The New York Public Library: The Turning Point; New York Review of Books, 10/25/12

Robert Darnton, New York Review of Books; The New York Public Library: The Turning Point: "Polemics rarely lead to happy endings. They usually produce hard feelings and a hardening of positions, rather than mutual understanding and mutually acceptable results. The loud debate about the Central Library Plan (CLP) of the New York Public Library may, however, be an exception to this rule—not that it has come to an end, but it has reached a turning point, which should satisfy both sides. Critics of the CLP were especially incensed about its provision to remove books from the seven levels of stacks under the Rose Main Reading Room and ship them to offsite storage in order to make room for a circulating library to be installed on the lower floors. They petitioned, they provoked a debate—some of it conducted in these pages [Letters, NYR, July 12]—and they were heard. After studying the problem further, a committee of the library’s trustees has made the following recommendations, which were accepted by the full board on September 19."