An occasional feature, "Law Library Staff Recommend..." highlights books that Law Library staff members have read for enjoyment and now recommend that others consider for inclusion on their own reading lists. If you have any comments or questions about any of the titles presented in this feature, feel free to email lawlib@umn.edu or stop by the library. Today we highlight No Brief Candle: Reconceiving Research Libraries for the 21st Century by the Council on Library & Information Resources (CLIR Publication No. 142, 2008). Call number: Wilson Library Quarto Z675.R45 N53 2008 Available online: http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub142/pub142.pdf
“Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got a hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it onto future generations.” –George Bernard Shaw
This report focused on the need for change in research libraries, a call for collaboration between information workers (librarians, administrators, faculty, and information technology experts), and a strategic approach to keeping up with the research needs of library users. Especially appreciated was the chapter on “Groundskeepers, Gatekeepers, and Guides: How to Change Faculty Perceptions of Librarians and Ensure the Future of the Research Library” which called for more collaboration between librarians and faculty, yet recognized that there is often a misunderstanding about the role of the library and librarian among university administration and sometimes faculty. The author goes on to call for curricular changes that are especially designed for assisting future academic librarians maintain the rigorous scholarship needed to succeed in research libraries, while proposing ways research libraries can stimulate their hiring and development of librarians who can reach out to faculty and “harness, guide, preserve, and complement the knowledge produced by the scholars, teachers, and students who use the collection.”
