A very interesting book that instead of presenting you with something you already know takes you back behind the scenes. You are introduced to the warren of the Smithosonian and the various people who are the actual backbone whether it seems to be someone with a very interesting job or what we would call a secondary job or even what we may perceive as a job that is so boring that we wouldn't want to touch it even if we were paid for it. And as they say while it holds true it takes a village.

The whole idea for this book was risky in and of itself for as the author says there are so may people to talk to and one subject almost always leads to another. I can imagine the author had just as much problems as those that she talked to on what to add to her book, what to leave out and how to present it in a fashion for the reader so they are drawn into something that would seem like it may be extremely dry reading.

There were some job descriptions and some of the people that were presented that were dry and didn't catch my attention. These would have been the ones I would have skimmed if I was skimmer but then there were others who caught my attention even if I didn't think to be interested in that particular job description. It was fascinating to learn about the process, the evolution of the museum and the passion that fills the people behind the walls although I know the book is truly outdated.

I had just finished visiting the Science Center not even a week ago that we had here in town and was thinking about its presentation. I was comparing what I was reading to the other museums that I had been to whether personal-owned like the Arabia Steamboat Museum or the various zoos. Seeing how the atmosphere differed whether it was a small one-theme museum like the Molly Brown House or the massive yet always changing Denver Museum of Nature and Science. It is amazing to know you pass by a bunch of museum staff while your mind doesn't connect all the work with what you are presented with to learn.

The book is outdated and most likely several of the exhibits that were mentioned have been discontinued (I tried looking up the schoolroom one to get a view but couldn't find it), which is a shame. Yet even with its outdated information and the stories of those who may no longer work there it continues to teach us another lesson that for us to grow there must be change and that change isn't bad when it continues to teach us. This has been a treasured find for me.... ( )