by Richard Ovendan
Listened to Feb 2022
The majority of this book was a history on great libraries and bodies of stored knowledge and how they were lost. The author discusses the downfall of the famous library of Alexandria, destruction of printed works by the Nazis and other lesser known such acts. While interesting, it is a little dry at times. The last hour or two of the book is the real gold, in my opinion. Ovendan details why this destruction is so damaging to society and individual cultures. Some of what he mentions is self-evident but there are truly some things I had never before considered. As a professional librarian, currently as Bodley’s Librarian in the University of Oxford, he knows what he is talking about and clearly has a passion for the preservation and management of knowledge and information. This book made me think and that is why I read non-fiction books so it did its job well. I feel like this might be a good, non-traditional book club book because there are some interesting points that could lead to interesting discussions.