The library lives

Laurie Taylor provides his usual incisive perspective on current issues in higher education by poking gentle fun at the changing roles of academic librarians (“The Dewey, Dewey Fog”, The Poppletonian, 11 June). But I’m pleased to report that here at the University of Lincoln, and I’m sure in the academic library community as a whole, the old-school concept of reader service is alive and well. Indeed, we put a lot of effort into offering all our users access to expert, well-trained librarians who have a real understanding and affinity for the subjects that they support. Although we may sometimes succumb to the tendency to obscure with jargon, as suggested in the article, academic libraries remain places where students are supported to expand their knowledge through access to the ideas of others, whether in print or electronically.

Ian Snowley
University librarian, University of Lincoln