The Paradox of War: Destruction and the Rise of Reading

Authors Andrew Pettegree and Arthur der Weduwen join historian Abby Smith Rumsey to discuss their acclaimed book The Library: A Fragile History—a sweeping exploration of how libraries have been built, destroyed, cherished, and reinvented over the centuries. From ancient archives to modern public libraries, they trace the people, politics, and passions behind the world’s great collections, and reflect on the enduring—and vulnerable—idea of the library itself.

This conversation was recorded on 7/20/2022. Watch the full video recording at: https://archive.org/details/the-library-a-fragile-history

Check out all of the Future Knowledge episodes at https://archive.org/details/future-knowledge