The Library of Congress brings booklovers an enriching tribute to the power of the written word and to the history of our most beloved books. Featuring more than 200 full-color images of original catalog cards, first edition book covers, and photographs from the library’s magnificent archives, this collection is a visual celebration of the rarely seen treasures in one of the world’s most famous … famous libraries and the brilliant catalog system that has kept it organized for hundreds of years. Packed with engaging facts on literary classics–from Ulysses to The Cat in the Hat to Shakespeare’s First Folio to The Catcher in the Rye–this package is an ode to the enduring magic and importance of books.
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This was a fascinating book. It discusses the development of the Library of Congress, LOC book purchases, early catalog systems, and the rise and fall of the card catalog. Paired with all of this is some really fascinating photographs of items, with their cards, at LOC.
This book really made my archivist heart happy. It was everything I was looking for and I didn’t even know it. I think I am going to buy a physical copy of this book because I really enjoyed it and would love to see a better version of the photographs within. One day I will make a trip to LOC and see the amazing things it houses.
I totally recommend this book to anyone who loves libraries and books!
Interesting
This is a fast read, because it’s mostly pictures of book covers and card catalog entries. But it is still quite fascinating to read about the history of the cataloging concept and the rise and fall of the card system. I look back upon my days of being able to cruise the drawers with great fondness. I found many a wonderful book just by flipping through cards until I came across something that looked good, or by noticing a card next to the one I had originally been searching for and changing direction. I would buy one of the old drawer cabinets in a heartbeat if I could find a small one; then I would make cards for my own books!
Not really what I expected, but interesting and educational.
An interesting history of the card catlog!
Interesting background about the development of the Dewey Decimal System and library history.
If you love libraries and books you will enjoy this quick read. I was aware of much of this history but there were still some surprises.
Thought this book was fascinating! Loved finding out about the Dewey Decimal System and how system have changed over the years. As the saying goes, “You learn something new everyday!”
Great illustrated history of the search engines from cuneiform tablets to the web.
Thanks to limited text and lots of illustrations, this is a quick read. Library catalogs represent the first efforts to index information long before there was an internet. It interested me as a librarian, but I am not sure many people would find it entertaining.
I was a bit disappointed in this book. I’m not quite finished but have read over half. There are tons of pictures of books and their catalog cards and the basic information is covered about the history of the card catalog but I would rather learn more about the people involved, what it has meant to the public, library history in general. I learned more during my introduction to library science class when I went back to school for library science. I love libraries and books and those are covered, but given how important the catalog is, this book could have been much better. Also, we are talking about something that has disappeared for all intents and purposes. While I love computerized catalogs, there was something magical about the card catalog and how you could discover wonders just opening a drawer and looking inside.
I always wanted to understand the history of cataloging books….now I know
A history of something you’d probably never think of as having a history.
Very interesting and informative.
I loved this book as I believe any book lover will. It is fascinating history from Alexandria to yesterday’s news. It brought back many happy hours running back and forth in my university card catalog; and many happy discoveries along the way.