Fw: H-ASIA: Reducing a personal library - East Asian subjects (comment)

----- Original Message -----
From: "Monika Lehner" <monika.lehner@UNIVIE.AC.AT>
To: <H-ASIA@H-NET.MSU.EDU>
Sent: Tuesday, January 04, 2011 1:03 PM
Subject: H-ASIA: Reducing a personal library - East Asian subjects (comment)

> H-ASIA
> January 4, 2010
>
> Reducing a personal library - East Asian subjects (comment)
> ***********************************************************************
> From: Naomi Standen <naomi.standen@ncl.ac.uk>
>
> Ian Welch points out some of the undoubted and increasing problems
> attendant upon trying to dispose of individual scholarly book collections,
> but I hope that people in the position of selling off or donating private
> libraries will nevertheless not be put off from doing so. Those of us at
> institutions with no prior tradition in our fields are *extremely*
> grateful for the opportunity to begin collections or plug gaps that is
> represented by sales such as Professor McKnight's (from whose first batch
> of sales my own institution has benefitted greatly).
>
> It is obvious that such disposals give us access to material (old,
> out-of-print, obscure) that is otherwise extremely difficult, if not
> impossible, to get hold of, and which, if it is available commercially,
> tends to carry a prohibitive price (Ian's misfortune with trying to get a
> decent price for missionary items notwithstanding). It is true that your
> university library needs to be understanding, sensible and committed, but
> most librarians are glad to ally with academics who share the view that
> it's important to buy books, and especially so when money is short (and
> when is it ever not?) because evidence of demand helps the librarians
> argue for more budget. It tends to require goodwill, patience and
> determination, but the hurdles can be overcome.
>
> So please: those who are thinking of selling or donating, don't despair -
> if your first choice of destination proves unreceptive, be assured that
> there are others out there who would be only too glad to find ways to
> achieve a satisfactory outcome for all concerned.
>
> Naomi Standen (who has helped to start two East Asia collections from
> scratch, facilitated by marvellous librarians and generous senior
> colleagues)
> Newcastle University
> <naomi.standen@ncl.ac.uk>
>
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