Biblioteket : berättelsen om en brand, en stad och kärleken till böcker

Chad Nelson reviewed The Library Book by Susan Orlean

Interesting history of the LA public Library

4 stars

Part history of a calamitous fire, part true crime investigation, with sprinkles of snapshots into the life of current public library workers and those of the past.

I enjoyed this book, though not really for what it was supposed to be. I feel like the investigation into the cause of the fire fizzled out quickly, a sort of non-story with no satisfying conclusion.

But the snapshots of the lives of previous and current library staff was absolutely delightful. Some real strong characters in the libraries history who really shine in this book.

Overall, interesting and enjoyable.

debby_joyblue reviewed The Library Book by Susan Orlean

Review of 'The Library Book' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I'm torn as to how to rate this book. So, I'll give it a noncommittal, average 3. I may reduce that upon further reflection (I'm quite sure I won't increase). The parts I liked, I liked very much; I just didn't love the overall effect.

If you know me, you know how very much in love with reading, books, and libraries I am. If you don't know me, I don't remember a time that I didn't read and visit a library at least once a week. I'm always reading. I'm currently a public library trustee.

I didn't know, going in, that the book was supposed to be centered on the 1986 Los Angeles Public Library fire [You had me at "library."]; so it didn't bother me, necessarily, that Orlean also writes about libraries/library history in general and LAPL history specifically. However, I tend to agree with others that Orlean should …

I'm torn as to how to rate this book. So, I'll give it a noncommittal, average 3. I may reduce that upon further reflection (I'm quite sure I won't increase). The parts I liked, I liked very much; I just didn't love the overall effect.

If you know me, you know how very much in love with reading, books, and libraries I am. If you don't know me, I don't remember a time that I didn't read and visit a library at least once a week. I'm always reading. I'm currently a public library trustee.

I didn't know, going in, that the book was supposed to be centered on the 1986 Los Angeles Public Library fire [You had me at "library."]; so it didn't bother me, necessarily, that Orlean also writes about libraries/library history in general and LAPL history specifically. However, I tend to agree with others that Orlean should have picked a topic and stuck with it. Like other reviewers, I found the book to be ridiculously disjointed.

Out of 25 bookmarks I made, only two related to the fire (8%). I've read several books about libraries that were more compelling than this one; so, I could have skipped this altogether.

Knowing how subjective reading is, I rarely discourage anyone from reading whatever they want. If you're psyched by the hype around this book, read it! I hope you enjoy it thoroughly.

Joel A

rated it

Jan. 19, 2019

PedalHoppy

rated it

Feb. 28, 2022

reader_jwd

rated it

Oct. 21, 2021