February 2013 Luncheon Meeting

Speaker: Michael Gorman

“Shelving Dewey's Marvelous Scheme?”

Passions are inflamed in the library world on how best to organize books in public libraries. For example, the Frankfort (Illinois) Public Library recently spent $25,000 and 18 months switching from the Dewey Decimal System to a system resembling that used by Barnes and Noble. Who better to address this subject than Caxtonian Michael Gorman, a former President of the American Library Association? Come and also hear about Melvil Dewey himself, a brilliant but complicated man. Don’t miss the story of the 2003 lawsuit filed against the elegant Library Hotel in downtown New York City, a lawsuit directly related to the Dewey Decimal System! Before the afternoon is over, Michael will give his decided opinion on how library books should be organized and just where the library is headed in our increasingly digital age. He is University Librarian Emeritus, California State University, Fresno; he’s previously been Director of the University of Illinois Library and has held prior appointments in the U.K. Michael is also an author, a teacher, and the recipient of many library-centered awards.

Union League Club, 65 W. Jackson Boulevard. Luncheon buffet (in the main dining room on six) opens at 11:30 am; program (in a different room, to be announced) 12:30-1:30