The Library Book

In the “exquisitely written, consistently entertaining” (The New York Times) The Library Book, Orlean chronicles the Los Angeles Public Library fire and its aftermath to showcase the larger, crucial role that libraries play in our lives; delves into the evolution of libraries; brings each department of the library to vivid life; studies arson and a...show more

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336 pages

Average rating: 6.98

193 RATINGS

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3 REVIEWS

Community Reviews

Anonymous
Dec 04, 2023
8/10 stars
I regret not becoming a librarian. I love my library and after reading this book, I vow to visit more often!
Carol.Ann
Nov 16, 2023
8/10 stars
Fantastic narrative non-fiction. I thought this would be a book about the 1986 Los Angeles Central Library fire but it was so much more! I thought I loved libraries already but now I will never look at libraries and their communities in the same way. They are not merely places to checkout books but places that provide safe, dependable, irreplaceable community resources. I was blown away at how readable, interesting, and informative this book was....read more
E Clou
May 10, 2023
6/10 stars
There are some interesting parts, but it feels very meandering and overly long. I love books and libraries so I imagine I am the target audience. I was surprised not to love this book as much as I expected.

I liked that she wrote about Overdrive. I'm obsessed with borrowing ebooks and audiobooks from the library through Overdrive and hopefully, more people will know about it now thanks to her book.

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