The value of public libraries is rarely questioned in times of crisis, but this crisis is different because it strikes at the very foundation on which the modern public library rests.
Catching up with PW's Andrew Albanese
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In a widely-shared essay, Publishers Weekly columnist Sari Feldman recently contemplated, “Public Libraries After the Pandemic.” Her PW colleague Andrew Albanese notes how Feldman asks existential questions that strike at the heart of public libraries.
“Sari makes a great observation: The value of public libraries is rarely questioned in times of crisis—think of the New Orleans Public Library after Hurricane Katrina, or the Ferguson Municipal Public Library during the unrest in that Missouri city,” Albanese says.
“But this crisis is different—more specifically, the social distancing required to address this crisis is different, because it strikes at the very foundation on which the modern public library rests,” he tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally.
“Does anyone doubt that that Covid-19 will change some people’s perspective on what can and should be shared? How will libraries and their patrons view the circulation of physical library collections, including books?
“Some observers have dubbed this crisis, ‘The Great Pause.’ But Sari writes that librarians cannot pause. Librarians cannot sit back and wait to unlock the library doors again. Librarians must take this time to begin thinking about how public libraries will function in a society that will certainly be changed for the short term, and may be changed forever.”
Every Friday, CCC’s “Beyond the Book” speaks with the editors and reporters of “Publishers Weekly” for an early look at the news that publishers, editors, authors, agents and librarians will be talking about when they return to work on Monday.
