Customer Reviews

A Free Library in This City: The Illustrated History of the San Francisco Public Library

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I picked up this book at my library because I am interested in the history of public libraries in the United States. This book offers a general history of libraries, from ancient cultures up through the origins of American public libraries. I found this book is very informative and I think the editors did a very good job on compiling the photos and illustrations. I like this book. However I found there is a mistake on Page 40. On this page there is an illustration about papermaking in Far East in the ancient time. The caption indicates that it is an illustration of early Chinese papermaking. Unfortunatle it is completely wrong. The characters/languages in the illustration are NOT wriiten in Chinese, but in Japanese. Also the clothing of the man in the illustration apparently is not in Chinese style--he is wearing a men's style kimono. I am not very disappointed when I notice the mistake. I believe that one incorrect illustration won't degrade the value of the book. And, I really enjoy this book. It is not only a "coffee-table" book, but also a very good reference book!