UK’s national library apologises to researchers, saying full recovery could take until end of the year
The British Library is restoring online its main catalogue, containing 36m records of printed and rare books, maps, journals and music scores, 11 weeks after a catastrophic cyber-attack.
However, access is limited to a “read-only” format, and full restoration of services provided by the UK’s national library could take until the end of the year.
Continue reading...The book, Famous Composers, was last borrowed in 1919 from the St Paul library; mayor assures that there will be no late fee
The book on famous composers from the St Paul public library in Minnesota must have been a really good read.
It was more than a century overdue when it was finally returned recently.
Continue reading...Samuels Library set to close on 1 October after far-right community members claimed LGBTQ+ books were pornographic
A public county library in Virginia is at risk of shutting down after a group of far-right community members launched a campaign to defund it on accusations it held “pornographic books” though in fact the works usually just explore LGBTQ+ themes.
Samuels Library in Front Royal’s Warren county is set to close on 1 October as public funding has been withheld by the Warren county board of supervisors since July, cutting off crucial financial support.
Continue reading...Gabriel García Márquez library in working-class district specialises in Latin American literature
A Barcelona library specialising in Latin American literature has been named the best new public library in the world by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions at its congress in Rotterdam.
The library, named after the Nobel-winning Colombian novelist Gabriel García Márquez, opened last year in the working-class neighbourhood of Sant Martí de Provençals.
Continue reading...Cards depicting albums by Brooklyn-born rapper are part of initiative to celebrate 50th anniversary of hip-hop
Forget new lines of sneakers or T-shirts: the most sought-after merchandise this month can be found in public libraries in Brooklyn.
In collaboration with Roc Nation, an entertainment company founded by Jay-Z, the Brooklyn Public Library is celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip-hop by issuing limited-edition library cards featuring the rapper, who was born in the New York borough.
Continue reading...Decision comes as lawmakers in conservative states are pushing for measures making it easier to ban or restrict access to books
Arkansas is temporarily blocked from enforcing a law that would have allowed criminal charges against librarians and booksellers for providing “harmful” materials to minors, a federal judge ruled on Saturday.
US district judge Timothy L Brooks issued a preliminary injunction against the law, which also would have created a new process to challenge library materials and request that they be relocated to areas not accessible by kids. The measure, signed by the state’s Republican governor, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, earlier this year, was set to take effect on 1 August.
Continue reading...Former president writes open letter to American librarians and appears in TikTok video decrying rightwing censorship push
In an open letter to American librarians, Barack Obama criticised “profoundly misguided” rightwing efforts to ban books from libraries in public schools.
“Some of the books that shaped my life – and the lives of so many others – are being challenged by people who disagree with certain ideas or perspectives,” the former president wrote.
Continue reading...Move comes as rightwing groups increase pressure to remove books, most written by or about members of the LGBTQ+ community and people of colour
The American Library Association and the Authors Guild are among a group of organisations bringing a lawsuit against the state of Arkansas over a law which makes it a crime for librarians to give children books with “obscene” content.
The lawsuit involves 17 plaintiffs, including the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS), the Association of American Publishers and the American Booksellers Association.
Continue reading...Official figures show £9,982 was spent per 1,000 people on libraries by central and local government in England, Scotland and Wales last year, down from £11,970 the year before
Spending on libraries in Britain has fallen by 17%, according to new statistics, despite in-person visits increasing by 68% since the pandemic.
Figures released by CIPFA, the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, show that in 2021/22 £9,982 was spent per 1,000 people on libraries by central and local government in England, Scotland and Wales. This was down from £11,970 in 2020/21 and £12,646 in 2018/19.
Continue reading...With only six months worth of funding left, library’s director general faces ‘very big decisions’ on the future of Trove
The future of Trove, the National Library of Australia’s expansive public digital archives, is in doubt with just six months funding left, with the library’s director general revealing that it is facing “very, very big decisions” in the next few months, if the government does not step in with funding.
Trove, a free online resource used by thousands of researchers, academics and members of the public, receives more than 20m hits each year. It has been treading water for the past six years, drip-fed by the federal government to the tune of about $5m annually.
Sign up for a weekly email featuring our best reads
Continue reading...Ghanaian photographer’s crowdfunded project won support of Humans of New York author and boasts more than 30,000 books
The largest photography library in Africa has opened in Ghana’s capital, Accra, showcasing the work of the continent and diaspora’s forgotten, established and emerging talent.
Founded by Ghanaian photographer and film-maker Paul Ninson, the Dikan Center houses more than 30,000 books he has collected. The first of its kind in Ghana, a photo studio and classrooms provide space for workshops while a fellowship programme is aimed at African documentarians and visual artists. An exhibition space will host regular shows, the first of which is Ahennie, a series by the late Ghanaian documentary photographer Emmanuel Bobbie (also known as Bob Pixel), who died in 2021.
Continue reading...Service says the move is aimed at encourage the return of borrowers who stopped using the library during the Covid pandemic
Libraries in Peterborough are holding a fine amnesty to try to recover 22,000 missing books.
The service, which runs 10 libraries across the area, will not fine anyone for returning overdue books and will clear accounts of debt.
Continue reading...The books are four of more than 1,500 titles banned by schools across the US as part of a conservative push to censor books
A school district in Pennsylvania has banned the Girls Who Code book series for young readers, according to an index of banned books compiled by the free expression non-profit Pen America.
The books are four of more than 1,500 unique book titles that have been banned by schools across the country after conservative pushes to censor books. According to a report released by Pen America in April, 138 school districts across 32 states have banned books from their classrooms and school libraries.
Continue reading...Challenges from conservative parent groups and others targeted 1,651 different titles, the American Library Association said
Books for children and young adults containing themes of race, gender and sexual identity received an “unprecedented” number of challenges last year, the American Library Association (ALA) has said, reflecting a growing national trend of attempted censorship.
The challenges came from conservative parent groups and others. In some cases, the group says, librarians and elected officials were threatened with violence by members of the Proud Boys and armed activists at school board and library board meetings.
Continue reading...Major report finds poorer areas worst affected by deep cuts in government funding
Poorer areas have been hit disproportionally by a combination of cuts to neighbourhood services such as parks, libraries, refuse collection and children’s centres that have left English councils “hollowed out” since 2010, a major report into local government has concluded.
The study by the Institute for Government thinktank found that while some councils coped better than others, and reduced spending did not necessarily mean worse results, a lack of information made it difficult to learn lessons.
Continue reading...The Colombian Nobel laureate, who lived in the city from 1967-75, is to have a €12m building specialising in Latin American literature named after him
In the digital age, building a new library filled with old-fashioned printed books seems idealistic, almost quixotic.Not so in Barcelona. The city council is about to open a new €12m (£10m) library next month, the latest instalment in a programme that dates back 20 years.
The library, in the working-class district of Sant Martí de Provençals, has been named in honour of the Colombian Nobel laureate Gabriel García Márquez.
Continue reading...Door security error meant one of country’s largest city libraries was left open for hours, allowing hundreds to browse shelves
As New Zealand celebrated a national holiday, one of the country’s largest city libraries was closed, with staff and security given the day off. But an error with the automated door programming meant Tūranga’s doors opened to the public as usual – and the unstaffed and unsecured library was happily used by the public, who browsed and checked out books for hours before someone realised the mistake.
As well as its books, the library is home to a wide variety of artworks and sculpture – but staff say nothing was stolen, and there were no serious incidents to report.
Continue reading...The institution suffered a devastating attack by Islamic State in 2014. Eight years on, an international effort has seen it reopen as ‘a lighthouse of knowledge’
The university library in Mosul, which was bombed by Islamic State militants, has opened its doors again, describing itself as a “lighthouse of knowledge” which is “once again burning bright”.
Founded in 1921, the library was ransacked and bombarded by missiles during the IS occupation of the city, with an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 books and manuscripts destroyed. It was reopened on 19 February by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), with financial support from Germany and book donations from around the world, including over 20,000 from the UK.
Continue reading...Former model Jack Guinness caught up in furore over Mississippi mayor’s attempt to withhold funding for library until ‘homosexual materials’ are withdrawn
A British writer, presenter and former model says he is shocked to find himself at the centre of an unprecedented wave of book banning in the US.
A Mississippi mayor has told the Madison County Library to remove LGBTQ+ books from its shelves or lose funding. One of the books singled out as an example was The Queer Bible, a collection of LGBTQ+ history essays edited by Jack Guinness. Ridgeland’s Republican mayor, Gene McGee, has refused to release funds to the library until “homosexual materials” are withdrawn.
Continue reading...Restoring and moving 750,000 volumes and ancient manuscripts expected to take five years
It is known as Ireland’s “front room”, where esteemed visitors including the Queen, Joe Biden, Emmanuel Macron and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been taken to get a sense of the “land of saints and scholars”.
Biden, vice-president at the time, was so moved by the atmospherics in the dimly lit, barrel-vaulted hall when he visited Trinity College Dublin (TCD) in 2016 that he came back a year later to contemplate the history of its old library, known as the Long Room.
Continue reading...