Sacred Stacks.Sacred Stacks Nancy Kalikow Maxwell American Library Association American Library Association, founded 1876, organization whose purpose is to increase the usefulness of books through the improvement and extension of library services. 50 East Huron Street, Chicago, IL 60611 0838909175 $32.00 www.ala.org Sacred Stacks: The Higher Purpose Of Libraries And Librarianship is a 168-page exploration and analysis of the importance of librarianship today. Nancy Kalikow Maxwell (Administrator, Miami Dad College North Campus Library) draws upon more than 30 years of professional experience and expertise to argue persuasively that libraries and librarians have an underlying significant meaning and diverse contributions to society. Included among these responsibilities are the promotion of the community, to uplift society, to bestow be·stow tr.v. be·stowed, be·stow·ing, be·stows 1. To present as a gift or an honor; confer: bestowed high praise on the winners. 2. immortality immortality, attribute of deathlessness ascribed to the soul in many religions and philosophies. Forthright belief in immortality of the body is rare. Immortality of the soul is a cardinal tenet of Islam and is held generally in Judaism, although it is not an , to preserve and transmit culture, to organize chaos, and finally, to provide "sacred space sacred space, n space—tangible or otherwise—that enables those who acknowledge and accept it to feel reverence and connection with the spiritual. " for a democratic and secular culture. Long ago libraries were frequently held in trust by members of religious orders. Some of that sacred trust still permeates the stacks, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Maxwell. Sacred Stacks is a tribute to the libraries' long honored ability to provide sacred secular space. Filled with pertinent, widely drawn quotation, Sacred Stacks is both a tribute to librarians and a manifesto to them. The author exhorts librarians to speak out, demand libraries as spiritual, sacred space to demand space for books, to remember the spirituality of books, to demand libraries serve as communal space, to balance libraries' public and private functions, to trumpet trumpet, brass wind musical instrument of part cylindrical, part conical bore, in the shape of a flattened loop and having three piston valves to regulate the pitch. their ability to uplift individuals and society, to control chaos, and to remember that they transmit culture and immortality. Sacred Stacks will draw many parallels between secular and sacred learning. For those who accept the paradigm, Sacred Stacks is an inspiration long awaited. For those who are uncomfortable with some of the author's premises, Sacred Stacks is still commanding readings. |
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