As someone who found my beloved profession the first time I entered a library, this is highly recommended. Although I know there are those who do not cherish libraries, who do not read, who do not think, I also know that without books, our civilization would be seriously harmed. For years now, people have foreseen the end of books, but I'm thrilled how many new books are still being published in many formats daily.

FROM AMAZON: "I have found just the work for me, for I love it more all the time." Thus wrote one of several hundred professionally trained women who carried the gospel of books and libraries throughout the West during the early twentieth century. Pioneers in a profession, they regarded the West as a fertile field for their cultural crusade which included establishing traveling libraries in rural areas, participating in community-building activities, and professionalizing existing public and academic libraries and as a place where they could develop as independent women.

Passet uses extensive archival material to provide a picture of the women librarians' experiences. She explores their education, family relationships, degree of autonomy, and reactions to the West. Her account is enlivened throughout by the words of the women themselves. It is further enriched by brief biographies of four women exemplifying the combination of personal and professional goals that motivated many women librarians to move west.

Please note - librarians aren't just women - there are many men who find it just as wonderful as do I. ( )

a great look at women's role in the history of libraries and librarianship ( )

Even though it seems as though this book covers a very small period of time, the librarians and issues of this era shaped today's libraries. I was also struck by how the problems and values of 100 years ago still resonate today. ( )