Despite the stodgy stereotypes, libraries and librarians themselves can be quite funny. The spectrum of library humor from sources inside and outside the profession ranges from the subtle wit of the New Yorker to the satire of Mad. This examination of American library humor over the past 200 years covers a wide range of topics and spans the continuum between light and dark, from parodies to portrayals of libraries and their staffs as objects of fear. It illuminates different types of librarians--the collector, the organization person, the keeper, the change agent--and explores stereotypes like the shushing little old lady with a bun, the male scholar-librarian, the library superhero, and the anti-stereotype of the sexy librarian. Profiles of the most prominent library humorists round out this lively study.

Popular American essayist, novelist, and journalist CHARLES DUDLEY WARNER (1829-1900) was renowned for the warmth and intimacy of his writing, which encompassed travelogue, biography and autobiography, fiction, and more, and influenced entire generations of his fellow writers. Here, the prolific writer turned editor for his final grand work, a splendid survey of global literature, classic and modern, and it's not too much to suggest that if his friend and colleague Mark Twain-who stole Warner's quip about how "everybody complains about the weather, but nobody does anything about it"-had assembled this set, it would still be hailed today as one of the great achievements of the book world. Highlights from Volume 12 include: . selections from Denis Diderot's Rameau's Nephew . Diogenes Laertius' writings on philosophers . political and cultural commentary from Isaac D'Israeli . excerpts from Mary Mapes Dodge's Hans Brinker . the poetry of John Donne . selections from Feodor Mikhailovitch Dostovsky's Crime and Punishment . the writings of Arthur Conan Doyle . the science philosophy of John Wiliam Draper . poems by Michael Drayton . travel writing by Henry Drummond . selections from the Dumas pre and fils . poems by William Dunbar . and much, much more.