USF SLIS: East Coast Connection

I have to admit to being what the annoyed librarian pejoratively calls a twopointopian. I believe that the library is in the midst of an exciting, transitional period. In large part due to new technologies, the library is being redefined as a space, and as a concept. I love this environment of change and experimentation, and I think it is healthy and necessary, but I think it is important incorporate some of the older library traditions into this new library world.

I led my first book discussion the other day. We read The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman. We had a group of about a dozen people, about half of which read the book all the way through, and the rest read enough of it to know what we were talking about. Now, it might have something to do with the controversial nature of the book, but we had a lively discussion about the book, current events, the election, environmentalism, and much more. The book discussion has been a staple of libraries for some time now, and for good reason. I think it is a perfect example of how in many ways the library of the 21st C. won't be that different from the library of the 20th. It is still a place where people come to feed off the ideas of others, digest them, incorporate them into their own, and discuss the changes in their mindset that occurred from this process. I'll just be sure to record the next one, so I can upload it onto youtube.