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British Library Newspapers AND Books



Couldn't help but notice the following item in Peter's latest RAIN posting.

Can't wait to see what Nicholson Baker (and this list) make of this second
weeding/discard policy at one of the world's largest library collections.

Erik Nordberg
Michigan Tech

>British Library junks 80,000 books
>http://www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,353004,00.html
>
>John Ezard
>The British Library has thrown out up to 80,000 books in a change of policy
>which has brought to an end its 338-year- old role of collecting every
>volume published in Britain.

A report said the steeply rising number of books published meant that the
time-honoured policy of storing each one would put an ever-increasing cash
burden on the BL and imperil the quality of its collections.

Mr Cheffins explained that discarding of low use books began soon after the
report was accepted.

"Decisions on a case-by-case basis were made by comparatively junior grade
professional staff.

"I am given to understand that, over a couple of years, some 2km of stock
in all - about 70,000-80,000 volumes - were withdrawn", he told Mr Armstrong.

"The space thus freed was filled within a few months with the growth of new
stock... You are obviously disturbed that any material, once part of our
collections, should have been discarded.

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