past, present, and future of libraries in America” (New York magazine) that manages to tell the broader story of libraries and librarians in a way that has never been done before. In the “exquisitely written, consistently entertaining” (The New York Times) The Library Book, Orlean chronicles the LAPL fire and its aftermath to showcase the larger, crucial role that libraries play in our lives; delves into the evolution of libraries; brings each department of the library to vivid life; studies arson and attempts to burn a copy of a book herself; and reexamines the case of Harry Peak, the blond-haired actor long suspected of setting fire to the LAPL more than thirty years ago. “A book lover’s dream…an ambitiously researched, elegantly written book that serves as a portal into a place of history, drama, culture, and stories” (Star Tribune, Minneapolis), Susan Orlean’s thrilling journey through the stacks reveals how these beloved institutions provide much more than just books—and why they remain an essential part of the heart, mind, and soul of our country.
Reviews with the most likes.
The backdrop of the story was the Los Angeles library fire in April of 1986. The investigation of the cause of the fire threaded with the history of libraries in the United States makes up the narrative. The book which I read as an audiobook was read by the author herself. The possibility of arson in the library and the tale of the most likely person to be the arsonist definitely made it an interesting read. The book brought home the fact that libraries may be the reservoir of all kinds of information but, in the end, are run and maintained by people. There is politics and intrigue wherever there are social interactions and are the most alive of places. The story was fascinating for me but I really felt that the narration could have been livelier. It had the potential to engage me more with its in-depth research into the history of the libraries in the country. Maybe if I had actually read it as a book, I would have appreciated it better.
Wonderful book for lovers of books and libraries (aside from the trauma of reading about a horrible library fire), which has now provided me with a reason for wanting to go to Los Angeles, a place I never had the slightest wish to visit. Some sections, especially towards the end, were a bit thin and could beneficially have been filled out more. And Orleans's personal distaste for the lower classes does come through, as other reviewers have noted (she herself baldly states that she's afraid of homeless people), although the librarians don't generally seem to share her prejudice. Aside from these drawbacks, I found it full of fascinating information and stories and would gladly gobble up more “library books.”
Well, this was a hell of a book to finish on the day that Notre Dame was on fire. A fascinating blend of history, true crime (kind of, though not really enough to shelve it as that), a story of recovery from disaster, and a meditation on what a modern library means to its patrons and employees. I love Orlean's style and this was fun but also educational, without ever being dry or boring. I love libraries.
I spent hundreds of afternoons hanging out in my local library as a kid. I loved this book doubly, though, because as an adult I've come to realize how utterly unlike anything else libraries are. They're a rare treasure to accept anyone and give knowledge and resources out for free. I even heard about this book when my librarian recommended it to me. The book isn't for everyone, but it is for library lovers, and I hope everyone becomes a library lover
