A review by gracie_reads_everything
The Library: A Fragile History by Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen

4.0

Interesting and informative but, disappointingly, largely euro-centric. Even though there are initial references to the Library of Alexandria and other non-western institutions built up since ancient times in Asia, South America, and Africa, it stops there. The rest of the book is a great overview of Euro-American library history. Libraries in other countries are only mentioned as established by western imperialism. I would be interested to know more about how libraries as a concept existed and flourished in the east as well, but the references made to these tend to be glorifying in antiquity, yet dismissive in modernity. A good read but disappointing in regards to information beyond the scope of the Euro-American library systems.