Peter Hoare – författare

When E.M.Forster described Lawrence as the greatest imaginative novelist of his generation, his comment was a challenge to a world where Lawrence had notoriety but there was no agreement as to his literary standing. Now, nearly sixty years after Lawrence's death, the nature of his achievement is still being debated. Although Lawrence thought of himself as an English writer, his wide-ranging vision has aroused passionate interest in many countries beyond his own. It is in these two senses as a writer in the twentieth century, and as one with international standing - that this book presents Lawrence "in the modern world". He is seen from the viewpoint of the textual editor, the psychologist and the social historian. He is placed in the wide contexts of the puritan imagination, British society drama and the regional novel - there are studies of such stylistic issues as his characteristic narrative voices - and philosophical matters are touched on in an exploration of his concept of dualism. The essays, although the work of Lawrence enthusiasts, are not uniformly reverential in tone.There is a keen appreciation of those areas of Lawrence's work which have always made disturbing reading. All the authors are alive to the fundamentally exploratory nature of Lawrence's imagination, and his consequent failures as well as triumphs in both conception and achievement. Formerly editor of the "Newsletter" of the Lawrence Society, Peter Preston has published essays and reviews on Lawrence, Bennett and Dickens as well as on the history and practice of adult education. Peter Hoare is University Librarian at the University of Nottingham where his responsibilities include the major institutional collection of Lawrence manuscripts and books in Britain.

Since the mid-nineteenth century an unprecedented expansion and diversification of library activity has taken place. The Public Libraries Act of 1850 founded a tradition of public provision and service which continues today, and national and academic libraries have grown and multiplied. Libraries have become an industry rather than a localised phenomenon, and librarianship has developed from a scholarly craft to a scientific profession. The essays in this volume present a picture of great diversity, covering public, national, academic, subscription and private libraries. The users of libraries are an important part of their history and are considered here in detail, alongside the development of the library profession and the impact of new information technologies. The place of the library within society and the growth of a professional structure to manage new demands on information are the central concerns of this volume, which celebrates the diversity of the modern library world.

This is the first detailed scholarly history of libraries in Britain and Ireland, first published in 2006. It aims to provide a panorama of the great variety of libraries since the medieval period, setting them in their social and cultural contexts and interpreting their role as it has changed over time. Libraries of all kinds are included, from monastic libraries and other manuscript collections to the modern world of electronic information. Special attention is given to the purposes of libraries - in education, for professional use, for religious purposes and of course for leisure and general reading. Large libraries and small are covered, with examples from all over the British Isles of how needs have been met. Each volume includes an extensive bibliography of sources and secondary works.

Since the mid-nineteenth century an unprecedented expansion and diversification of library activity has taken place. The Public Libraries Act of 1850 founded a tradition of public provision and service which continues today, and national and academic libraries have grown and multiplied. Libraries have become an industry rather than a localised phenomenon, and librarianship has developed from a scholarly craft to a scientific profession. The essays in this volume present a picture of great diversity, covering public, national, academic, subscription and private libraries. The users of libraries are an important part of their history and are considered here in detail, alongside the development of the library profession and the impact of new information technologies. The place of the library within society and the growth of a professional structure to manage new demands on information are the central concerns of this volume, which celebrates the diversity of the modern library world.