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Books & Related Info for
Center for the Book Publications List
Compiled and edited by John Y. Cole, Library of Congress Historian and former director of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.
Since its creation in 1977 by Public Law 95-129, the Center for the Book has sponsored or cosponsored the publication of more than 40 books and 150 booklets and pamphlets. This is a selective list of books and pamphlets of general and scholarly interest, supplemented by key articles that illustrate the broad range of the Center’s activities. It includes citations to publications relating to more than 30 symposia at the Library of Congress which focused on the history of books, reading, libraries, and literacy—nationally and internationally.
The list is arranged by subject and organized into several categories: books, history, specialties and promotion, in addition to a chronological list of the 32 publications in the Center’s Viewpoint pamphlet series. The Viewpoints also are described in the subject listing.
Most of the items in this listing were published solely by the Library of Congress; if not, the names of co-publishers or other publishers are listed. Further information about each publication is provided whenever appropriate; in several instances references to supplementary research materials are cited.
Publications with digital versions can be accessed by clicking the publication’s title or the link in the last section of each entry. Most of these publications are out-of-print. Many of the books and articles are available in the collections of the Library of Congress. For further information about any of these publications and related materials, contact Library of Congress Historian John Y. Cole at [email protected].
Many articles and supplementary materials are from the Library’s periodical news publications and the following is a brief chronology for reference:
1943–1983: The Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress (QJLC)
1943–2011: Library of Congress Information Bulletin (LCIB)
2012–Present: Library of Congress Magazine (LCM)
Books
As its name indicates, a key Center for the Book objective is to raise public awareness of the importance of books in our culture—past, present, and future—and strengthen the relationship of books to audiences and potential audiences of all ages.
Highlights in this section include publications from symposia on “Television, the Book and the Classroom” (1978), the history of the Armed Services Editions (1984), and the Book in the Islamic World (1995); three items related to the Center for the Book’s congressional authorized “Books in Our Future” project (1983-1984); and the online “The Exquisite Corpse Adventure: A Progressive Story Game Played by 20 Celebrated Authors and Illustrators” (2011).
Books and Reading in America
Amassing American “Stuff”: The Library of Congress and the Federal Arts Projects of the 1930s (Fall 1983)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from the Fall 1983 issue of the “Quarterly Journal of The Library of Congress” (p. 356-389) discussing the Library’s historical relationship with depression-era work relief programs.
Links: Full article
American Culture and the Marketplace: R. R. Donnelley’s Four American Books Campaign, 1926–1930 (1992)
Author: Claire Badaracco
Description: 67 p. A promotion campaign highlighting the book designs of Rockwell Kent, W.A. Dwiggins, Rudoph Ruzicka, and Edward A. Wilson.
Links: LC catalog entry
The Best of Times for American Culture? LC’s New Deal Arts Collections Displayed and Discussed (February 1995)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Report from LCIB issue 54.3 (p. 50-52) on a December 8-9, 1994 symposium that featured 21 veterans and firsthand observers of the New Deal arts projects of the 1930s and early 1940s.
Links: Full article | LC catalog entry for audio recording
The Book in America (1996)
Author: Richard W. Clement
Description: 146 p. Includes a foreword by James H. Billington and an afterword by John Y. Cole. Produced by Fulcrum Publishing in cooperation with The Library of Congress, using images from the Library’s collections to tell the story of the book in America from 1638 to today.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (October 21, 1996) | LCIB coverage (issue 56.3)
Books and the Founding Fathers (1989)
Author: George H. Nash
Description: 23 p. Viewpoint No. 23. A bibliographic exploration of the literary influences of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Reprinted in 2007 in an expanded 63-page edition by Butler Books.
Links: LC catalog entry | Page on Butler Books website (for expanded edition)
Books in Action (September/October 2015)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: An illustrated article in Library of Congress Magazine Vol 4. No. 5 (p. 14-15), featuring several covers of Armed Services editions and quotations about the series from several of the contributing authors including Herman Wouk, Kay Boyle, Wallace Stegner and Irving Stone.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
Books in Action: The Armed Services Editions (1984)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 78 p. Presentations and discussion from a symposium held at the Library of Congress on Feb. 17, 1983, marking the 40th anniversary of the Armed Services Editions (1943-1947), a book series that introduced thousands of U.S. armed services members to the pleasures of reading.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website (text only) | Full text through HathiTrust (includes photographs) | LCIB coverage (issue 42.12)
Books On the Frontier: Print Culture in the American West, 1763–1875 (2003)
Author: Richard W. Clement
Description: 139 p. Foreword by John Y. Cole. Published by the Library of Congress in association with University Press of New England, using images from the Library’s collection. Presents a history of book publishing and trade during the period of westward expansion in America.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 62.11) | LCIB coverage (issue 63.1)
Books That Shaped America: The Barnes & Noble 2014 Desk Diary (2013)
Author: LC Staff
Description: Published by Barnes & Noble in association with the Library of Congress. An 18-month calendar featuring reproductions of classic book covers and an introduction by John Y. Cole.
Links: featured in LC 2013–2014 publications catalog (pdf download)
Books That Shaped Us: The McGuffey Readers (September/October 2015)
Author: Deziree Arnaiz
Description: Article from Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 4 No. 5 (p. 1) that describes an early American textbook series and one of the 88 titles chosen by the Library of Congress for its “Books That Shaped America” exhibit in 2012.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
Debating National Culture in Nineteenth Century Washington: The Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institution (2000)
Author: John Y. Cole, Nancy E. Gwinn
Description: 34 p. Originally the opening address of the 39th Annual Preconference of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section of the Association of College and Research Libraries in Washington, D.C., on June 23, 1988. Published by The Association of College and Research Libraries as part of “Getting Ready for the Nineteenth Century” (p. 1-33), the text of the full proceedings was edited by William E. Brown, Jr. and Laura Stalker.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 63.4)
Getting the Books Out: Papers of the Chicago Conference on the Book in 19th Century America (1987)
Author: Edited by Michael Hackenberg
Description: 197 p. Includes essays by nine scholars about book distribution in 19th century America, presented in Chicago on October 18-19, 1985 in cooperation with the Illinois Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Jefferson, the Man: In His Own Words (1993)
Author: Robert C. Baron
Description: 54 p. Published by Fulcrum/Starwood Publishing in association with the Library of Congress. Reprinted 2009. Collection of Jefferson quotations on a variety of subjects, featuring an introductory essay by John Y. Cole.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 57.9)
A Literary Book of Days: American Voices (1990)
Author: Library of Congress
Description: 118 p. An exuberant, eclectic gathering of pictures and text that celebrate the written word, drawn from the Library’s collections.
Links: none available
Readers & Libraries: Toward a History of Libraries and Culture in America (1996)
Author: Kenneth E. Carpenter
Description: 39 p. Viewpoint No. 31. Discusses the need for a collaborative, multi-volume history of libraries in the United States that will place library history within the context of book history.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | News release (March 9, 1995) | LCIB coverage (issue 54.19) | LCIB coverage (issue 57.3)
Reading in America 1978 (1979)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole and Carol S. Gold
Description: 98 p. Discussion based on findings of a recent survey of American book reading and buying habits and a related symposium at the Library of Congress on Oct. 25 and 26, 1978.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 37.46)
The State of the Book World, 1980: Three Talks Sponsored by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress (1981)
Author: Alfred Kazin, Dan Lacy, Ernest L. Boyer
Description: 31 p. Viewpoint No. 5. Includes remarks by Alfred Kazin, Dan Lacy, and Ernest L. Boyer on the current state of literary criticism, book publishing, and education in America.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Thomas Jefferson and the Education of a Citizen (1999)
Author: Edited by James Gilreath
Description: 383 p. Papers by 18 scholars presented at a Library of Congress conference sponsored by the Center for the Book, the Rare Book and Special Collections Division and the Institute of Early American Culture on May 13-15, 1993.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | News release (June 1, 1999) | LCIB coverage (issue 58.7)
Uncle Sam in the Oregon Country: An Exhibition (1990)
Author: Library of Congress, Oregon Center for the Book
Description: 63 p. Published by the Oregon Center for the Book in cooperation with the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. A descriptive catalog for a traveling exhibition that opened at the Oregon State Library on Oct. 13, 1990.
Links: LC catalog entry | Description of exhibited items (through the Library’s “Meeting of Frontiers” American/Russian collaboration website) | LCIB coverage (issue 54.3) | LCIB coverage (issue 58.7)
Well Acquainted with Books: The Founding Framers of 1787: With James Madison’s List of Books for Congress (1987)
Author: Robert A. Rutland
Description: 95 p. An essay by historian Robert Rutland about how the ideas conveyed by books were crucial to our nation’s founding fathers. It is accompanied by a comprehensive list of books that in 1783 Congressman James Madison thought were needed by the first national legislature.
Links: LC catalog entry
Books and Reading in Society
Biography & Books (1986)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 76 p. Presentations and discussions from a symposium on Nov. 9 and 10, 1983 at the Library of Congress that brought more than 30 biographers together to discuss the nature of the genre. Featured speakers included publisher Samuel S. Vaughan and biographers Edmund Morris, James Thomas Flexner and David McCullough.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 43.15)
The Book (1980)
Author: Barbara W. Tuchman
Description: 29 p. Viewpoint No. 1. Reprinted 1988. A prominent historian’s view of the values of book culture from the clay tablet to the age of television.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through ERIC database |LC catalog entry for audio recording | LCIB coverage (issue 38.37) | LCIB coverage (issue 39.17)
The Book Enchained (1984)
Author: Harrison E. Salisbury
Description: 9 p. Viewpoint No. 10. A former New York Times editor and foreign correspondent draws on his experiences in the Soviet Union in this affirmation of the freedom of expression.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
The Book in the Islamic World: The Written Word and Communication in the Middle East (1995)
Author: Edited by George Atiyeh
Description: 305 p. Published by the State University of New York Press in cooperation with The Library of Congress. Papers presented at a symposium on November 8-9, 1990 sponsored by the Center for the Book and the Library’s Near East Section, focusing on the intellectual and social influence of the book in the Islamic world.
Links: LC catalog entry | LC catalog entry for audio recording | LCIB coverage (issue 49.22) | LCIB coverage (issue 54.20)
Books and the World (1988)
Author: James H. Billington
Description: 12 p. Viewpoint No. 22. A talk presented by Librarian of Congress James H. Billington in Philadelphia on April 13, 1988 at the opening of the exhibition “Legacies of Genius: A Celebration of Philadelphia Libraries.”
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Books, Libraries, Reading, and Publishing in the Cold War (2001)
Author: Edited by Hermina G.B. Anghelescu and Martine Poulain
Description: 298 p. Contains 20 papers presented by library historians at an international conference in Paris on June 11-12, 1998 discussing the effects of the Cold War on the international book and library community.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 57.10) | LCIB coverage (issue 61.5)
The Circle of Knowledge: An Exhibition in the Great Hall of the Library of Congress (1979)
Author: Curated by John Finzi, bibliography by Ruth S. Freitag
Description: 47 p. A descriptive catalogue for an exhibition at the Library of Congress from December 7, 1979 to March 16, 1980 that displayed 38 encyclopedias from the 15th century to the present. Includes an introduction by James M. Wells of The Newberry Library.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 38.51)
The Early Illustrated Book: Essays in Honor of Lessing J. Rosenwald (1982)
Author: Edited by Sandra Hindman
Description: 260 p. Contains 12 scholarly papers from a symposium hosted by the Library’s Rare Book and Special Collections Division and the Center for the Book on May 30-31, 1980, a year after the death of Mr. Rosenwald, the donor of the Library’s greatest rare book collection. The symposium sessions and papers illuminate three topics in which the collection is especially strong: 15th and 16th century Dutch and Flemish Books, Landscape and the Early Illustrated Book and the Illustration of Vergil in Printed Books.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LC catalog entry for audio recording
The Future of Humanistic Scholarship (1990)
Author: Bernhard Fabian
Description: 38 p. Viewpoint No. 26. Includes comments by Michael T. Ryan and Thomas F. Staley.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Images of the World: The Atlas Through History (1997)
Author: Edited by John Wolter and Ronald E. Grim
Description: 466 p. Published in cooperation with McGraw-Hill. Papers from a symposium held at the Library of Congress on Oct. 25-26, 1984 about the development and historical role of the atlas.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 43.51) | LCIB coverage (issue 55.21)
Multiple Meanings: The Written Word in Japan, Past, Present, and Future (1987)
Author: Edited by J. Thomas Rimer
Description: 111 p. A selection of papers on Japanese language and culture and their translation presented at symposia held at the Library of Congress in 1979 and 1984.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 43.36)
The World Encompassed (1981)
Author: Daniel J. Boorstin
Description: 11 p. Viewpoint No. 6. Remarks at a dinner held on March 19, 1981 in celebration of “The World Encompassed,” an exhibition honoring the donors who have contributed treasures to the Library of Congress.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Books, Reading and Technology
Books and Other Machines: An exhibition in the Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress, December 7, 1984–June 2, 1985 (1985)
Author: Alice D. Schreyer
Description: 98 p. Descriptive catalogue for an exhibition inspired by and supplementing the Center for the Book’s 1984 “Books in our Future” project. This unpublished object list is available in the Center for the Book office, along with related research materials.
Links: LCIB coverage (issue 61.10)
Books and Reading in Our Future—Revisited (June 1999)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 58.6 (p. 146-147) discussing the Center for the Book’s role as a forum for conversation about the future of books and reading. Focuses on a conference hosted by the Vermont Center for the Book in November 1998 and on the Center for the Book’s leadership role in the 1983-1984 Library of Congress Books in Our Future study.
Links: Full article
Books in Our Future: A Report from the Librarian of Congress to the Congress (1984)
Author: Daniel J. Boorstin
Description: 49 p. Published as Senate Report 98-231 by the Joint Committee on the Library, this was the first of two “Books in Our Future” publications resulting from S. Con. Res. 59, agreed upon Nov. 18, 1983, authorizing “a study of the changing role of the book in the future, to be made by the Librarian of Congress under the auspices of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.”
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 43.18)
Books in Our Future: Perspectives and Proposals (1984)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 388 p. The second publication of the “Books in Our Future” project authorized by Congress in 1983. It provides background about the study, supplementing the initial report submitted by Librarian of Congress Daniel J. Boorstin in 1984, and includes the extended views of the project’s 21 distinguished advisors.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 58.6)
CFB on TV: Center for the Book Begins Third Decade of Promoting Reading on Television (December 1998)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 57.12 (p. 290-292) discussing ways in which the Center for the Book, since its earliest days, has used television to promote books and reading.
Links: Full article
Gresham’s Law: Knowledge or Information? (1980)
Author: Daniel J. Boorstin
Description: 6 p. Viewpoint No. 3. Remarks at the White House Conference on Library and Information Services on November 19, 1979. Reprinted 1986.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Radio and Reading: A Report on a Symposium at the Library of Congress (July 1983)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 42.27 (p. 220-224) summarizing the proceedings of a May 19, 1983 symposium focusing on the relationship of radio, reading, and books hosted by the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress.
Links: Full article
The Reader-Viewer-Listener: An Essay in Communication (1987)
Author: Lester Asheim
Description: 33 p. Viewpoint No. 18. A reflection by a prominent educator on the relationship of the book to other media and its role in the communication process. Reprinted 1998.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 57.5)
Reading Through Different Means: Dots and Sound (September/October 2015)
Author: Karen Keninger
Description: Article from Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 4 No. 5 (p. 16-19) which describes Braille, talking books and other technological advances used to make reading universally accessible by the Library’s National Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
Research Collections in the Information Age: The Library of Congress Looks to the Future (1990)
Author: Stephen E. Ostrow, Robert Zich; edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 18 p. Viewpoint No. 27. A debate regarding the value of library collections in a research institution, with an emphasis on the example of the Library of Congress.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 49.19)
Television, the Book, and the Classroom (1978)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 128 p. Presentations and discussion from a symposium at the Library of Congress on April 26-27, 1978 regarding the use of television in the educational process and its integration with the printed word. Includes opening remarks by Daniel J. Boorstin, Ernest L. Boyer, Mortimer J. Adler, and Frank Stanton.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 37.19)
Young Readers, Books and Reading
The Adventures of Cap’n O.G. Readmore (1984)
Author: Fran Manushkin
Description: 32 p. An illustrated book for young children introducing Cap’n O.G. Readmore, an animated reading promoter created by ABC Children’s Television and the Center for the Book. Published by Scholastic.
Links: LCIB coverage (issue 42.20)
The Audience for Children’s Books (1980)
Author: Various
Description: 29 p. Viewpoint No. 2. Features remarks by Elaine Moss, Barbara Rollock, Cecily Ann Truett, Ann Durell, and Ethel L. Heins from a March 12-13, 1979 symposium at the Library of Congress commemorating the International Year of the Child.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 38.26)
A Journey Through Balladry: A Concert by Burl Ives (1989)
Author: Burl Ives
Description: Recording of a September 21, 1989 concert given by Burl Ives at the Library of Congress in celebration of the Year of the Young Reader.
Links: LC catalog entry for audio recording | LCIB coverage (issue 48.32) | LCIB coverage (photo and caption, issue 48.44)
Children’s Book Collecting: A Symposium (May 1986)
Author: Sybille A. Jagusch, Patricia C. Strickland
Description: Article from LCIB issue 45.20 (p. 179-182), reporting on a Nov. 14, 1985 symposium cosponsored with the Library’s Children’s Literature Center and held during National Children’s Book Week. Features remarks by Justin G. Schiller, Margaret C. Maloney, Lloyd E. Cotsen, Robert D. Hale, Brian Alderson and Fritz Eichenberg.
Links: Full article | LC catalog entry for audio recording
Dare to be Creative! (1984)
Author: Madeleine L’Engle
Description: 30 p. A lecture presented at the Library of Congress on November 16, 1983 in honor of National Children’s Book Week discussing censorship and children’s literature.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through ERIC database
Expert’s Corner: National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Kate DiCamillo Discusses How Stories Connect Us (September/October 2015)
Author: LCM staff
Description: Article from Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 4 No. 5 (p. 13) that presents DiCamillo’s remarks from an event at the Library of Congress on May 6, 2015.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
The Exquisite Corpse Adventure: A Progressive Story Game Played by 20 Celebrated Authors and Illustrators (2011)
Author: Various
Description: 276 p. An online reading promotion project for young people created by the Center for the Book in collaboration with the National Children’s Book and Literacy Alliance, published in book form by Candlewick Press.
Links: LC catalog entry | Text and audio installments on Read.gov | News release (August 12, 2011) | LCIB coverage (issue 68.11) | LCIB coverage (issue 69.11) | Page on Candlewick Press website
Favorite Places: The Young Readers Center (September/October 2015)
Author: LCM staff
Description: Article from Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 4 No. 5 (p. 3) with a brief description of the activities and mission of the Library’s Young Readers Center.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
Library Services Journal Vol. 2 No. 4 (October 2010)
Author: Various
Description: 28 p. Features articles exploring the Library’s outreach efforts and programs for young people, including “Reaching Readers of All Ages,” “Welcoming the Nation’s Youth To a Special Place in the Nation’s Library,” “An Idea Whose Time Finally Came,” “America’s Reading Ambassador for Young People,” “Express Yourself: Art and Writing Competitions Tap Youths’ Creativity,” “Targeting Kids and Teens with a Reading Website” and “Welcoming Visitors of All Ages.”
Links: LC catalog entry
The Mask Beneath the Face: Reading About and With; Writing About and for: Children (1990)
Author: E.L. Konigsburg
Description: 31 p. Viewpoint No. 28. A lecture presented on October 21, 1989 and sponsored by the Center for the Book and the Florida Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry
National Treasures and Local Treasures (January/February 2009)
Author: Guy Lamolinara
Description: Article from LCIB issue 68.1-2 (p. 30-31) describing outreach programs in 2009 aimed primarily at young people, presented jointly by the Center for the Book and the Library’s Educational Outreach Office at state center for the book affiliates in Florida, Colorado, Texas, and California.
Links: Full article
Reading and Successful Living: The Family-School Partnership (1982)
Author: Edited by Lester Asheim, D. Philip Baker, and Virginia H. Mathews
Description: 161 p. Papers presented at a symposium on November 18-19, 1981 focusing on family-school partnerships to encourage literacy. Published by the Shoe String Press, with a foreword by first lady Barbara Bush.
Links: LC catalog entry
Scandinavian Children’s Books Today (January 1983)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 42.4 (p. 26-28) reporting on a November 15, 1982 symposium featuring renowned Swedish author Astrid Lindgren and other authorities on Scandinavian children’s literature as part of a celebration of National Children’s Book Week. Sponsored by the Children’s Literature Center and the Center for the Book.
Links: Full article
Stepping Away from Tradition: Children’s Books from the Twenties and Thirties (1988)
Author: Edited by Sybille A. Jagusch
Description: 144 p. Papers by John Tebbel, Abe Lerner, Anne MacLeod, and Mildred Batchelder presented at a November 15, 1984 symposium sponsored by the Children's Literature Center and the Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry
Voyage (2015)
Author: Billy Collins, Karen Romagna, illustrator
Description: 31 p. An illustrated poem for young people about a boy in a boat who loves to read. Dedicated by Poet Laureate Billy Collins to John Cole in 2003 on his 25th anniversary as director of the Center for Book, the original letterpress edition of the poem was printed on handmade paper and was a gift from the coordinators of the Center for the Book’s state affiliates. A portion of the royalties was donated to the Center for the Book by the publisher, Bunker Hill Publishing, Inc.
Links: LC catalog entry
History
The Center for the Book also promotes and encourages the historical study of books, reading, literacy and libraries.
Publication highlights encompass histories of both the Library of Congress and the Center for Book itself. They include an illustrated, 569-page “Encyclopedia of the Library of Congress” (2004); online versions of two brief general histories of the Library of Congress and its buildings (1993 and 1995); a history of libraries and scholarly communication in the U.S. (1990); and a brief volume about how eight book collectors, including Jane and Leland Stanford, shaped Stanford University and its libraries (1991).
The Center for the Book—History
30th Anniversary Brings Fresh Look at Future (October 2007)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 66.10 (p. 215) describing a study that will provide recommendations regarding the future organization, role, and activities of the Center for the Book.
Links: Full article
The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress (1979)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 20 p. Reprinted from the Spring 1979 issue of the “Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress.” Description of the Center for the Book’s origins, acknowledgement of its founding donors, and a summary of its first programs and projects.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress: The Planning Year (1978)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 34 p. A summary of the planning meetings in 1977 and 1978 that established the Center for the Book’s initial goals and direction.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust
The Center for the Book’s 25th Birthday: Dr. Boorstin and 50 State Affiliates Honored (January 2003)
Author: Helen Dalrymple
Description: Article from LCIB issue 62.1 (p. 3-5) describing the program of the official occasion marking the Center’s 25th anniversary.
Links: Full article
A Nation of Readers: The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress (1984)
Author: The Center for the Book
Description: 24 p. A descriptive brochure that includes current projects, publications, members of the National Advisory Board, and financial contributors.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website (text only) | Full text through HathiTrust (includes photographs)
Promoting Books and Reading: Nationally, Internationally, and in the States (January 2003)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 62.1 (p. 9-13) summarizing the Center for the Book’s activities on the occasion of its 25th anniversary.
Links: Full article
The Republic of Letters: Librarian of Congress Daniel J. Boorstin on Books, Reading, and Libraries, 1975-1987 (1989)
Author: Daniel J. Boorstin; edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 128 p. Seventeen speeches and statements by Librarian of Congress Daniel J. Boorstin about the importance to society of books, reading, and libraries. Includes his Oct. 20, 1977 statement about why he created the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 48.15)
Book and Print Culture—History
Agent of Change: Print Culture Studies After Elizabeth L. Eisenstein (2007)
Author: Edited by Sabrina Alcorn Baron, Eric N. Lindquist, and Eleanor F. Shevlin
Description: 442 p. A collection of essays about print culture from Renaissance Europe to the contemporary digital world, building on Eisenstein’s 1979 work “The Printing Press as an Agent of Change: Communications and Cultural Transformation in Early-Modern Europe.” Published by the University of Massachusetts Press in association with the Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 67.1-2) | Page on UMass Press website
Book Historians Gather for SHARP Conference (September 1994)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 53.17 (p. 354-357) summarizing the second annual conference of the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing (SHARP). The Center for the Book hosted the conference, which was attended by more than 200 scholars, at the Library of Congress on July 14-16, 1994.
Links: Full article | News release (May 11, 1994)
The Early illustrated Book: Highlights from a Lecture (April 1978)
Author: Philip Hofer
Description: Article published in “The Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 35.2 (p. 77-91) containing highlights from a lecture presented on May 20, 1977 about the development and artistic merit of the illustrated book.
Links: Full article
A Handbook for the Study of Book History in the United States (2000)
Author: Ronald J. Zboray, Mary Saracino Zboray
Description: 155 p. An introduction for researchers to the literature and subject of book history, explaining the importance of the field of book history and its major concerns.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 59.10) | News release (August 7, 2000)
The History of Books: A Guide to Selected Resources in the Library of Congress (1987)
Author: Alice D. Schreyer
Description: 221 p. A guide to the resources for the study of book history in the Library’s Manuscript, Rare Book and Special Collections, Geography and Map, Music, and Prints and Photographs divisions, as well as in its Law Library and Copyright Office.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
The History of Books: A Report on Center for the Book Activities (August 1983)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 42.33 (p. 268-272). A summary of Center for the Book activities in 1983, including the preparation of Alice D. Schreyer’s resource guide for the study of book history, and the publication of Daniel P. Resnick’s “Literacy in Historical Perspective.”
Links: Full article
The History of Books and Libraries: Two Views (1986)
Author: John P. Feather, David McKitterick
Description: 34 p. Viewpoint No. 16. Lectures presented in the spring of 1985 by English scholars John P. Feather and David McKitterick on “The Book in History and the History of the Book” and “The Limits of Library History,” respectively. Reprinted 1989.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
In the Wake of the Printing Press (July 1978)
Author: Elizabeth Eisenstein
Description: Article published in “The Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 35.3 (p. 183-197), reprinting a lecture presented on September 23, 1977 discussing the historical implications of the invention of the printing press.
Links: Full article
The Invention of Printing: Revolution Within Revolution (April 1978)
Author: Nicolas Barker
Description: Article published in “The Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 35.2 (p. 64-76), reprinting a lecture presented on November 4, 1976 about the history of printing and the development of the book as a confluence of language, technology, craftsmanship, and art.
Links: Full article
The Memory of Sound: Observations on the History of Music on Paper (1988)
Author: Donald W. Krummel
Description: 23 p. Viewpoint No. 20. A lecture presented on October 29, 1987 examining the history of printed music as part of the scope of the history of the book.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
The Origins of Early American Printing Shops (July 1978)
Author: Edwin Wolf
Description: Article published in “The Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 35.3 (p. 198-209), reprinting a lecture presented on November 9, 1977 tracing the development of pioneer printing presses in the New World.
Links: Full article
Perspectives on American Book History: Artifacts and Commentary (2002)
Author: Edited by Scott E. Casper, Joanne D. Chaison, and Jeffrey D. Groves
Description: 461 p. University of Massachusetts Press, published in association with the Center for the Book and the American Antiquarian Society. A new text for university-level courses in American print culture that traces topics in American print culture from Puritan New England to the future of newspapers in the digital age and includes primary source materials in their historical, literary, and political contexts.
Links: LCIB coverage | Page on UMass Press website
Print Culture in a Diverse America (1998)
Author: Edited by James P. Danky and Wayne Wiegand
Description: 291 p. University of Illinois Press. Essays presented at a May 1995 conference sponsored by the Center for the Study of Print Culture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Partial support for the conference was provided by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 57.9) | LCIB coverage (issue 58.10) | Page on UI Press website
The Printer & the Pardoner: An Unrecorded Indulgence Printed by William Caxton for the Hospital of St. Mary Rounceval, Charing Cross (1986)
Author: Paul Needham
Description: 101 p. The story of scholar Paul Needham’s discovery in the Library of Congress Rare Book and Special Collections Division of a previously unrecorded broadside indulgence printed by William Caxton in 1480.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 45.22)
Promoting the Study of the History of Books: Recent and Forthcoming Center for the Book Activities (March 1985)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 44.9 (p. 41-44) describing Center for the Book projects including symposia on a wide range of topics, the Engelhard Lectures on the Book series, and recent publications.
Links: Full article
Work and Culture in an Eighteenth Century Printing Shop (Winter 1982)
Author: Robert Darnton
Description: Article published in “The Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 39.1 (p. 34-47), abridged from a lecture presented on March 25, 1981 which illustrates the workings of the early modern, preindustrial print shop.
Links: Full Article
The Library of Congress—History, Art & Architecture
The 1812 Catalogue of the Library of Congress: A Facsimile (1982)
Author: Introduction by Robert A. Rutland; indexes by Lynda Corey Claassen
Description: 141 p. A reprint of the Library catalogue prepared for Congress in 1812, with a preface by Daniel J. Boorstin.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Bicentennial Background: Turning Points in the Library’s History (March 2000)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 59.3 (p. 52-53) outlining 15 events in the Library’s history between 1814 and 1994 that shaped the institution’s development.
Links: Full article
Biography and the Library of Congress: New Reference Work Introduced at Library Ceremony (March 1999)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 58.3 (p. 48-50) featuring a reception at the Library marking the publication by Oxford University Press of the massive 24-volume “American National Biography” and making special note of its inclusion of the biographies of more than two dozen former Library of Congress employees. The Library’s 1983 symposium “Biography & Books” is also revisited.
Links: Full article
Encyclopedia of the Library of Congress: For Congress, the Nation & the World (2004)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole and Jane Aikin
Description: 569 p. A historically-based introduction to the Library’s goals, administrative structure, multi-media collections, services, and outreach programs, including 14 essays and 79 shorter articles contributed by more than 40 Library of Congress specialists. Published by Bernan Press in association with the Library of Congress.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (February 4, 2005) | LCIB coverage (issue 63.10)
For Congress and the Nation: A Chronological History of the Library of Congress (1978)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 196 p. An illustrated legislative documentation of the origins, growth, and development of the Library of Congress to 1975. Reprinted in 1979.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust
For Congress and the Nation: The Dual Nature of the Library of Congress (1975)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article published in the “Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 32.2 (p. 118-38) describing the inherently complementary nature of the Library’s services to its two major constituents.
Links: Full article
Full Circle: Ninety Years of Service in the Main Reading Room of the Library of Congress (1991)
Author: Josephus Nelson, Judith Farley
Description: 64 p. A history of the Jefferson Building’s historic Main Reading Room, written by two reference specialists in the General Reading Rooms Division.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Jefferson’s Legacy: A Brief History of the Library of Congress (1993)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 103 p. A basic, illustrated history of the Library of Congress, with information about its collections and buildings. Reprinted in 1998. Companion volume to “On These Walls: Inscriptions and Quotations in the Buildings of the Library of Congress.”
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust | News release (April 30, 1993) | News release (November 16, 1998) | LCIB coverage (issue 52.12)
A Legacy of Librarians (November/December 2015)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 4 No. 6 (p. 14-17 ) with a historical overview of the thirteen Librarians of Congress who have served the Library from 1802-2015.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
The Library of Congress: A Documentary History (1987)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: A collection of 499 microfiche accompanied by a printed guide, published by University Publications of America.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text of guide through LexisNexis database
The Library of Congress and the Center for the Book: Historical Essays in Honor of John Y. Cole (2011)
Author: Edited by Mary Niles Maack
Description: 223 p. A collection of essays and comprehensive bibliography honoring the career of Center for the Book director John Y. Cole, published by the Library of Congress in association with the University of Texas Press. The volume was originally published as a special issue of the University of Texas journal “Libraries & the Cultural Record.”
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (February 22, 2010) | News release (October 23, 2011) | LCIB coverage (issue 69.3)
The Library of Congress and the Presidential Parade, 1800-1984 (October 1984)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 43.42 (p. 343-348) reflecting upon the history of the presidential appointment of the Librarian of Congress.
Links: Full article
The Library of Congress in American Life (1978)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from “Advances in Librarianship” vol. 8 (p. 55-79) which describes in detail the various aspects of the Library’s role in American life, specifically the legislative and national roles, and services to Congress, the federal government, the general public, authors and publishers, scholars and researchers, and libraries and librarians. Includes a summary of the recommendations of the 1976 Library of Congress Task Force on Goals, Organization and Planning.
Links: LC catalog entry
The Library of Congress in Perspective: A Volume Based on the Reports of the 1976 Librarian’s Task Force and Advisory Groups (1978)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 281 p. Contains a historical introduction by John Y. Cole, task force subcommittee and advisory group reports, and summary of Office of Planning and Development activities in 1977, published by R.R. Bowker Company in cooperation with the Library of Congress. Other research and survey materials available through the Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 37.24)
The Library of Congress: The Art and Architecture of the Thomas Jefferson Building (1997)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole and Henry Hope Reed
Description: 320 p. A description of the Jefferson Building’s planning, construction, design, and restoration, enhanced by five scholarly essays, color photographs and drawings, and a 17-page illustrated appendix detailing individual architectural features , published by W.W. Norton & Company in association with the Library of Congress.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 56.17) | Sample essay by Barbara Wolanin |
Page on W.W. Norton & Company site
The Main Building of the Library of Congress: A Chronology, 1871-1965 (1972)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article published in the “Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 29.4 (p. 267-270) featuring a year-by-year account of the building’s history from the year in which it was first suggested to Congress by Librarian of Congress Ainsworth Rand Spofford until 1965, when Congress authorized the construction of a third major Library structure, the James Madison Memorial Building.
Links: Full article
Of Copyright, Men, and a National Library (1971)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article published in the “Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 28.2 (p. 114-136) describing the historical development and significance of the centralization of U.S. copyright deposit at the Library of Congress in 1870 and the personalities involved.
Links: Full article
On These Walls: Inscriptions and Quotations in the Buildings of the Library of Congress (1995)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 106 p. A visitors’ guide to the inscriptions and quotations in all three Library buildings, as well as information about each building’s history, major paintings, and works of sculpture. Companion volume to “Jefferson’s Legacy: A Brief History of the Library of Congress.” (1993)
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust | News release (April 25, 1995) | LCIB coverage (issue 58.12) | LCIB coverage (issue 67.10)
On These Walls: Inscriptions and Quotations in the Library of Congress (2008)
Author: John Y. Cole, Carol M. Highsmith
Description: 128 p. A fully illustrated abridgement of the 1995 edition, enhanced by more than 100 color photographs by photographer Carol M. Highsmith. All black and white photographs from the 1995 edition omitted. Published by the Library of Congress in association with Scala Publishers, London.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | News release (September 18, 2008) | LCIB coverage (issue 67.10)
Smithmeyer & Pelz: Embattled Architects of the Library of Congress (1972)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article published in the “Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress” issue 29.4 (p. 282-287) exploring the story of John L. Smithmeyer and Paul J. Pelz, the architectural team who won the design competition for the new Library of Congress building in 1873 and again in 1886, but lost their jobs before the building was completed—Smithmeyer in 1888 and Pelz in 1892.
Links: Full article
Library History
Ancient Libraries and the Ordering of the Biblical Books (1989)
Author: Nahum M. Sarna
Description: 22 p. Viewpoint No. 25. A lecture presented at the Library of Congress on March 6, 1989, by biblical scholar Nahum M. Sarna, Dora Golding Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies at Brandeis University.
Links: LC catalog entry
Book Collectors of Stanford: An Eclectic Eight Who Shaped the Stanford University Libraries (1991)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 79 p. Essays about the most important book collectors who donated to Stanford University during its first fifty years, 1891-1941. The collectors are: Jane and Leland Stanford, Timothy Hopkins, David Starr Jordan, Thomas Welton Stanford, John Casper Branner, Herbert Hoover, Kate Felton Elkins, and Frederick E. Brasch. An appendix includes a list of 18 notable donors between 1891 and 1991, and a selection of private gifts donated to 17 other California libraries and research centers. Published by the California State Library Foundation. Introduction by David C. Weber.
Links: LC catalog entry
Capital Libraries and Librarians: A Brief History of the District of Columbia Library Association, 1894-1994 (1994)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: 76 p. An illustrated overview of the history of the District of Columbia Library Association, published in celebration of its centenary.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (June 28, 1994) | LCIB coverage (issue 58.10)
Libraries, Citizens & Advocacy: The Lasting Effects for Two White House Conferences on Library and Information Services (2004)
Author: Virginia H. Mathews
Description: 20 p. An assessment of the outcomes of the 1970 and 1991 White House conferences on libraries and information services.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 63.7)
Libraries & Culture: Historical Essays Honoring the Legacy of Donald G. Davis, Jr. (2005)
Author: Edited by Cheryl Knott Malone, Hermina G.B. Anghelescu, and John Mark Tucker
Description: 294 p. 16 scholarly articles published by the Library of Congress in association with the University of Texas Press, written by distinguished library historians in honor of Donald G. Davis, Jr., the editor of “Libraries & Culture: A Journal of Library History” from 1977 to 2005.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (October 11, 2006) | LCIB coverage (issue 66.3)
Libraries and Scholarly Communication in the United States: The Historical Dimension (1990)
Author: Edited by Phyllis Dain and John Y. Cole
Description: 148 p. Papers by six scholars presented at a Library of Congress symposium co-sponsored with the School of Library Service at Columbia University on October 29-31, 1987, published by Greenwood Press.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 47.16) | LCIB coverage (issue 49.16)
Library History Research in America: Essays Commemorating the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Library History Round Table (2000)
Author: Edited by Andrew B. Wertheimer and Donald G. Davis, Jr.
Description: 279 p. 16 scholarly papers presented at a symposium at the Library of Congress on June 27, 1998, moderated by Donald G. Davis Jr. Foreword by John Y. Cole.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 57.12) | LCIB coverage (issue 60.2)
Library History Seminar X Convenes (February 2001)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 60.2 (p. 50-51) describing from a library history perspective the first two days of the Library of Congress Bicentennial symposium on October 23-27, 2000.
Links: Full article
On the History of Libraries and Scholarship (1980)
Author: Ian Willison
Description: 25 p. Viewpoint No. 4. A Paper Presented Before the Library History Round Table of the American Library Association, June 26, 1979. Reprinted 1986.
Links: LC catalog entry
Specialties
One of the delights of books is their infinite variety and direct insight into topics which, at first glance, often seem quite specialized.
Publication highlights include a 1983 program with the Authors League of America about the idea of a public lending right in the United States; the Library of Congress Book of Literary Maps (1999); articles about centers for the Book in Great Britain, Russia, and South Africa (1990-2004); a history of Kroch & Brentano’s bookstore in Chicago (1988); and a “backwards alphabet book,” with contributions from 26 internationally known designers and illustrators (1989).
Authors and Writing
Authorship in the Information Age: Reflections of Graziella Tonfoni (2013)
Author: Graziella Tonfoni; edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 27 p. Viewpoint No. 32. An unpublished discussion of research in the digital age. The manuscript, which includes quotations from the 31 previous Center for the Book Viewpoints, and accompanying research material are available in the Center for the Book office.
Links: News release (October 5, 2011)
Books in My Life (1985)
Author: Robert B. Downs
Description: 19 p. Viewpoint No. 14. Downs, a distinguished author and librarian, discusses the books which have had the greatest effect on his life in an essay published as part of the Library’s “Books Make a Difference” project.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 44.51)
Born to Trouble: One Hundred Years of Huckleberry Finn (1985)
Author: Justin Kaplan
Description: 23 p. Viewpoint No. 13. A lecture co-published with the Florida Center for the Book discussing the history of the censorship of Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” on the centennial of the book’s publication. Reprinted 1988.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 44.18)
Earth, Stars, and Writers (1992)
Author: Philip Levine, Orlando Patterson, Norman Rush
Description: 37 p. Lectures by poet Philip Levine, historian Orlando Patterson, and novelist Norman Rush, winners of the 1991 National Book Award. Part of The National Book Week Lecture series, co-published with the National Book Foundation.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (January 19, 1993)
The Historical Novel: A Celebration of the Achievements of Herman Wouk (1999)
Author: Edited by Barbara A. Paulson
Description: 118 p. Remarks from a May 15, 1995 symposium and tribute to Herman Wouk organized and sponsored by the Center for the Book. Speakers included Robert Caro, Mary Lee Settle, George Garrett, William Safire, Martin Gilbert, and David McCullough.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (November 23, 1999) | LCIB coverage (issue 58.12)
In Search of a Voice (1991)
Author: Charles Johnson, Ron Chernow
Description: 36 p. Lectures by novelist Charles Johnson and historian Ron Chernow, 1990 National Book Award winners. Part of The National Book Week Lecture series, co-published with the National Book Foundation.
Links: LC catalog entry | LC catalog entry for audio recording
Mr. Baldacci Goes to the Library: Author-Lawyer Writes Best-Seller Set at Library (April 2007)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 66.4 (p. 90-91) describing the research and publication of Baldacci’s novel “The Collectors” (published by Warner Books, 2006), which is set in the Library of Congress.
Links: Full article | Video of Baldacci’s Books & Beyond lecture (October 17, 2006)
The Open Door: When Writers First Learned to Read (1989)
Author: Compiled by Steven Gilbar
Description: 125 p. Essays by 29 writers describing their first encounters with the printed word, published by David R. Godine in association with the Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 48.49)
The Politics of Silence (1993)
Author: Paul Monette
Description: 21 p. Lecture by author Paul Monette, 1992 National Book Award winner for nonfiction. Part of The National Book Week Lecture series, co-published with the National Book Foundation.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 53.3)
Public Lending Right: A Symposium at the Library of Congress (December 1983)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 42.50 (p. 427-432) reporting on an international symposium hosted by the Center for the Book to study the merits and demerits of establishing a “public lending right” system in the U.S. that would compensate authors for the multiple uses of their book in libraries.
Links: Full article
Writing in an Era of Conflict (1990)
Author: Richard Rhodes, Thomas Friedman
Description: 31 p. Lectures by two National Book Award winners for nonfiction, Richard Rhodes (1987) and Thomas Friedman (1989). Part of The National Book Week Lecture series, co-published with the National Book Foundation.
Links: LC catalog entry
Bibliography and Language
A Description of Descriptive Bibliography (1992)
Author: G. Thomas Tanselle
Description: 37 p. Viewpoint No. 30. An explanation of the scholarly value of descriptive bibliography.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Federal Copyright Records, 1790-1800 (1987)
Author: Edited by James Gilreath; compiled by Elizabeth Carter Wills
Description: 149 p. Records from the 11 states and two federal agencies that received copyright deposits during the first decade of the U.S. federal copyright law.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 46.20)
The National Union Catalog, Pre-1956 Imprints: A Celebration of Its Completion (1981)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 49 p. A report on a symposium at the Library of Congress on Jan. 27-28, 1981 marking the completion of “National Union Catalog: Pre-1956 Imprints,” a 754-volume bibliographic reference work. Includes five papers by scholars, bibliographers, and librarians.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website (text only) | Full text through HathiTrust (includes photographs) | LCIB coverage (issue 40.8)
The Oxford English Dictionary and the State of the Language (1988)
Author: Robert W. Burchfield, Hans Aarsleff
Description: 56 p. Talks at a symposium on May 29, 1986 co-sponsored with the Oxford University Press, marking the publication of the fourth and final volume of the Oxford English Dictionary.
Links: LC catalog entry | LC catalog entry for audio recording | LCIB coverage (issue 45.28)
Points at Issue: A Bookseller Looks at Bibliography (1984)
Author: Anthony Rota
Description: 22 p. Viewpoint No. 12. A lecture presented on April 24, 1984 examining the contributions of both booksellers and bibliographers to literary scholarship.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
A Portrait of the Author as a Bibliography (1983)
Author: Dan H. Laurence
Description: 19 p. Viewpoint No. 9. A paper presented on November 3, 1982 discussing scholarly contributions to the field of bibliography.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
The Rivers of America: A Descriptive Bibliography (2001)
Author: Carol Fitzgerald; edited by Jean Fitzgerald
Description: 899 p. Two volumes published by Oak Knoll Press in association with the Center for the Book. Includes complete bibliographic descriptions of the 65 titles in the “Rivers of America” series and biographies of its 60 authors, 53 illustrators, and eight principal editors. The Fitzgerald “Rivers of America” collection was donated to the Library of Congress in 2004 and is available, with related research materials, in the Library’s Rare Book and Special Collections Division.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (July 23, 2001) | LCIB coverage (issue 56.10) | LCIB coverage (issue 60.9)
Series Americana: Post Depression-Era Regional Literature, 1938-1980: A Descriptive Bibliography (2009)
Author: Carol Fitzgerald; edited by Jean Fitzgerald
Description: 978 p. A two-volume reference work of American regional writing published by Oak Knoll Press in association with the Center for the Book. The collection is now available in the Library’s Rare Book and Special Collections Division.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (January 21, 2010)
Where Angels Fear to Tread: Descriptive Bibliography and Alexander Pope (1988)
Author: David L. Vander Meulen
Description: 29 p. Viewpoint No. 19. An explanation of the field of descriptive bibliography and its literary value, informed by Vander Meulen’s own study of 800 copies of Alexander Pope’s “The Dunciad.”
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 47.40)
Book Arts, Graphics and Book Collecting
Book Collecting: Personal Rewards and Public Benefits (1984)
Author: William P. Barlow, Jr.
Description: 22 p. Viewpoint No. 11. A paper presented on December 7, 1983 about the book collecting experience. Reprinted 1988.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 43.52)
Collectors & Special Collections: Three Talks (2002)
Author: Alice D. Schreyer, William J. Reese, Robert H. Jackson
Description: 56 p. Essays on book collection from librarian Alice D. Schreyer, book dealer William J. Reese, and collector Robert H. Jackson, presented at a program on April 4, 2001 sponsored by the Center for the Book and the Library’s Rare Book and Special Collections Division.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (September 5, 2002) | LCIB coverage (issue 61.12)
Exhibits and Displays, 1979-2002 (October 2002)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 61.10 (p. 230-231) featuring brief descriptions of more than a dozen displays and exhibits sponsored or cosponsored by the Center for the Book during its first decade.
Links: Full article
Fine Printing: The Los Angeles Tradition (1987)
Author: Ward Ritchie
Description: 65 p. A lecture by a distinguished printer about the history of fine printing in Los Angeles and the Los Angeles region. Presented at the Library of Congress on October 2, 1985.
Links: LC catalog entry
Fine Printing: The San Francisco Tradition (1985)
Author: James D. Hart
Description: 56 p. Reprinted 1987. A lecture by the director of the Bancroft Library about the history of fine printing in the San Francisco region. Presented at the Library of Congress on November 2, 1983.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 44.24)
From the Exhibit Wall to the Bookshelf: And Now. . . Read More About It! Debuts (November 1983)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 42.46 (p. 388-390) introducing the first Library of Congress exhibitions to incorporate suggested books for reading as a separate and prominent exhibit panel.
Links: Full article
Language of the Land: The Library of Congress Book of Literary Maps (1999)
Author: Martha Hopkins, Michael Buscher
Description: 304 p. An annotated, illustrated guide to more than 230 literary maps in the Library’s Geography and Map Division collection.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 58.9)
New Stamps and Poster Honor Favorite Childhood Books (November 1993)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 52.21 (p. 434-435) discussing four 29-cent stamps issued by the U.S. Postal Service in cooperation with the Center for the Book and Literacy Volunteers of America.
Links: Full article
ZYX: 26 Poetic Portraits (1989)
Author: Rhodes Patterson
Description: 60 p. Features visual interpretations of each letter of the alphabet by 26 internationally recognized designers, illustrators, and photographers.
Links: none available
The International Role of Books and Reading
British Library Establishes Centre for the Book (July 1990)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 49.15 (p. 265) announcing the establishment of the Centre for the Book at the British Library in London.
Links: Full article
Center for the Book Leads Visit to Russia: 22 Reading Centers Being Established Throughout Russia (November 2002)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 61.11 discussing the Center for the Book’s participation in the international “Reading World and World of Reading” conference in St. Petersburg and the inauguration of a new network of reading centers throughout Russia.
Links: Full article
Center Leads Trip to South Africa (November 2004)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 63.11 (p. 234-235) describing a study tour to South Africa led by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. Includes the history of the South African Centre for the Book, which was established in 1997.
Links: Full article
Donated Books Programs: A Dialogue of Partners Handbook (1993)
Author: Library of Congress
Description: 104 p. Based on the proceedings of an international conference on donated books held in Baltimore, Maryland on Sept. 14-16, 1992, with a preface by John Y. Cole.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (September 30, 1993)
IFLA’s Section on Literacy and Reading: A History of the First Fifteen Years (June 2011)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: An overview of the IFLA Section on Literacy and Reading’s history and development, published in the “International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions Newsletter” issue 31 (p. 6-9).
Links: Full text through IFLA website
The Indivisible World: Libraries and the Myth of Cultural Exchange (1985)
Author: Daniel J. Boorstin
Description: 14 p. Viewpoint No. 15. Discusses the concept of cultural and ideological boundaries, and the role of the Library in facilitating the dissolution of these boundaries.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through ERIC database
The International Flow of Information: A Trans-Pacific Perspective (1981)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 47 p. Viewpoint No. 7. Presentations and discussion from a traveling seminar on June 7-28, 1979 supported by the Graduate School of Library Studies at the University of Hawaii and the U.S. International Communication Agency, focusing on improving the flow of information between the East-Asian Pacific and the United States.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 38.35)
International Library Horizons: Some Personal Observations (1989)
Author: Robert Vosper
Description: 25 p. Viewpoint No. 24. An educator and librarian’s personal recollections on topics related to international librarianship.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 57.2)
LC at the 1993 Frankfurt Book Fair (November 1993)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 52.20 (p. 434) describing the seventh consecutive year of Center for the Book participation at the Frankfurt Book Fair on behalf of the Library of Congress.
Links: Full article
U.S. Books Abroad: Neglected Ambassadors (1984)
Author: Curtis G. Benjamin
Description: 95 p. A proposal for a renewed, cooperative approach and international outlook on the part of the U.S. publishing community, with a preface by John Y. Cole.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 42.23)
USIA Libraries Abroad Discussed at LC (March 1993)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 52.6 discussing a symposium about the future of the USIA libraries hosted by the Center for the Book on Feb. 11, 1993.
Links: Full article
U.S. International Book Programs 1981 (1982)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 61 p. The results and discussion of a 1981 survey by the Center for the Book of international book and library-related related programs implemented by both government and private agencies.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Publishing and the Book Trade
The Bookseller’s Art: Carl Kroch and Kroch’s & Brentano’s (1988)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 89 p. Recollections about Chicago bookseller Carl Kroch, his father Adolf, and their bookstore, Kroch’s & Brentano’s, adapted from a 1986 symposium hosted by Daniel J. Boorstin at the Library of Congress. Published by the Center for the Book in association with the Illinois Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 45.50) | LCIB coverage (issue 48.17)
New Technologies in Book Distribution: The United States Experience
Author: Center for the Book
Description: 34 p. Report prepared by SKP Associates for the Center for the Book, discussing the history and application of technological advancement to the book distribution process. Comprises the third section of UNESCO’s 1984 report “The Future of the Book.”
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through UNESCO website
Publishing and Readership in Revolutionary France and America (1993)
Author: Edited by Carol Armbruster
Description: 215 p. 12 scholarly papers about the history of the book in Revolutionary France and the United States presented at a Library of Congress symposium on May 2-3, 1989, sponsored by the Center for the Book and the Library’s European Division. Published by Greenwood Press.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (July 12, 1993) | LCIB coverage (issue 48.33)
Publishing Archives in the 1990s: The Changing Marketplace, Technology, and Scholarship (1996)
Author: Various
Description: Unpublished papers from a symposium at Columbia University on October 3-5, 1996 about the importance, collection, and use of publishing archives, available for reference in the Center for the Book. The keynote address was presented by Robert Giroux, former chairman of the editorial board of Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc.
Links: News release (July 13, 1996) | LCIB coverage (issue 56.3)
Responsibilities of the American Book Community (1981)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 88 p. Highlights from related seminars held on April 4-5, 1979, January 30, 1980, and April 25, 1980, the latter convened by the Center for the Book on the topic of “The Co-Responsibilities of American Publishers and Booksellers.” Includes short papers and statements from, Lewis A. Coser, William Jovanovich, E. L. Doctorow, Archibald MacLeish, John Tebbel, and Carl A. Kroch and others.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | LCIB coverage (issue 39.21)
Rivers of America: Library Celebrates 60th Anniversary of Landmark Series (June 1997)
Author: Barbara Bryant
Description: Article from LCIB issue 56.10 reporting on a symposium organized by the Center for the Book in honor of the “Rivers of America” book series.
Links: Full article
The Textbook in American Society (1981)
Author: Edited by John Y. Cole and Thomas G. Sticht
Description: 55 p. Summaries of 18 papers about the educational and societal role of the textbook, presented by educators and publishers at a symposium sponsored by the Center for the Book and the U.S. National Institute of Education at the Library of Congress on May 2-3, 1979.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 38.21)
Promotion
Though its public programs and publications, the Center for the Book is a strong public advocate of books, reading, literacy and libraries.
Highlights include a brief history of the National Book Festival (2008); a 1996 book of photographs of libraries and literacy centers across the world; winning ideas for library friends; groups (1984); Profiles of literacy organizations that have won Library of Congress literacy awards, 2013-2016; and how the Library of Congress promotes “the joy of reading” (2015).
Libraries and the Promotion of Libraries
For the Love of Libraries: A Book of Postcards (1998)
Author: Diane Asséo Griliches
Description: 30 p. A book of 30 postcards published by Pomegranate Calendars & Books, featuring photographs and anecdotes taken from Diane Asséo Griliches’ “Library: The Drama Within.” Introduction by John Y. Cole.
Links: News release (June 22, 1998) | LCIB coverage (57.9)
Interpreting the Past, Shaping the Future: Library Hosts Symposium on National Libraries (December 2000)
Author: Gail Fineberg, Tracy Arcaro
Description: Article from LCIB issue 59.12 describing the proceedings of a bicentennial symposium on October 23-26, 2000 about the history and future of national libraries. Unpublished papers from this symposium are available at the Center for the Book.
Links: Full article | News release (April 27, 1998)
The Knowledge Institutions in the Information Age: The Special Case of the Public Library (1988)
Author: R. Kathleen Molz
Description: 23 p. Viewpoint No. 21. An exploration of the public library’s role as an institution of knowledge and its relevance in the new technological age.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
Library: The Drama Within (1996)
Author: Diane Asséo Griliches
Description: 144 p. 60 black and white photographs of libraries and literacy centers across the world with explanatory text, featuring an introduction by Daniel J. Boorstin. Published by The University of New Mexico Press in association with the Center for the Book. Reprinted in 2008 by Bunker Hill Publishing, with a new introduction by John Y. Cole.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 56.7)
Promoting Libraries, 1980-2002 (November 2002)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 61.11 summarizing the Center for the Book’s library promotion activities on the occasion of its 25th anniversary.
Links: Full article
Winning Ideas for Friends Groups (January 1984)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 43.5 (p. 27-28) reporting on a January 9, 1984 forum co-sponsored with Friends of Libraries U.S.A. at the Library of Congress.
Links: Full article
Literacy and the Promotion of Literacy
Celebrating Literacy: Children and Celebrities Call Attention to Reading (October 2000)
Author: Guy Lamolinara
Description: Article from LCIB issue 59.10 (p. 232-233) describing the U.S. celebration of International Literacy Day, hosted by the Center for the Book.
Links: Full article
Even Anchors Need Lifelines: Public Libraries in Adult Literacy (1996)
Author: Gail Spangenberg
Description: 463 p. A study of adult literacy programs based in public libraries, commissioned by the Center for the Book and published by Spangenberg Learning Resources. Consists of two volumes: a 144-page study and research report with recommendations, and a 319-page summary of background data used in the study. Additional materials available at the Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through ERIC database (includes both volumes) | News release (October 3, 1995) | News release (September 4, 1996) | LCIB coverage (issue 55.15) | LCIB coverage (issue 56.4)
From Thibodaux to Tucumcari: Family Literacy in Rural Libraries: A Report from the Viburnum Family Literacy Project (1998)
Author: Molly Turner, Nancy Kober
Description: 60 p. An evaluation and history of the Viburnum Family Literacy Project, a rural, library-based family literacy program established in 1992. In 1997, the Center for the Book received a grant from the Viburnum Foundation to design and administer a new and expanded Viburnum Family Literacy Project.
Links: Full text through ERIC database | LCIB coverage (issue 57.5) | LCIB coverage (issue 57.11)
A Library Head Start to Literacy: The Resource Notebook for the Library-Museum-Head Start Partnership (1999)
Author: Virginia H. Mathews, Susan Roman
Description: 295 p. The result of a five-year partnership with Head Start, published by the Center for the Book in collaboration with Head Start and the American Library Association. Contains ideas and information about how Head Start teachers, participants, and parents can promote family literacy through collaborations with librarians and museum specialists who serve children.
Links: LC catalog entry | News Release (August 11, 1993) | News release (August 2, 1999) | LCIB coverage (issue 61.9)
Library of Congress Literacy Awards 2013: Best Practices (2013)
Author: Maralita L. Freeny
Description: 11 p. A review of the outstanding work in the field of literacy published as part of the Library of Congress Literacy Awards program, administered by the Center for the Book and sponsored by David M. Rubenstein.
Links: Full text through Read.gov (pdf download) | News release (October 21, 2013) | News release (December 20, 2013)
Library of Congress Literacy Awards 2014: Best Practices (2014)
Author: Jillian Davis
Description: 28 p. A review of the outstanding work in the field of literacy published as part of the Library of Congress Literacy Awards program, administered by the Center for the Book and sponsored by David M. Rubenstein. Includes profiles of the three prize-winning organizations and the 14 organizations that received recognition for outstanding best practices.
Links: Full text through Read.gov (pdf download) | News release (August 30, 2014)
Library of Congress Literacy Awards 2015: Best Practices (2015)
Author: Jillian Davis
Description: 28 p. A review of the outstanding work in the field of literacy published as part of the Library of Congress Literacy Awards program, administered by the Center for the Book and sponsored by David M. Rubenstein. Includes profiles of the three prize-winning organizations and the 14 organizations that received recognition for outstanding best practices.
Links: Full text through Read.gov (pdf download) | News release (October 28, 2015) | News release (December 1, 2015)
Library of Congress Literacy Awards 2016: Best Practices (2015)
Author: Jillian Davis
Description: 28 p. A review of the outstanding work in the field of literacy published as part of the Library of Congress Literacy Awards program, administered by the Center for the Book and sponsored by David M. Rubenstein. Includes profiles of the three prize-winning organizations and the 14 organizations that received recognition for outstanding best practices.
Links: Full text through Read.gov (pdf download) | News release (September 23, 2016)
Literacy in Historical Perspective (1981)
Author: Edited by Daniel J. Resnick
Description: 170 p. Essays by 10 historians about the history of literacy in Europe, the United States, China, and Russia, originally presented at a symposium sponsored by the Center for the Book and the National Institute of Education on July 14-15, 1980.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LC catalog entry for audio recordings |
LCIB coverage (issue 39.41) | LCIB coverage (issue 44.9)
Literacy Promotion Update (November 1999)
Author: LCIB staff
Description: Article from LCIB issue 58.11 (p. 278-279) that summarizes the Center for the Book’s literacy promotion activities in 1999, including the implementation of state-level family workshops sponsored by the Viburnum Foundation and co-hosting the National Coalition for Literacy Awards Dinner.
Links: Full article
Promoting Literacy, 1980-2002 (September 2002)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 61.9 (p. 194-195) summarizing the Center for the Book’s literacy promotion activities on the occasion of its 25th anniversary.
Links: Full article
Read Across America: First Lady Comes to Library to Promote Literacy (April 2010)
Author: Audrey Fischer
Description: Article from LCIB issue 69.4 (p. 63) about First Lady Michelle Obama’s first visit to the Library of Congress.
Links: Full article
“Reading Powers the Mind” Workshop Inaugurates New Family Literacy Project (October 2004)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 63.10 (p. 214-215) describing the launch of the Center for the Book’s “Reading Powers the Mind” initiative, focused on supporting family literacy partnerships between public or state libraries and community organizations.
Links: Full article
Reading and the Promotion of Reading
10th Anniversary of “Books and Beyond” (March 2006)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 65.3 (p. 74-75) describing the origins and development of the Center for the Book’s “Books and Beyond” author lecture series at the Library of Congress.
Links: Full article
Books Change Lives: 1993-1994 Reading Promotion Campaign (1996)
Author: Compiled by Michael Thompson; edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 75 p. Several hundred examples from across the nation of projects and events organized for the “Books Change Lives” reading promotion campaign.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust | News release (July 17, 1996)
Books That Made the Difference: What People Told Us (1983)
Author: Gordon and Patricia Sabine
Description: 176 p. Selected responses to the 1982 Center for the Book “Books Make A Difference” survey project, plus guidance from National Advisory Board member Ann Heidbreder Eastman for libraries wishing to start a similar project. Published by the Shoe String Press. Additional research and survey materials available at the Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 42.16) | LCIB coverage (issue 42.20)
Building Nations of Readers: Experience, Ideas, Examples (2006)
Author: Edited and compiled by Valeria D. Stelmakh and John Y. Cole
Description: 274 p. A bilingual (English/Russian) volume featuring the history and practice of reading promotion in Russia, Great Britain, and the United States, produced in cooperation with the Section on Reading of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) and published by the Pushkin Library Foundation, with support from the British Council.
Links: LC catalog entry | LCIB coverage (issue 66.9)
The Community of the Book: A Directory of Organizations and Programs (1993)
Author: Maurvene D. Williams
Description: 150 p. Third edition. A descriptive list of selected organizations and programs that promote books, reading, libraries, and literacy, compiled by Mauvene D. Williams, edited and with an introductory essay, “Is There a Community of the Book?,” by John Y. Cole. The first edition (1986), edited by Carren O. Caston, and second edition (1989), edited by Maurvene D. Williams, also include the introductory essay. The first edition also was published in 1987 in a cloth bound edition by Transaction Books.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | Updated list of programs on Read.gov
The Delights of Reading: Quotes, Notes, & Anecdotes (1987)
Author: Otto L. Bettmann
Description: 140 p. Published by David R. Godine in association with the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. A collection of quotations and images celebrating books and reading, with a foreword by Daniel J. Boorstin. Afterword by John Y. Cole.
Links: LC catalog entry
Developing Lifetime Readers: A Report on the 1991 “Year of the Lifetime Reader” Promotion of the Library of Congress (1993)
Author: Compiled by Michael Thompson; edited by John Y. Cole
Description: 44 p. Several hundred examples of “Year of the Young Reader” projects and events developed by schools, libraries, bookstores, and other organizations around the country.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | News release (May 23, 1993) | LCIB coverage (issue 52.12)
Fanfare for Words: Bookfairs and Book Festivals in North America (1991)
Author: Bernadine Clark
Description: 108 p. A directory of book fairs and festivals, as well as historical and logistical information about these events, commissioned and published by the Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through LC website | Full text through HathiTrust |
Updated list of book fairs on Read.gov
The Harvard Guide to Influential Books: 113 Eminent Harvard Professors Discuss the Books That Have Shaped Their Thinking (1986)
Author: C. Maury Devine, Claudia M. Dissel, Kim D. Parrish, editors.
Description: 302 p. The editors of this volume, published by Harper & Row, praised the Center for the Book as a worthwhile “public/private initiative” and donated a percentage of the profits to the Center for the Book. The creation of this guide was stimulated by the Center for the Book’s project, Books Make a Difference.
Links: LC catalog entry
I Hear America Reading: Why We Read, What We Read (1999)
Author: Compiled by Jim Burke
Description: 116 p. A collection of letters from individuals across the country discussing the role of reading and literature in their lives, with a foreword by John Y. Cole. Published by Heinemann.
Links: LC catalog entry | Page on Heinemann website
The Joy of Reading (September/October 2015)
Author: Jennifer Gavin
Description: Article from Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 4 No. 5 (p. 8-12) that highlights how the Center for the Book and other Library of Congress offices and divisions promote the pleasure and power of reading.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
Last Word: Actress Octavia Spencer Discusses the Power of Reading (September/October 2015)
Author: LCM staff
Description: Article from Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 4 No. 5 (p. 28) excerpting remarks from a talk at the Library of Congress on March 26, 2015.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
Letters About Literature: Popular Student Essay Contest Enters 16th Year (July 2000)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 59.7 (p. 168) describing the origins and development of the annual “Letters About Literature” contest.
Links: Full article
The Most Wonderful Books: Writers on Discovering the Pleasures of Reading (1997)
Author: Edited by Michael Dorris and Emilie Buchwald
Description: 297 p. A collection of essays from contemporary writers about the importance of books, published by Milkweed Editions in association with the Center for the Book.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (September 4, 1997)
Mrs. Bush Inspires a National Book Festival (2008)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: An essay about first lady Laura Bush’s collaboration with the Center for the Book to create the National Book Festival in 2001, appearing in “Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out,” published by Candlewick Press.
Links: LC catalog entry | “Our White House” website | LCIB coverage (issue 67.11)
National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Takes Center Stage (March 2008)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 67.3 describing author Jon Scieszka’s appointment as the first National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature in 2008.
Links: Full article
Next to Mother’s Milk (1987)
Author: Lawrence Clark Powell
Description: 25 p. Viewpoint No. 17. A talk at the Library of Congress on April 8, 1986 in which Lawrence Clark Powell, a librarian, critic, and author, describes the books and literary influences that shaped his life.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust | LCIB coverage (issue 46.20)
One Book Projects Grow in Popularity (January 2006)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 65.1 recounting the history of the “One Book” national reading promotion movement, which began in 1998 when Nancy Pearl, head of the Washington Center for the Book, initiated “If All Seattle Read the Same Book.”
Links: Full article
Promoting Reading at the National Book Festival (November 2008)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 67.11 summarizing the Center for the Book’s involvement in National Book Festival activities.
Links: Full article
Reading for Survival (1987)
Author: John D. MacDonald
Description: 26 p. A succinct short story by popular author John D. MacDonald about the importance of reading. Commissioned and published jointly by the Center for the Book and its first state affiliate, the Florida Center for the Book. Reprinted 1993.
Links: LC catalog entry | News release (January 31, 1994) | LCIB coverage (photo and caption, issue 61.7-8)
Reading Promotion and Themes and Projects (February 2002)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 61.2 summarizing the Center for the Book’s reading promotion themes and campaigns from 1987-2002.
Links: Full article
Reading Promotion Partners (June 2002)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 61.6 summarizing the Center for the Book’s collaborative activities with its network of affiliated state centers and reading promotion partners from 1987-2001.
Links: Full article
River of Words Combines Art, Environment (June/July 2009)
Author: Guy Lamolinara
Description: Article from LCIB issue 68.7-8 describing the Center for the Book’s co-sponsorship of the annual “River of Words” contest, and announcing the 2009 winners.
Links: Full article
State Centers for the Book, 1984-2002 (July/August 2002)
Author: John Y. Cole
Description: Article from LCIB issue 61.7-8 summarizing the development and activities of the Center for the Book’s state center affiliate program from 1984-2002.
Links: Full article
Support the Library: Champions of Literacy (September/October 2015)
Author: LCM staff
Description: Article from Library of Congress Magazine Vol. 4 No. 5 (p. 27) which features the strong support that philanthropist David M. Rubenstein gives to several Library of Congress reading and literacy promotion projects.
Links: Full article (pdf download)
Travel and the Sense of Wonder (1992)
Author: John Malcolm Brinnin
Description: 22 p. Viewpoint No. 29. An essay sponsored by the Center for the Book and the Florida Center for the Book on the topic of “Explore New Worlds—Read!”, the Center for the Book’s national reading promotion theme for 1992.
Links: LC catalog entry | Full text through HathiTrust
The Center for the Book Viewpoint Series—A Chronological Listing
Viewpoints are booklets presenting Center for the Book lectures and informal talks by a wide range of scholars, writers, librarians, bibliographers, and library and reading promoters. Many of the Viewpoint lectures and publications were supported by a personal contribution to the Center for the Book from Mrs. Charles W. Engelhard. Each publication also is included by subject in the preceding list.
- Barbara W. Tuchman. The Book. No. 1, 1980.
- Elaine Moss and Barbara Rollock. The Audience for Children’s Books. No. 2, 1980.
- Daniel J. Boorstin. Gresham’s Law: Knowledge or Information? No. 3, 1980.
- I.R. Willison. On the History of Libraries and Scholarship. No. 4, 1980.
- Alfred Kazin, Dan Lacy, and Ernest L. Boyer. The State of the Book World in 1980. No. 5, 1981.
- Daniel J. Boorstin. The World Encompassed. No. 6, 1981.
- John Y. Cole, ed. The International Flow of Information: A Trans-Pacific Perspective. No. 7, 1981.
- Daniel J. Boorstin. A Nation of Readers. No. 8, 1982.
- Dan H. Lawrence. A Portrait of the Author as a Bibliography. No. 9, 1983.
- Harrison E. Salisbury. The Book Enchained. No. 10, 1984.
- William P. Barlow, Jr. Collecting: Personal Rewards and Public Benefits. No. 11, 1984.
- Anthony Rota. Points at Issue: A Bookseller Looks at Bibliography. No. 12, 1984.
- Justin Kaplan. Born to Trouble: One Hundred Years of Huckleberry Finn. No. 13, 1985.
- Robert B. Downs. Books in My Life. No. 14, 1985.
- Daniel J. Boorstin. The Indivisible World: Libraries and the Myth of Cultural Exchange. No. 15, 1985.
- John P. Feather and David McKitterick, The History of Books and Libraries: Two Views. No. 16, 1986.
- Lawrence Clark Powell. Next to Mother’s Milk. No. 17, 1987.
- Lester Asheim. The Reader-Viewer-Listener: An Essay in Communication. No. 18, 1987.
- David L. Vander Meulen. Where Angels Fear to Travel: Descriptive Bibliography and Alexander Pope. No. 19, 1988.
- Donald W. Krummel. The Memory of Sound: Observations on the History of Music on Paper. No. 20, 1988.
- R. Kathleen Molz. The Knowledge Institutions in the Information Age: The Special Case of the Public Library. No. 21, 1988.
- James H. Billington. Books and the World. No. 22, 1988.
- George H. Nash. Books and the Founding Fathers. No. 23. 1989.
- Robert Vosper. International Library Horizons: Some Personal Observations. Nov. 24, 1989.
- Nahum M. Sarna. Ancient Libraries and the Ordering of the Biblical Books. No. 25, 1989.
- Bernhard Fabian. The Future of Humanistic Scholarship, with comments by Michael T. Ryan and Thomas F. Staley. No. 26, 1990.
- John Y. Cole, ed. Research Collections in the Information Age. Views by Stephen E. Ostrow and Robert Zich. No. 27, 1990.
- E.L. Konigsburg. The Mask Beneath the Face: Reading about and with; Writing about and for: Children. No. 28, 1990.
- John Malcolm Brinnan. Travel and the Sense of Wonder, with Jean Trebbi. No. 29. 1992.
- G. Thomas Tanselle. A Description of Descriptive Bibliography. No. 30, 1992.
- Kenneth E. Carpenter. Readers & Libraries: Toward a History of Libraries and Culture in America. No. 31, 1996.
- John Y. Cole, ed. “Authorship in the Information Age: Reflections of Graziella Tonfoni” (unpublished), No. 32, 2013.
