College and Research Libraries


322 I College & Research Libraries • July 1971 

ing some of the hard struggles the library 
went through. Since the library has appar-
ently succeeded so well in spite of the foi-
bles of many important figures, perhaps it 
is just as well to let them sleep a while yet. 

Though the print is poor and it is difficult 
to keep the continuity of people and peri-
ods, it is obviously a very useful work. The 
material is well documented and an excel-
lent index enables the reader to locate most 
any subject that comes to mind. The two-
part bibliography (one relating to the Unit-
ed Nations and one to the League of Na-
tions) is not only very useful in this work, 
but will continue to serve future investiga-
tors for some time. Even the notes will be 
very useful in this respect.-R. Max Wil-
locks, Syracuse University Libraty. 

The Black Librarian in America. E. J. Jo-
sey, ed. Metuchen, N.J.: The Scarecrow 
Press, Inc., 1970. 336p. 
The Black Librarian in America is a col-

lection of biographical essays by a group 
of outstanding librarians who happen to be 
black. Josey has picked the cream of the 
crop of black librarians to reveal their ex-
periences during their professional careers 
as librarians. His criteria for selecting his 
contributors are not spelled out in the intro-
duction or other parts of the book, but I 
dare say anyone can dispute the fact that 
these are some of the most prominent peo-
ple in the field. These are the people who 
have made librarianship mean something 
to black people. 

The book could have been titled 
Black Librarians and Racism in America. 
Throughout the work there is some account 
of the difficulty these librarians encountered 
because they were black, as well as descrip-
tions of difficulties in their professional ed-
ucation, in providing library services, and 
in employment opportunities. A careful 
reading of the book should prompt some 
genuine soul-searching on the part of the 
profession. It could be used as a measuring 
stick in judging whether or not there has 
been any appreciable progress made in the 
field as it relates to blacks. 

Though many of the autobiographies are 
self-laudatory, one can readily see the de-
termination that these librarians had even 

with the odds against them at times. It was 
interesting to note that several librarians 
were encouraging young blacks to seek a 
future in librarianship in spite of the diffi-
culties. Virginia Jones' encouragement by 
Florence Curtis and Emily Copeland's by 
Hallie Beachem Brooks are prime exam-
ples of the dedication and love these peo-
ple had for the profession. 

Josey's book gives a cross-sectional view 
of the experiences of black librarians. The 
inclusion of two or more younger contribu-
tors would have given the book more of a 
balance of experience by black librarians. 
Perhaps the contributors could have devot-
ed more space to the reasons why they 
chose librarianship as their life's work and 
how they entered the field. In some cases 
a few of the librarians made a few casual 
remarks as to what motivated them to pur-
sue a career in librarianship. 

The Black Librarian in America could 
well be the beginning of a series of auto-
biographies of black professionals in Amer-
ica. It is a very timely collection of essays 
from a group of professionals who have 
paid and are still paying their dues to the 
profession and their people.-H arry Robin-
son, ft., Prairie View A. & M. College. 

Student Activism in American Higher 
Education. Frank L. Ellsworth and Mar-
tha A. Bums. Washington: American 
College Personnel Association, 1970. 
(Student Personnel Series, no. 10.) 64p. 
$2.50. 
This publication is one of the "Student 

Personnel Series" of monographs published, 
appropriately enough, by the American 
College Personnel Association. Although 
there is no descriptive subtitle to so indi-
cate, the monograph is a review of the basic 
literature published through 1969 on stu-
dent activism. It includes journalistic ac-
counts of a few 1968 and 1969 events, but 
most of the research works included are 
based upon occurrences in 1967 and earlier. 

Of the three chapters, the first reviews 
the literature pertaining to the history of 
student activism in American institutions 
of higher education. The chapter empha-
sizes the emergence of social awareness, 
black consciousness, and the rise of the Stu-



dents for a Democratic Society. Psycholog-
ical and sociological studies dominate the 
second chapter, which investigates the 
causes of student activism. The literature 
selected suggests the various roles played 
by institutional structures and social factors. 
An excellent section of the chapter exam-
ines the role played by the mass media in 
projecting a public image of contemporary 
campus life. The final chapter covers publi-
cations which present philosophical and ad-
ministrative approaches to problems of stu-
dent activism. 

The authors have selected a broad range 
of literature for their work. They include 
journalistic, on the spot accounts of specific 
episodes of activism. A little less along the 
journalistic line are published interviews 
with and statements by administrative, fac-
ulty, and student leaders. Also included are 
research studies by highly respected schol-
ars in various disciplines. 

vVhen reading reviews of the literature, 
this reviewer often questions whether the 
author really has a creative scholar's feel 
and understanding of the topic. Ellsworth 
and Burns do seem to be on familiar ground 
and they comfortably handle the material 
in a readable fashion. Their work is com-
prehensive, seemingly objective, and rea-
sonably selective. Perhaps their efforts 
would have more utility if the authors had 
ventured to construct in graphic, or other 
form , proposed models based upon the 
studies reviewed which might channel stu-
dent activism along manageable and con-
structive lines. 

The monograph concludes with a lengthy 
and excellent selected bibliography of 
books, scholarly and journalistic articles, 
government documents, U.S. Supreme 
Court decisions, and commission reports. 
Appended to the bibliography is a useful 
listing of "Related Psychological Studies." 

Unfortunately, some of the best sources 
appear only in the bibliography and are not 
discussed in the text, whereas the text relies 
rath er heavily upon .sources which are per-
haps more current, but which are not as re-
liable and which are of less enduring value. 
Thus, many of the sources which appear 
to offer the most promising suggestions to 
the campus community are relegated to a 
mere listing in a lengthy bibliography, 

Recent Publications I 323 

whereas portions of many journalistic and 
other descriptive reports are presented at 
some length in the text. The authors are 
careful to avoid an overdependence upon 
quoting directly from their sources. How-
ever, they frequently fail to cite the page 
number from which a quotation was taken. 

This monograph successfully gives the 
reader an overview of student activism and 
then proceeds to direct him in an informed 
manner to the major sources in the field. It 
is recommended for institutions of higher 
education, behavioral science research cen-
ters, and larger public libraries.-Willis M. 
Hubbard, Eureka College, Eureka, Illinois. 

The Librarian Speaking: Interviews with 
University Librarians. Guy R. Lyle. 
Athens: The University of Georgia Press, 
1970. 206p. 
Guy Lyle, librarian at Emory University, 

presents to the profession the informed 
opinions of a number of generally respected 
librarians on the "persistent and critical 
problems of university librarianship in the 
United States in the 1960's"-no small 
chore. He recognizes that interviews have 
their limitations, as indeed they do, but if 
that device does not put the reader off, he 
will find this book of considerable interest. 
It should be recommended to young librari-
ans, who, alas, like the young everywhere, 
have little knowledge, less experience, and 
no concept of history. The librarians inter-
viewed were selected on a "purely arbi-
trary" basis. 

The age range of the librarians ranges 
from forty to sixty-eight with the average 
age fifty-seven, and the median age sixty. 
Only four of the sixteen are under fifty. 
The Messrs. Downs, Logsdon, Rogers, and 
Vosper are here, as are Kaser, Eldred Smith 
(the youngest man interviewed), Dix, Tau-
ber, and others. To disprove that he's a 
male chauvinist pig, Lyle has included 
Ruth Walling, his own respected colleague. 
(Women may, and probably will, be able 
to make something of the inclusion of only 
one female.) It is always tempting to criti-
cize the author for not writing a book other 
than the one he has, and this age issue may 
not be very important, so rather than do the 
former and stress the latter, this reviewer 
will but lament the fact that only one li-
brarian educated after the second German