Three essays: "On Being Well Read in an Age of Information Overload;" "Rings of Knowledge: Another Way of Seeing the Library;" and "On Being Worthy of the Name." A librarian's guide for the perplexed. Short but potent.

Reading the Map of Knowledge: The Art of Being a Librarian

Literature & Fiction

Briscoe, Peter

History & Criticism

Palo Verde Pr

Review\n"This intimate and moving short story collection offers quick glimpses into the lives of several characters, mostly older men who are attempting to reconcile the growing incongruity between their desires and their reality. The gripping title story—more of a novella—draws on Briscoe's 30 years of experience as a university librarian to explore what will become of the world's libraries as we hurtle towards an increasingly digital future. The additional stories rounding out the collection are much shorter than his title work, but still insightful—similar to meditative vignettes. Great for fans of Haruki Murakami's Men Without Women."—Publishers Weekly BookLife Reviews\nSECOND ENLARGED EDITION. Five stories about professors, students, librarians, booksellers, and early scientific explorers-all living literately, on journeys of the mind. The first story, "One of Our Stars," is about a professor so engrossed in difficult studies that even a blatant sexual invitation (accepted) merely distracts him. He concentrates with the mental force of a chess grandmaster, a zen roshi, or a musical virtuoso. The next story about a female college student is set in a Colombian jungle. The third story portrays a once formidable professor coming to terms with retirement, old age, and approaching death. The fourth (title) story, novella length, takes place in an Ecuadorian library that is experiencing rampant theft. A place where some men steal books while others wonder why they bother. A literary, intellectual mystery that explores the library as a profound idea while the world rushes into a digital, post-literate future. The fifth story explores the evolving status of a beautiful young female scholar who each year attends a Latin American Librarians Conference.\nFrom the Author\nPeter Briscoe for more than 30 years built library collections at two universities. A specialist in collection development, book acquisitions, special collections, and preservation, he directed efforts that led to the purchase or donation of 1.5 million volumes from all over the world on nearly all subjects. He is Associate University Librarian Emeritus at the University of California, Riverside, and the author or co-author of five books.

The Bookseller: Stories

World Literature

Palo Verde Press

Michael Ashe, an antiquarian bookseller in Los Angeles, suddenly finds his business in decline. Even librarians have turned their backs on books, while pouring money into electronic resources. But Ashe refuses to admit defeat: he continues the hunt for rare tomes in Mexico City and Paris, while struggling with his loneliness and searching for a woman to love. Then he learns the startling story of "the best read man in France." This epiphany leads him into a public battle to save the life of the book itself. 
 This cautionary tale about the demise of the printed book, the decline of reading, and the conflict of print and digital culture, represents a progress report on our drift toward the chilling world of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. Read it while you still can--before more books are "disappeared"!

The Best Read Man in France: A Cautionary Tale

Literary

Borgo Pr

Michael Ashe, an antiquarian bookseller in Los Angeles, suddenly finds his business in decline. Even librarians have turned their backs on books, while pouring money into electronic resources. But Ashe refuses to admit defeat: he continues the hunt for rare tomes in Mexico City and Paris, while struggling with his loneliness and searching for a woman to love. Then he learns the startling story of “the best-read man in France.” This epiphany leads him into a public battle to save the life of the book itself. This cautionary tale about the demise of the printed book, the decline of reading, and the conflict of print and digital culture, represents a progress report on our drift toward the chilling world of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. Read it while you still can—before more books are “disappeared!” Revised edition.

The Best-Read Man in France: A Cautionary Tale, Revised Edition

Crafts, Hobbies & Home

Antiques & Collectibles

Borgo Press

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Books by Briscoe, Peter