Drawing upon data published in a variety of scholarly journals, monographs in education, cultural studies, media studies, and libraries and information studies, as well as their own research findings, these authors shatter some of the popular myths about reading and offer a cogent case for the library's vital role in the life of a reader. By providing a road map to research findings on reading, reader-response, audiences, genres, the value of popular culture, the social nature of reading, and the role of libraries in promoting literacy and reading, this guide offers a clear rationale for making pleasure reading a priority in the library and in schools.
The authors assert that reading for pleasure is as vital as ever; and that it is, and should be, woven into the majority of activities librarians consider fundamental: reference, collection building, provision of leisure materials, readers' advisory services, storytelling programs, adult literacy programs, and the like. Reading Matters covers myths about reading, the boy problem, reading and identity, how readers select books, and reading as a social activity. An essential resource for library administrators and personnel, the book will help them convey a message about the importance of reading to grant-funding agencies and others. It contains powerful proof that can be used to justify the establishment, maintenance, and growth of fiction (and other pleasure reading) collections, and of readers' advisory services. It is also of interest to LIS faculty who wish to establish/maintain courses in readers' advisory, and can be used as supplemental reading in these classes. Finally, it is a great model and aide for additional research on this topic.
Lynne (E.F.) McKechnie is professor emerita in the Faculty of Information & Media Studies at the University of Western Ontario, Canada, where she earned her PhD. She is an award-winning author who has co-edited and co-authored several books, including
Reading Still Matters: What the Research Reveals about Reading, Libraries and Community (Libraries Unlimited, 2018), and
Reading Matters (Libraries Unlimited, 2006). She has published in many journals, including the
Canadian Journal of Information & Library Science,
Children and Libraries, and
JASIST.
Catherine Sheldrick Ross, PhD, is professor emeritus of Library and Information Science at Western University, Ontario, Canada.
Paulette M. Rothbauer is an associate professor in the Faculty of Information & Media Studies at the University of Western Ontario, Canada, where she earned her PhD. She is co-author of
Reading Still Matters: What the Research Reveals about Reading, Libraries and Community (Libraries Unlimited, 2018),
Reading Matters (Libraries Unlimited, 2006), and co-editor of
Plotting the Reading Experience: Theory/Practice/Politics (2016). She has published in journals including
The Journal of Documentation, Library & Information Science Research and
The Library Quarterly.
