Librarians have been raving about Marilyn Johnson's forthcoming This Book is Overdue: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All. Now Booklist is joining in--here's their full review.
This Book Is Overdue!: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All.
Johnson, Marilyn (Author)
Feb 2010. 288 p. Harper, hardcover, $24.99. (9780061431609). 020.92.
Contemporary librarians are morphing into undisputed masters of the information cosmos. An Internetsavvy, database-crunching cohort of multimedia manipulators passionately dedicated to empowering the data-deprived, they democratically distribute all the fruits of the emerging hypertext universe. Johnson’s paean to this new generation of librarians demolishes superannuated myths and stereotypes of fusty librarians filing catalog cards and collecting fines for overdue books, and replaces that with a vision of the profession’s future where librarians serve as guardians and guides to information in cyberspace. These rock-star librarians maneuver their way through a labyrinthine network of glowing computer-terminal screens to retrieve whatever answers patrons may seek. If that’s not high calling enough, librarians stand tall as superhero sentinels bravely beating back every assault on civil liberties and Constitutional government. Johnson offers portraits of American librarians, both institutional and freelance, already achieving fame as cybrarians and informationists, and she affirms and celebrates their conquests. Take that, Nicholson Baker!— Mark Knoblauch
Don't forget, you can read the first chapter here!
-Kayleigh
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