Annotated Bibliography Entry

Source Type:
 reference book  website  popular magazine article  dissertation
 book  interview  scholarly journal article  gov’t document
 other: ___________________________

Full MLA citation:

Murray, Stuart A. P. The Library: An Illustrated History. New York, NY: Skyhorse
Publishing, 2009. Print.

Brief summary & critical analysis of content:

Stuart Murray’s The Library: An Illustrated History is an excellent source for those
looking for an overview of the history of libraries around the world, from the birthplace of
the written word, some time before 3000 BCE, to present day modern technological
advances. An ideal source for either research or the initiation thereof, Murray explores the
dawning of advanced civilization, where the written word flourished and the need for
libraries became paramount in many societies. His elaborate history takes the reader
from the very beginning in the ancient libraries of Babylon and Alexandria to some of the
greatest contemporary institutions, such as the Royal Society of London, the Newberry
Library, the Smithsonian, and beyond.
Throughout the history of the world, libraries have been constructed, burned,
discovered, raided, and cherished – while the treasures they housed evolved from early
stone tablets, to beautifully illuminated vellum, and to the mass-produced, bound paper
books and the digital formats of today. The Library opens doors to the libraries of ancient
Greece, early China, Renaissance, England, and modern-day America. No other
institution so perfectly mirrors the human condition in any period of history. This volume
speaks to the book lover in all of us while offering a panoramic view of the history of
libraries across the countries.
The story of libraries and of the changing form and function of the book from era to
era, whether clay tablets, parchment sheets, and papyrus scrolls, or the digital formats at
present, speak to the very nature of evolution, innovation, perseverance, and
preservation. Incorporating beautiful illustrations, insightful quotations, and descriptions of
many marvelous libraries – their books, patrons, and keepers – The Library is certain to
provide a wealth of knowledge and enjoyment. Published with the cooperation of the
American Library Association and with an introduction by Donald G. Davis, Jr., the former
editor of Libraries & Culture and eminent library scholar, as well as a foreword by
bestselling author Nicholas A. Basbanes, The Library takes the reader on a compelling
and informative journey through the dynamic history of our beloved institution. At the heart
of the story of libraries is the story of the reader, who has also changed during the
centuries.

Evaluation of source using criteria & rationale for selection:

Author: According to the publisher, Skyhorse Publishing, Stuart A. P. Murray has been an
author and editor for forty years, specializing in American History, which makes him a
formidable and authoritative figure on the subject matter. As an author of over thirty-five
books, including the award-winning America’s Song: The Story of “Yankee Doodle,”
Murray has also worked as a book and newspaper editor, a beat reporter, and a
magazine publisher. His journalistic writing has been published in regional dailies as well
as in the New York Times.

Date: This book was published in 2009, so it is relatively current and remains an
authoritative source for those who wish to learn more about the history of libraries. For
instance, The Library concludes with current trends in literary innovation and library
technology, making this book a good starting point for research, development projects, or
academic assignments, such as a scholarly reference for a LibGuide page. While history
doesn’t change, it is important for research material to be current, denoted by the
webpages provided in the “For Further Reading” section in the back of the book. Some
readers may consider this book an easy read for general information, but for those
considering an academic source as a jumping off point to further research on a particular
historical period or the history of libraries themselves, this book remains a relevant
reference that is not outdated in its content.

Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. published the book, The Library: An Illustrated
History, in 2009. Skyhorse is an American independent book publishing company
founded by Tony Lyons in 2006, headquartered in New York City, and distribution handled
by Sterling Publishing. Lyons is the former president and publisher of Lyons Press, but
continues his focus on historical nonfiction among his publishing programs. Skyhorse
Publishing acquired Arcade Publishing in 2010, including its portfolio of over 500 titles,
and another 300 titles through the acquisition of Allworth Press. According to Publishers
Weekly, Skyhorse Publishing has become one of the fastest growing independent
presses. By the spring of 2017, Skyhorse had published 46 New York Times Best Sellers,
as well as published the works of four Nobel Prize Novelists.

Title: The title of the book, The Library: An Illustrated History, denotes an easy and well-
illustrated read, which is perfect in summation. As such, this book covers the history of
libraries with a wealth of images to bring the content to life with visual references. The title
also implies a broad overview, as no specific country or period is of primary focus, but
rather, an easily accessible guide to the general history of libraries throughout the ages,
from inception to modern day. At a modest 304 pages of content, this book would be
exhaustively longer if elaborate detail was paid to every period and culture, devastation
and discovery, and the books and libraries therein, so the title appropriately encompasses
what this book offers, which is a general yet informative account of the history of libraries
in the context of the periods highlighted.

Objectivity: This book is meant to be an informative and historical account of books and
libraries across the world, in which case the knowledge is generally understood and
previously documented from the outset. The author does not deviate from that of
instructor or educator, refraining from personal sentiment, critique, first person, or tone of
judgment. Murray simply provides a snapshot of libraries throughout the ages in their
historical context against the backdrop of the period. This is a factual book, but not too in
depth or detailed for the novice reader of the subject. The objective of this book is to offer
a bibliophile a historically informative background for the institution of libraries. It should
be noted that in his introduction, library history scholar Donald G. Davis, Jr. addresses the
challenge of constructing a book of this nature, stating, “The difficult choices to be made
in preparation of a short work that reaches for such breadth and scope should not be
underestimated. Telling the intriguing story of the production, transmission, preservation,
organization, and utilization of cumulated human knowledge – and telling it in a style that
appeals to the widest spectrum of readers – is both a challenging and a most worthy task.
No one – from library historians and cultural scholars to the general public and young
readers – will agree on what should be included in or omitted from the text and
illustrations. Least of all will librarians themselves be of one mind – of that we can be
sure! But the effort to tell this story, however sketchy and idiosyncratic, is well worth it.”
While this book is not meant to be a detailed account of any one aspect of library history,
it is a concise overview designed to highlight a long, rich history of libraries throughout the
world against the backdrop of historical context of the age.

Writing Style: The style and format of this book is rather easy to read and follow. Albeit
informative, the author does not overwhelm in description or detail. A weakness for some
readers may be the layout of the book, which is compiled of a series of short entries
grouped into twelve chapters, beginning with “The Ancient Libraries” and ending with
“Libraries, Librarians, and Media Centers.” While Murray tackles some lengthy material,
he manages to highlight European libraries through the Middle Ages, cover Asian and
Islamic territory, delve into the Renaissance, and survey the history of libraries in the
United States, from early days to present. However, the latter chapters are randomly
placed and don’t conform to any logical or specific order. Albeit broad in his survey, I
believe this serves well for the tone of the book. It can be an overwhelming endeavor to
compile a book of history from the ancient world to modern day in any context, just as it
would be intimidating to read such a feat, so Murray’s narrative streamlines and simplifies
enough to provide one with the necessary information, and if they so choose to research
further, the bibliography and references in the back of the book are a wonderful guide.
And as the title suggests, this book is heavily illustrated, but the pictures are relevant and
compliment the material appropriately, meeting the author’s goal by making this an easy
read with the advantage of visual aid and reference.

Rationale: I chose this book for my annotated bibliographic entry, because I am currently
constructing a LibGuide page on the history of libraries in Western Civilization, and I am
using this source as one of my references. This book was assigned material in a prior
class, History of Libraries, here at the University of South Florida, and when we were
presented with the LibGuide project, this item was the first source I turned to for guidance,
which I felt would serve the same for others, either students or inquisitive patrons,
seeking to learn more about the development of libraries and recorded knowledge
throughout history, and the world events that had an impact on them. While this book
satiates the appetite for an historical overview of libraries, most readers will likely discover
a specific piece of interesting content on a culture or historical period for which they will
want to research further afterwards. I would consider this book more of a guide than a
complete historical textbook. The book provides a “For Further Reading” section in
addition to the Index, which is what I am utilizing in my efforts to locate more sources for
my LibGuide. I would refer any patron to this book as a starting point if they are
researching the inception of the written word, the history of books or libraries, or even the
cultural and historical overview inherent in each section with or without libraries as the
focus. As most textbooks and history books are incredibly compressed and overwhelming
to sit down with and read on a rainy afternoon, this book is simply written and easy to
follow, which is ideal for the novice or young reader getting an inaugural taste of library
history or for the graduate student who requires an aid or guide to further their research
for a project.

Reflection:

I learned a lot from this assignment, and as I reflected on the correlation between this
exercise and our prior assignment, I found each supplemented the other accordingly. I
was not previously familiar with how annotated bibliographies were constructed, but as an
extension of our last assignment, this project made me realize I had been doing
something similar on a far less involved scale. For instance, in our discussion of search
strategies, where we were instructed to locate resources for a patron according to certain
criteria, I not only included my sources in MLA format, but also provided a brief abstract of
the item for the patron’s perusal. I did not offer the abstract simply for the assignment, but
would have done so for the patron in practice. During the process of this assignment, it
dawned on me that I was providing a relatively short and cogent annotated bibliography
for the patron in the prior assignment by meeting their needs with sources of interest,
properly formatted bibliographic entries, and an overview of the resource submitted. By
evaluating my source in this assignment according to specific criteria, I learned how an
element as simple as the year of publication could influence the relevance of the source. I
considered this while searching for articles of interest in the search strategies assignment,
as I did not want to provide the patron with outdated material as reference, but this
assignment helped to drive that point home. In addition to the relevancy of the source’s
date, I learned to give more credence to objectivity and rationale. Again, I considered this
to a lesser degree during the search strategies assignment, as my aim was to locate
sources that conformed to the patron’s desired tone and sentiment, but this assignment
allowed me to elaborate or go more in depth for the patron in question. As for the book I
chose to feature here for this exercise, what struck me most was a reoccurring theme of
devastation and discovery and the consequences of cultural or geographic conflict, where
books were at the forefront, at one time treasured, and at other times banned or burned.
You often hear the old adage, “One man’s book is another man’s treasure,” and, “One
man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter,” and these are the sentiments I gleaned
from the book. But most importantly, I consider The Library: An Illustrated History to be a
valuable source to initiate one’s journey into researching world history from the
perspective of our most beloved and treasured of institutions, the library.