The Library at Night

Starred review from July 15, 2008
This is a book for those who delight in books and libraries. In 15 evocative essays, Manguel ("A History of Reading"), an Argentine-born writer and editor now living in France, explores the world of words, books, libraries, literature, and imagination. Libraries serve as his focal point as he weaves together quotations, memories, biography, mythology, and illustrations. In the chapter "Libraries as Shape," the reader encounters details of stone masonry, images of a brain-shaped library juxtaposed with the first known floor plan of a monastery library, a history of reading room architecture, and snippets of biographies of Pope Clement and Michelangelo pulled together with wit and provocative insights. In "Libraries as Oblivion," the author explores the notion of books read and forgotten alongside descriptions of libraries lost to war and destruction and readers lost through discrimination and denial of access. This is not standard library history, and its strength lies not in the details but in the connections, in the lyrical web pulling together odd bits into new ways of seeing the universe of books, readers, authors, and libraries. Published originally in Canada in 2006, this U.S. edition deserves a wide readership. Recommended for most libraries and any librarian needing a reminder of the power of connections.Jan Blodgett. Davidson Coll. Lib., NC

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