The Future of Reading and Academic Libraries

Abstract

The e-book is raising fundamental questions around the dynamics and habits of reading; the role of books in the academic library; and the role of librarians in addressing new realities of reading and learning. Print and digital texts foster different styles of reading and different ways of thinking and doing research. This paper examines implications of the shift from print to digital reading and how academic libraries in particular should respond. Academic libraries should treat print and electronic books as complementary, not interchangeable, and commit themselves to maintaining hybrid collections that support the full range of learning and research styles. Copyright © 2015 by Johns Hopkins University Press. This article first appeared in PORTAL: LIBRARIES AND THE ACADEMY, vol. 15, no. 1 (January 2015) pages 5-27.