posted on 31 Jul 2015

The Public Library : A Photographic Essay  by Robert Dawson

At a time when the whole public library movement is under unprecedented threat from the barbarians in charge of the public purse, it's both reassuring and delightful to have a book like this. Robert Dawson has travelled across the United States to photgraph and record for posterity the heritage of the public library. For me it doesn't matter that this documents libraries in the United States - it's the spirit of the library service that is distilled here and that has no international or national boundaries.

There are some grand buildings here but, even more importantly, some pretty modest ones that clearly belong to their community. Often they are standing in plain site on unassuming patches of land but every now and again a magnificent sculpture or statue will atest to the endevour of reading. All of these photographs say books matter - preserving our ideas and our culture matters - it's never just about the money or what can be bought and sold.

The book has some startlingly august contributors providing written commentary and opinion - IsaacAsimov, Toni Morrison, Dr Seuss, Amy Tan, Barbara Kingsolver and E.B.White have all given their time and effort.

If you love books you can't fail to love the care and attention this book has been given. It was published by Princeton Architectural Press in 2014 - buy it and go on a visual and virtual tour of some of the great public libraries of the USA.

Terry Potter        2015