An examination of Richardson's small public libraries that places them in the design, cultural, political, and economic contexts of their times.

Aligning with recent news stories on difficult economic times, the authors target libraries endeavoring to assist users entering or already involved in the small business community. Small Business and the Public Library will help you reach out to this group of patrons with innovative programming ideas; easy to translate suggestions into day-to-day operations; and suggestions to helping clients become business literate on the Web, on paper, and out in the world of work. Whether patrons need resources to start their own business, search for a new job, or locate demographic statistics to help them market their existing product, this resource will help you answer questions and meet their needs.

How can a small library with a few (or even one) staff members and very limited resources be managed successfully? Learn the issues facing all types of small libraries.

"[Herbert] Landau, a seasoned marketer, applied his three decades of corporate marketing experience to save a small library faced with funding cuts. His customer-centric approaches brought in resources, volunteers, and in-kind donations and earned the library local and national awards"--Cover.

Experience the uplifting, "unforgettable" New York Times bestseller about an abandoned kitten named Dewey, whose life in a library won over a farming town and the world -- with over 2 million copies sold! (Booklist) Dewey's story starts in the worst possible way. On the coldest night of the year in Spencer, Iowa, at only a few weeks old--a critical age for kittens--he was stuffed into the return book slot of the Spencer Public Library. He was found the next morning by library director Vicki Myron, a single mother who had survived the loss of her family farm, a breast cancer scare, and an alcoholic husband. Dewey won her heart, and the hearts of the staff, by pulling himself up and hobbling on frostbitten feet to nudge each of them in a gesture of thanks and love. For the next nineteen years, he never stopped charming the people of Spencer with his enthusiasm, warmth, humility (for a cat), and, above all, his sixth sense about who needed him most. As his fame grew from town to town, then state to state and finally, amazingly, worldwide, Dewey became more than just a friend; he became a source of pride for an extraordinary Heartland farming community slowly working its way back from the greatest crisis in its long history.

A gorgeous visual celebration of America's public libraries including 150 photos, plus essays by Bill Moyers, Ann Patchett, Anne Lamott, Amy Tan, Barbara Kingsolver, and many more. Many of us have vivid recollections of childhood visits to a public library: the unmistakable musty scent, the excitement of checking out a stack of newly discovered books. Today, the more than 17,000 libraries in America also function as de facto community centers offering free access to the internet, job-hunting assistance, or a warm place to take shelter. And yet, across the country, cities large and small are closing public libraries or curtailing their hours of operation. Over the last eighteen years, photographer Robert Dawson has crisscrossed the country documenting hundreds of these endangered institutions. The Public Library presents a wide selection of Dawson's photographs— from the majestic reading room at the New York Public Library to Allensworth, California's one-room Tulare County Free Library built by former slaves. Accompanying Dawson's revealing photographs are essays, letters, and poetry by some of America's most celebrated writers. A foreword by Bill Moyers and an afterword by Ann Patchett bookend this important survey of a treasured American institution.

Creative Management of Small Public Libraries in the 21st Century is an anthology on small public libraries as centers of communities serving populations under 25,000. The book details strategies and methods for providing top-notch customer service while moving beyond customer...