Where Are the Books?

By Michael S. Rosenwald

Where Are the Books?

By Michael S. Rosenwald

The hallmark of public libraries—the printed book, bound by covers and centuries of page-turning—is being shoved aside by digital doppelgangers.

[2] Around the country, libraries are slashing their print collections in favor of e-books, prompting battles between library systems and print purists1print purist指堅持主張以紙張為媒介、用油墨印刷出版傳統圖書的人。, including not only the prepixel generation but digital natives who represent a sizable portion of the 1.5 billion library visits a year and prefer print for serious reading.

[3] Some of the clashes have been heated. In New York, protesters outside the city’s main branch have shouted:“Save the stacks! Save the stacks!” In Northern Virginia, the Fairfax County library system chief mused that the Friends of the Library were no longer friends—a feud fueled by outrage over a print collection that has shrunk by more than 300,000 books since 2009.The drop in the District is even more dramatic: Nearly 1 million books have vanished since 2009.

公共圖書館的標志——離不開封面包裹、千百年來一頁頁翻閱的紙質書——正被電子書幽靈推到一邊。

[2]在美國各地，圖書館因對電子書青睞有加而削減紙質書的收藏，此舉加劇了圖書館和紙質書純粹主義者的對抗。這些紙質書純粹主義者中，不僅有出生于像素時代前的人，也有出生于數字時代的。他們占了圖書館每年15億次訪問總量中的很大一部分，都更喜歡在嚴肅閱讀時使用紙質書。

[3]一些沖突已經愈演愈烈。在紐約，抗議者就在圖書館主要分館前大叫：“拯救書架！拯救書架！”在北弗吉尼亞，費爾法克斯縣圖書館負責人說，圖書館之友不再友好了——2009年以來，印刷版藏書減少了30多萬冊，這一情況引起的公憤加劇了原本就有的不和。哥倫比亞特區紙質書的下降更加明顯：2009年以來，消失了將近100萬冊。

“To say Gutenberg2谷登堡，德國活版印刷發明人。此處代指傳統印刷出版的紙質書。’s days are over is a terrible mistake,” said Dennis Hays, a former U.S. ambassador and chairman of Fairfax Library Advocates, a group of residents at war with library officials.“Nothing can take the place of a book.”

[4] Librarians are feeling the heat.

“We’re caught between two worlds,”said Darrell Batson, director of the Frederick County Public Libraries system in Maryland, where the print collection has fallen 20 percent since 2009. “But libraries have to evolve or die. We’re probably the classic example of Darwinism.”

[5] The evolution of information flow has forced their hands, librarians say. Just as books advanced from slabs of parchment to paperbacks, they are transforming again, from paper to pixels3pixel像素。此處代指以數字化形式出版的電子書。. With Plato only a download away, libraries have lost their monopoly on knowledge.

[6] In evolving, librarians are steering tight acquisition budgets to e-books, which are more expensive than print because, among other reasons, publishers fear large databases of free e-books will hurt their business. E-book spending has grown from 1 percent of library budgets to 7 percent, according to a Library Journal survey. One library in San Antonio went much further, opening a bookless, all-digital branch called BiblioTech.

“說什么紙質書的時代結束了，簡直荒謬透頂。”美國前大使、費爾法克斯圖書館擁躉協會主席丹尼斯·海斯說，“沒有任何東西能替代書籍。”該協會由當地居民組成，與圖書館系統的官員爭吵不休。

[4]圖書館工作人員感受到論爭的白熱化。

“我們夾在兩個世界之間。”馬里蘭州弗雷德里克縣公共圖書館總監達內爾·巴特森說，“但是圖書館不進步便消亡。很可能我們就是達爾文進化論的范例。”馬里蘭公共圖書館的藏書自2009年以來已經下降了20%。

[5]圖書館工作人員說，信息流動方式的演進逼迫他們改變。正如厚厚一沓的羊皮書發展為紙面平裝書，圖書如今再次改進，從紙變身像素。讀者和柏拉圖之間不過是一次下載的距離，圖書館因此喪失了對知識的壟斷地位。

[6]在圖書館演進過程中，工作人員嚴格控制電子書的購買預算。電子書比紙質書貴得多，其中一個原因就是出版商害怕龐大的免費電子書數據庫會讓他們虧損。根據《圖書期刊》的一項調查，購買電子書的費用已經從圖書館預算的1%上升到7%。圣安東尼奧的一家圖書館在革新之路上走得更遠，它開設了名為“文獻技術”的全數字化無紙分館。

[7] Meanwhile, print book budgets are slipping fast—from 67 percent of acquisitions in 2008 to 59 percent in 2015—with reference titles bearing the biggest cuts so far. Asked why, Batson turned to his computer, opened his browser and typed www.google.com.“That’s why,” he said.

[8] With the newfound physical space, libraries are adding rooms for community meetings, hacker spaces with 3-D printers, and entrepreneur centers to help small businesses. Libraries in the District and in Silver Spring4地名，位于美國馬里蘭州蒙哥馬利縣。have genius bars5genius bar源自蘋果零售店為用戶提供技術支持的地方。此處指圖書館為通過電子設備閱讀的讀者專設的服務區域。to help patrons with devices.

[9] In the process, centuries-old library traditions have been abandoned.

[10] The branch renovations in the region have grouped fiction and nonfiction titles together. There is a lot less shushing: Instead of discouraging noise throughout the stacks, libraries now set aside special areas for quiet contemplation. Want to bring your lunch? No problem.

[7]與此同時，紙質書的預算在快速下降——從2008年的67%下降為2015年的59%，各類參考書是迄今下降最大的品類。當被問到個中緣由時，巴特森轉向他的電腦，打開瀏覽器，輸入谷歌網址，說了句：“這就是為什么。”

[8]圖書館有了新的空間，于是開始增添社區聚會場所、配有3D打印機的創客空間，以及幫助小企業發展的企業家中心。哥倫比亞特區和銀泉的圖書館還設有天才吧，方便使用電子設備的借閱者。

[9]在此過程中，幾個世紀以來的圖書館傳統已經被遺棄。

[10]該地區分館創新性地將虛構類和非虛構類書目歸為一組。設立了許多無需噓聲說話的區域：圖書館現在不阻止讀者閱讀時發出噪聲，而是辟出專門的區域供靜思冥想。想要帶上午餐？沒問題。

[11] To library futurists6指贊成圖書館未來向數字化方向發展的人。, this is progress.

“For a lot of people, libraries represent a certain kind of quiet, a certain kind of place, a certain kind of book in large numbers,” said Matthew Battles, a fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society and co-author of Library Beyond the Book. “These are beautiful ideas and ideals. But they demand reinterpretation and cultivation from generation to generation.”

[12] To library purists, this is nonsense.

“I get the sense that a lot of people have a feeling that tech has just moved along, that books are these oldfashioned things, that everything is going to be on the Internet, that a Kindle and Google is all you need,” Hays said.“But getting reliable information is a constant challenge today. Libraries help people find the credible information they need.”

[13] The purists say the futurists are pushing budget-busting e-books when large swaths of society still want print, particularly as research emerges showing print provides a more immersive, less distracting reading experience.

[14] They also cite sales data showing that e-reader and e-book sales have leveled off and argue that the next generation of library patrons still strongly prefers print.

[11]對于圖書館未來主義者來說，這是進步。

“對于許多人來說，圖書館代表某種靜謐，某種場所，某種數量極多的書。”貝克曼互聯網及協會中心的雇員、《超越書籍的圖書館》的合著者馬修·巴特爾斯說，“這些看法固然不錯，很理想化，但也需要一代又一代人重新詮釋和培養。”

[12]對于圖書館純粹主義者來說，這純屬瞎話。

“我的理解是，許多人有一種感覺，那就是技術進步了，書籍過時了，一切都可以放到互聯網上，有個Kindle和Google就夠了。”海斯說，“但是，如今要獲得可靠的信息一直是個挑戰，而圖書館能幫助人們找到他們需要的可靠信息。”

[13]純粹主義者說，未來主義者正推動預算赤字來購買電子書，而社會上大多數人仍然想要紙質書，尤其是有研究表明，紙質書會帶來更加專注、更少打擾的閱讀體驗。

[14]他們還引用銷售數據，數據表明，電子書讀者和電子書銷售已經趨于穩定。另外，他們說，下一代的圖書館借閱者仍然非常青睞紙質書。

[15] One survey of readers 18 to over 68 found that just 5 percent of millennials7指出生于1983—2000年間的人，也是伴隨電腦/互聯網的形成與發展成長的一代人。read only e-books. Twentyone percent of the millennials said they read more hard copy than e-books, and 34 percent reported that they only read print.

[16] However, some 26 percent of millennials did say they read about the same amount of print and e-books, which librarians take as a sign that they are headed in the right direction. Library officials also point to studies showing that children enjoy reading e-books and that, in some cases, the technology increases excitement about books.

[17] Chrissy Cahill, 33, disagrees. Visiting the Reston library in Fairfax with her 2-year-old son, Cahill said her generation still values print, even though tablets and mobile phones dominate other aspects of their lives. She left with a stack of children’s books.

“I’m old-fashioned when it comes to books,” she said. “When I think of a library, I think of books.”

[18] Inside the Reston branch, many shelves were empty. Other shelves had just a few books, arranged that way, critics said, so that they would not look even more barren. Library officials disputed that, saying shelves were constantly in flux and that “many branches do and should leave open areas that provide visual relief in order to facilitate browsing and marketing of the collection.”

[15]一項針對18歲至68歲以上人群的調查發現，千禧一代中只有5%的人非電子書不讀。這一代中，21%的人說，他們讀的紙質書多于電子書，還有34%的人說，他們只閱讀紙質書。

[16]可是，還有大約26%的千禧一代明確表示，他們閱讀的紙質書和電子書數量差不多。圖書館工作人員正是因此而認定他們革新的方向正確無誤。圖書館官員也指出，有研究表明，孩子們喜歡看電子書，而有時技術確實可以讓圖書更精彩。

[17] 33歲的克麗茜·卡希爾可不這樣認為。帶著2歲大的兒子參觀過費爾法克斯的雷斯頓圖書館后，卡希爾說，雖然平板和手機占據了生活的其他方面，但她這一代人還是更看重紙質書。離開的時候，她帶走了一大摞兒童書。

“講到圖書，我可是一個老派人。”她說，“一想到圖書館，我想到的就是紙質書。”

[18]雷斯頓圖書館內，許多書架空空如也。另一些架子上零零落落擺了幾本書——批評者說，這樣擺放就為了看上去不是更加稀落空蕩。圖書館管理人員辯稱，書架總是變來變去的，而且，“許多圖書館留出了舒緩視覺疲勞的開放區域，方便瀏覽和推薦藏書，這也是應該的。”

[19] In dealing with budgetary forces and the pressures of the future, administrators in Fairfax have shifted the collection to a floating system—meaning the books no longer live at branches but wherever patrons return them.

[20] Other libraries around the country cutting print books have moved to similar systems. Critics say floating collections make it difficult to quickly get books. But library officials say it is a way for them to make the overall print collection larger for everyone as money shifts to electronic resources.

[21] Some print advocates say they are willing to give it a try.

[22] In the District, where the collection of print books has fallen 39 percent since 2009, Susan Haight said she’s found that her generation—she’s 66—is willing to give e-books a chance.

“Libraries are leading my generation to this stuff,” said Haight, who is president of the Federation of Friends of the D.C. Public Library. “They have a responsibility to do this, and they want to help people with this.”

[19]為了應對反預算削減的勢力和未來可能產生的壓力，費爾法克斯的圖書館管理者將固定藏書轉入一個流動體系,即，圖書不再放在各個圖書館，而是借閱者還到哪里就放在哪里。

[20]在美國各地，其他減少紙質書收藏的圖書館也采用了類似的體系。批評者說，藏書流動讓人難以快速取書。但是圖書館官員說，當資金轉向電子資源時，對他們來說，這是讓所有紙質藏書惠及更多讀者的一種方式。

[21]一些紙質書擁躉說，他們愿意嘗試一下電子書。

[22]在哥倫比亞特區，紙質藏書自2009年以來已經下降了39%，66歲的蘇珊·海特說，她發現她這一代人愿意嘗試閱讀電子書。

“圖書館正在引領我們這代人接受電子書，”特區公共圖書館書友聯盟主席海特說，“它們有責任這樣做，也想以此來幫助大家。”

[23] Libraries also see this moment as a way to reconnect with people who stopped visiting. They now consider their Web sites branches, counting logins as library visits. And to drive foot traffic8foot traffic人流量。此處轉譯為人氣。—and, in some cases, revenue—they are reallocating square footage once used for books as hacker spaces or meeting rooms for rental.

[24] Surveys have shown deep division over these moves. Thirty-six percent of people polled by Pew said libraries should definitely not move books to make room for meeting and hacker spaces. Twenty percent said they should. “The responses,” Pew said, were “the most divided verdict we got in the range of changes in the library world that we probed.”

[25] Kimberly Mellon, a Frederick County community activist, used the Urbana branch’s meeting room to hold a gathering of citizens fighting a measure in front of the County Council.

“My personal visits to the library these past few years have been primarily for the purpose of attending these meetings,” she said. “Each visit, I look around a bit wistfully, reminding myself to come back to further enjoy the library’s many events, books and amenities.”

[23]圖書館也將這個機會視為一種途徑，與不再造訪圖書館的人重新建立聯系。現在，圖書館考慮建立網上分館，像計算到館訪客量一樣計算網址登錄網次數。并且，為了提升圖書館人氣，有時也為增加收入，圖書館會重新分配空間，將原本放書的地方辟為創客空間或會議室出租。

[24]調查顯示，人們對這些調整存在很大分歧。根據皮尤的調查，有36%的人說，圖書館絕對不該將書移走而騰出地方做會議室和創客空間。20%的人認為應該這樣做。皮尤表示：“在我們所做的有關圖書館變革的調查中，這兩種看法是對立最嚴重的。”

[25]弗雷德里克縣社區活動者金伯利·梅隆曾利用厄巴納圖書館的會議室，召集居民在縣政務委員會前爭取一項措施。

“近幾年，我個人造訪圖書館的主要目的就是參加這些會議。”她說，“每次造訪，我都會四處看看，有點依依不舍，提醒自己回來參加圖書館更多的活動，看看這里的圖書，享受一下舒適的設施。”

但她接著道：“我還沒時間實現這個許諾。”

But she added, “I have yet to make time for that promise.”

[26] Some find the new amenities both comforting and unnerving.

[27] Looking around the renovated Woodrow Wilson Library in Fairfax County, with its charming earth tones, comfy chairs and multiple meeting rooms, Melissa Johnson, 58, said, “This is really lovely.”

The meeting rooms, she said, were a good idea: “There has to be a place for people to come together.”

[28] But what about e-books?

“I want to hold a book,” she said. “A real book.” ■

[26]一些人覺得新的設施既讓人舒服又讓人不安。

[27]環顧費爾法克斯經過改建的伍德羅·威爾遜圖書館，看著讓人喜愛的茶色調、舒適的椅子和多個會議室，58歲的梅利莎·約翰遜贊嘆道：“真是太好了。”

她認為設置會議室是個好主意。她說：“得有個地方讓人們聚在一起。”

[28]那電子書如何？

“我想捧著書看，”她說，“捧著真正的書。” □

書去哪兒了？

文/邁克爾·S.羅森沃爾德 譯/唐毅

（譯者單位：東華大學外語學院）