Balanced Libraries: Thoughts on Continuity and Change

A library system that stands still is unbalanced and headed for trouble. A library staff obsessed with Hot New Things and aiming for new users at the expense of familiar services and existing patrons is unbalanced and headed for trouble. Very few libraries fall into either extreme, but sometimes it seems as though we’re urged toward one extreme. This book grew, indirectly, out of discussions surrounding and emanating from “Library 2.0”—the ideas, the set of initiatives and the term itself. I believe those discussions have shifted toward more balanced approaches. This book aims to develop and continue those discussions. It is divided into three sections, not including the first and last two chapters. Three chapters discuss the library and its community. Four chapters discuss barriers to change. The remainder of the book discusses positive aspects of change.