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America's Greatest Library: An Illustrated History of the Library of Congress
Packed with fascinating facts, compelling images, and little-known nuggets of information, this new go-to illustrated guide to the history of the Library of Congress will appeal to history buffs and general readers alike. It distils over two hundred years of history into an engaging read that makes a Washington icon relevant today.
256 pages, Hardcover
Published January 2, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 21, 2018
Again, from what I think of as a coffee table book, I wanted fewer words and more pictures—both of the buildings and their treasures. I didn’t love the layout of this book as a super-detailed timeline; it often read as tedious minutiae.
March 30, 2018
Ah, I forgot I never closed this one out. My LJ review as follows (the online version is here, if anyone's interested in seeing it in context).
Like its subject, this title takes on several roles at once. Handsome, slightly oversize, with high production values and lavish photographs and illustrations, it could be taken for a coffee-table book. But this would do it a disservice, as Library of Congress historian Cole has compiled a thorough overview of the library’s history, with an exhaustive time line ranging from President John Adams’s 1800 act to appropriate $5,000 “for the purchase of such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress” to the 2016 swearing in of current Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, accompanied by well-written essays. The chronology offers detailed accounting of the institution’s construction, collection building, division development, staff, outreach, cataloging and computing innovations, and ever-expanding mission. The essays zero in on subjects and events such as the library’s role after John F. Kennedy’s assassination (providing emergency historical reference for presidential funerals and keeping its restrooms open all night for mourners), or a portrait of pioneering African American bibliographer Daniel Murray, who became a member of the library staff at 19 in 1871.
Like its subject, this title takes on several roles at once. Handsome, slightly oversize, with high production values and lavish photographs and illustrations, it could be taken for a coffee-table book. But this would do it a disservice, as Library of Congress historian Cole has compiled a thorough overview of the library’s history, with an exhaustive time line ranging from President John Adams’s 1800 act to appropriate $5,000 “for the purchase of such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress” to the 2016 swearing in of current Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, accompanied by well-written essays. The chronology offers detailed accounting of the institution’s construction, collection building, division development, staff, outreach, cataloging and computing innovations, and ever-expanding mission. The essays zero in on subjects and events such as the library’s role after John F. Kennedy’s assassination (providing emergency historical reference for presidential funerals and keeping its restrooms open all night for mourners), or a portrait of pioneering African American bibliographer Daniel Murray, who became a member of the library staff at 19 in 1871.
June 4, 2018
America's Greatest Library is hailed by it's subtitle to be "an illustrated history of the Library of Congress." And yes, there are some pictures, but not so many as you might be led to believe. Over each two-page spread there are only 1-2 pictures. I just expected the photo-to-text ratio to be quite a bit different, and would have loved to see many more pictures and much less text. It took me a long time to read this one! The text is formatted as a timeline, so it's always a date followed by 2-3 sentences, and there are about a dozen of these little timeline entries per page. Scattered throughout the book are nearly a dozen two-page essays about a particular point in the Library's history. I would have loved more of those and less timeline. Some of the timeline pieces seemed rather irrelevant or boring. (And this from a huge fan of all things biblionerd!) So overall, I think that this book had great potential and just fell a tad bit short of my expectations.
May 30, 2018
A stirring look at the origin and seismic growth of the LOC, made more evocative by my two weeks studying there in 2016.
November 21, 2025
The Library of Congress in Washington DC, across the street from the U. S. Capitol, is my favorite building in American. Built in 1897, this building's elaborately decorated facade and interior shows the influence of the French Renaissance in its grandeur with American painters and sculptors and artists of every kind providing colorful, dramatic and symbolic art. The Library of Congress has been called the book palace of the American people. This book is an illustrated history of the Library of Congress and is full of historic and current photos.
My favorite place is the Reading Room. The photos are incredible and the symbolic art in every window and archway is described. This is a beautiful book to own and look at again and again.
My favorite place is the Reading Room. The photos are incredible and the symbolic art in every window and archway is described. This is a beautiful book to own and look at again and again.
February 20, 2018
A lovely coffee table book. I don't know if the Library of Congress is the "greatest" library but it's a fantastic tourist stop in Washington, DC. It's free and open to explore (relatively speaking, obviously people do work there) with tours and exhibits. This book is a look at the history and background of the LOC.
The book is organized chronologically with dates and brief explanations of how the Library came about, what were the changes it has gone through, notable acquisitions and books, various facts and figures and more. There are pictures of the interior and exterior, drawings of what the LOC and surrounding area looked like before photographs, pictures of exhibits, notable people and more.
That's really all there is to it. It's mostly text with a few sentences dedicated to each year/date punctuated with pictures. There are occasional longer writings by various people but it's a mostly chronological look.
This is probably best as a gift for a bibliophile or someone who likes book-related books. I wish there were more pictures (I feel the ones in here don't quite do it justice) but then again it's a place best experienced in-person. If you can't go, though, and you're curious about the place, this seems like it'd be a pretty good resource.
I borrowed this from the library and that was right for me. Thumb through it if you're not sure.
The book is organized chronologically with dates and brief explanations of how the Library came about, what were the changes it has gone through, notable acquisitions and books, various facts and figures and more. There are pictures of the interior and exterior, drawings of what the LOC and surrounding area looked like before photographs, pictures of exhibits, notable people and more.
That's really all there is to it. It's mostly text with a few sentences dedicated to each year/date punctuated with pictures. There are occasional longer writings by various people but it's a mostly chronological look.
This is probably best as a gift for a bibliophile or someone who likes book-related books. I wish there were more pictures (I feel the ones in here don't quite do it justice) but then again it's a place best experienced in-person. If you can't go, though, and you're curious about the place, this seems like it'd be a pretty good resource.
I borrowed this from the library and that was right for me. Thumb through it if you're not sure.
July 25, 2019
I really want to know about the construction of the desk in the main reading room in greater detail but the book was pretty amazing anyways
May 5, 2022
A lovely (small-ish for a) coffee table book stuffed with beautiful pictures and fascinating information about America's greatest library; highly recommended for bibliophiles everywhere.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews