This premise of holding on to books regardless of their
popularity simply
follows one of what I consider the basic goals/givens of a
library: keeping
available a wide selection of an author's works for the next
generation of
readers, not just the current one (which may have bad taste).
A library's
stacks are an archive. Am I right, or simply naive?
Let's take a couple of fer instances from the local library
system (one
main location downtown, 6 to 8 branches scattered through the
county:
You can find nearly a full shelf of Elmore Leonard and Ed
McBain mysteries
in several locations, at least 5 or 6 of their titles at any
of the
branches. You'll find Crumley MAYBE at one branch plus the
main location
(and I'm betting only the main location -- further, I'll bet
even the main
location doesn't have THE LAST GOOD KISS). And you won't find
any of
Leonard's westerns -- only his crime and "mainstream"
novels.
You might find a couple of Cornell Woolrich's books at the
main location.
There may be a few Woolrich paperbacks scattered around the
branches, but
paperbacks traditionally get tossed out on a more frequent
basis than
hardbound books, so it's quite possible to check the system's
holdings and
find no Woolrich but the two old ragged hardbacks at the main
location.
If you'll allow me to step outside the hard-boiled arena,
we'll look at
Talbot Mundy. Very popular adventure writer during the 1920s
and '30s
(probably into the 1940s) with many books in print. Now
you'll find only
one copy of KING -- OF THE KHYBER RIFLES at the main branch.
A pulp fan
like me has to rely on a spotty interlibrary loan program or
my own pocket
book to read most of Mundy's work.
Most libraries seem to rely on current or recent bestsellers
for stocking
their shelves. Most of the branches in the local system won't
even have a
copy of a recognized classic by someone like Henry James or
Joseph Conrad,
much less works by authors like Hammet or Chandler.
So, I raise my cup to Ann Theis, our cranky but wise
librarian. -- Duane
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