#librarywar — Public Fediverse posts

Sacred tomes, curses, and research librarians in “Libra of Nil Admirari”

The library is introduced in the show’s second episode

Happy United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities! When I started watching Libra of Nil Admirari (also known as Nil Admirari no Tenbin), I had a sense that libraries would be a part of the story. Reading that the story was about a group of people who try and track down cursed books reminded me of R.O.D. the TV, and even Library War a bit. This series is a dark fantasy and a reverse harem. While I’m not, necessarily, a fan of the latter genre, the former was much more intriguing. So, let me get started! As a warning, there will be description of attempted suicide in this article.

The first episode hits like a freight train. Protagonist Tsugumi Kuze (voiced by Juri Kimura) watches her brother, Hitaki Kuze (voiced by Ayumu Murase) try to kill himself by self-immolation. Horrified, she blamed herself, but later learns that a cursed book, written in Japanese handwriting, named a maremono is responsible. She joins the Imperial Library Information Assets Management Bureau (also known as Fukurou), willing to use her ability to “see” the tomes, which she gained following a traumatic experience (her brother’s attempted suicide). In the next episode, she becomes more familiar with the bureau, which has a compound similar, in some ways, to the situation of the Library Defense Force in Library War. She does wear a strange uniform with a cut-out for her breasts, an unnecessary form of fan service which could have easily been avoided in this series, as could the fact that her work uniform has a relatively short skirt.

Within this compound is a room with cursed tomes, guided around by Hayato Ozaki (voiced by Yuuki Kaji), a member of Fukurou who tried to recruit her in the first episode. She meets Yutaka Nabari (voiced by Hikaru Midorikawa), who can also see auras of books, like her, and is researching cursed tomes. Later, Shiori Tokimiya (voiced by Rio Natsuki) shows Tsugami around the Fukurou building, walking through a secret passage to the research division, headed by Motofumi Mashiko (voiced by Kazuyuki Okitsu), who is wearing a mask and has a toucan on his shoulder. A small library room is shown at first, but this is only the beginning. Motofumi is said to be well-versed in many fields, like ornithology and folklore. From there, she goes into a huge room described as the only national library in the country, and there are at least ten library assistants, carrying books. [1] It is noted that Fukurou was originally a department for managing “precious books” and they are still diligently performing this goal. He welcomes Tsugami with open arms and she is grateful for that.

The claim that this is the “only” national library in Japan is accurate! The National Diet Library of Japan was not established until 1948, even though Japan had its first public library in 1872, following introduction of Western culture to the island, and the Japan Library Association (JLA) was founded in 1892 to “promote library services and librarianship in Japan,” with a first All Japan Library Conference held in 1906. [2] There’s more context, that should be established. This series is set in an alternative universe in which the Taisho era of Japan is still ongoing, in 1936. This is a period of Japanese history, from 1912 to 1926, in which there was a liberal movement with growth of power among democratic parties and away from elder politicians. It is also the period Japan developed its first aircraft carrier, and emerged from World War I as a “major industrial nation”. [3]

Although the later part of the episode, where Tsugami goes on patrol with Osaki, Kōgami, and Hisui Hoshikawa, going to bookstores and other shops, looking for cursed books, is not directly about libraries, it is related nonetheless. I haven’t played the otome visual novel video game, Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Teito Genwaku Kitan (written by Yuma Katagiri), that this series is based on, or the manga, written by Shō Yuzuki, but I’d imagine it probably has similar themes. The director of this anime, Masahiro Takata, is well-known for many other productions, including as an episode director of My Roommate is a Cat! Despite mixed reviews from Anime News Network writers, apart from Rebecca Silverman (who was more positive), [4] I decided to keep watching, and expected there would be more library scenes.

Tsugami opposes book burning in the third episode, saying what we can/should all agree with.

Clearly, Motofumi Mashiko and the other unnamed assistant librarians, are all research librarians, as they are researching these tomes, and storing them in a huge space. While undoubtedly librarians instruct, research, connect people to technology, manage social media, build websites, and digitize archives. Research librarians specifically analyze information requests to “determine which materials will best meet that researcher’s needs”. In some sense, the library in this series is a research library, as it has an in-depth collection, even though it doesn’t have a large volume of peer-reviewed work, and other works. More accurately, it is a special library, in that it is serving a particular population and is dedicated to a certain collection. [5]

By the third episode, Tsugami sees a book burning. In the process, she meets Sagisawa Rui, a doctor-in-training. While she calls herself “Kuze” here, I am calling her Tsugami in this article to distinguish from her brother. Later, they have a debriefing with Shiori Tokimiya, where it is revealed that a group called “Kagutsuchi” is stealing people’s books and burning them, in a number of recent incidents. Other members explain that the public burn cursed tomes because they are afraid of them and see them as dangerous. Tsugami later meets with Sagisawa. A man holding a cursed tome later dies on the train tracks, horrifying them all, and it is guessed that someone is purposely creating cursed tomes. Later, she tells Sagisawa that burning potentially dangerous books is wrong, which is a sentiment we can all agree with. At the end of the episode, she raids a building, with the help of her fellow agents, where the Kagutsuchi are holed up, and trying to burn books.

Tsugami meets the pompous son of the Prime Minister, Ukai, who also attempted society. However, she sympathizes, as he tried to kill himself, but she struggles with this, because he is so arrogant… She later learns that a legislator jumped from a building, and died, with a tome in one hand. She is informed she can’t do anything, even though people are dying, and is told this is why they are investigating every day and getting information from the press. She later tells Ukai that the job gives her freedom and that she enjoys it, says that communal living is fun, and hopes to get along better with him. He agrees to take her to a ball so they can learn about possible individuals involved in the book burning. She reports back what she saw. Later, Ukai realizes he was wrong about her and endeavors to become better friends with her. At the end of the episode, a woman is shown dead, with a tome, a romantic novel, nearby.

While I could go further, I decided to stop watching this series at this point, as it wasn’t to my fancy, and because I’ve already noted the existing library themes here.

© 2023-2025 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] Motofumi is the only character who speaks, as the others are only as background characters.

[2] “Brief Information on Libraries in Japan,” Japan Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “History,” National Diet Library, Japan, accessed Jul. 18, 2023;

[3] Hoffman, Michael. “The Taisho Era: When modernity ruled Japan’s masses,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; Hoffman, Michael. “‘Taisho Democracy’ pays the ultimate price,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; “IJN Imperial Japanese Navy / ( Nihon Kaigun ),” globalsecurity.org, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Japan: a country study (Washington, D.C., Library of Congress Federal Research Division, ed. Ronald E. Dolan and Ronald L. Warden: 1990), xviii, 46, 49-53. The Library of Congress country study says there were two other periods of history: Showa from 1926 to 1989 and Hensai from 1989 to present. The latter era actually ended in 2019, and replaced by the Reiwa era, which is currently ongoing.

[4] Jensen, Paul; Theron Martin; Nick Creamer; Rebecca Silverman, “The Spring 2018 Anime Preview Guide: Libra of Nil Admirari,” Anime News Network, Apr. 8, 2018; Silverman, Rebecca. “Libra of Nil Admirari Episodes 1-12 streaming Review,” Anime News Network, Jun. 28, 2018.

[5] “Become a Librarian,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Matthews, Rose. “Research Librarian Job Description,” Chron.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is a Research Library?,” Linda Hall Library, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is Research Library,” IGI Global, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “research library,” dictionary.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “Special Libraries,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023.

#abandonedSeries #AnimeNewsNetwork #bookBurning #fanService #history #Japan #JapaneseLibrarians #LibraOfNilAdmirari #LibraryWar #MyRoommateIsACat #RODTheTV #rareBooks #referenceLibrarians #research

Sacred tomes, curses, and research librarians in “Libra of Nil Admirari”

The library is introduced in the show’s second episode

Happy United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities! When I started watching Libra of Nil Admirari (also known as Nil Admirari no Tenbin), I had a sense that libraries would be a part of the story. Reading that the story was about a group of people who try and track down cursed books reminded me of R.O.D. the TV, and even Library War a bit. This series is a dark fantasy and a reverse harem. While I’m not, necessarily, a fan of the latter genre, the former was much more intriguing. So, let me get started! As a warning, there will be description of attempted suicide in this article.

The first episode hits like a freight train. Protagonist Tsugumi Kuze (voiced by Juri Kimura) watches her brother, Hitaki Kuze (voiced by Ayumu Murase) try to kill himself by self-immolation. Horrified, she blamed herself, but later learns that a cursed book, written in Japanese handwriting, named a maremono is responsible. She joins the Imperial Library Information Assets Management Bureau (also known as Fukurou), willing to use her ability to “see” the tomes, which she gained following a traumatic experience (her brother’s attempted suicide). In the next episode, she becomes more familiar with the bureau, which has a compound similar, in some ways, to the situation of the Library Defense Force in Library War. She does wear a strange uniform with a cut-out for her breasts, an unnecessary form of fan service which could have easily been avoided in this series, as could the fact that her work uniform has a relatively short skirt.

Within this compound is a room with cursed tomes, guided around by Hayato Ozaki (voiced by Yuuki Kaji), a member of Fukurou who tried to recruit her in the first episode. She meets Yutaka Nabari (voiced by Hikaru Midorikawa), who can also see auras of books, like her, and is researching cursed tomes. Later, Shiori Tokimiya (voiced by Rio Natsuki) shows Tsugami around the Fukurou building, walking through a secret passage to the research division, headed by Motofumi Mashiko (voiced by Kazuyuki Okitsu), who is wearing a mask and has a toucan on his shoulder. A small library room is shown at first, but this is only the beginning. Motofumi is said to be well-versed in many fields, like ornithology and folklore. From there, she goes into a huge room described as the only national library in the country, and there are at least ten library assistants, carrying books. [1] It is noted that Fukurou was originally a department for managing “precious books” and they are still diligently performing this goal. He welcomes Tsugami with open arms and she is grateful for that.

The claim that this is the “only” national library in Japan is accurate! The National Diet Library of Japan was not established until 1948, even though Japan had its first public library in 1872, following introduction of Western culture to the island, and the Japan Library Association (JLA) was founded in 1892 to “promote library services and librarianship in Japan,” with a first All Japan Library Conference held in 1906. [2] There’s more context, that should be established. This series is set in an alternative universe in which the Taisho era of Japan is still ongoing, in 1936. This is a period of Japanese history, from 1912 to 1926, in which there was a liberal movement with growth of power among democratic parties and away from elder politicians. It is also the period Japan developed its first aircraft carrier, and emerged from World War I as a “major industrial nation”. [3]

Although the later part of the episode, where Tsugami goes on patrol with Osaki, Kōgami, and Hisui Hoshikawa, going to bookstores and other shops, looking for cursed books, is not directly about libraries, it is related nonetheless. I haven’t played the otome visual novel video game, Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Teito Genwaku Kitan (written by Yuma Katagiri), that this series is based on, or the manga, written by Shō Yuzuki, but I’d imagine it probably has similar themes. The director of this anime, Masahiro Takata, is well-known for many other productions, including as an episode director of My Roommate is a Cat! Despite mixed reviews from Anime News Network writers, apart from Rebecca Silverman (who was more positive), [4] I decided to keep watching, and expected there would be more library scenes.

Tsugami opposes book burning in the third episode, saying what we can/should all agree with.

Clearly, Motofumi Mashiko and the other unnamed assistant librarians, are all research librarians, as they are researching these tomes, and storing them in a huge space. While undoubtedly librarians instruct, research, connect people to technology, manage social media, build websites, and digitize archives. Research librarians specifically analyze information requests to “determine which materials will best meet that researcher’s needs”. In some sense, the library in this series is a research library, as it has an in-depth collection, even though it doesn’t have a large volume of peer-reviewed work, and other works. More accurately, it is a special library, in that it is serving a particular population and is dedicated to a certain collection. [5]

By the third episode, Tsugami sees a book burning. In the process, she meets Sagisawa Rui, a doctor-in-training. While she calls herself “Kuze” here, I am calling her Tsugami in this article to distinguish from her brother. Later, they have a debriefing with Shiori Tokimiya, where it is revealed that a group called “Kagutsuchi” is stealing people’s books and burning them, in a number of recent incidents. Other members explain that the public burn cursed tomes because they are afraid of them and see them as dangerous. Tsugami later meets with Sagisawa. A man holding a cursed tome later dies on the train tracks, horrifying them all, and it is guessed that someone is purposely creating cursed tomes. Later, she tells Sagisawa that burning potentially dangerous books is wrong, which is a sentiment we can all agree with. At the end of the episode, she raids a building, with the help of her fellow agents, where the Kagutsuchi are holed up, and trying to burn books.

Tsugami meets the pompous son of the Prime Minister, Ukai, who also attempted society. However, she sympathizes, as he tried to kill himself, but she struggles with this, because he is so arrogant… She later learns that a legislator jumped from a building, and died, with a tome in one hand. She is informed she can’t do anything, even though people are dying, and is told this is why they are investigating every day and getting information from the press. She later tells Ukai that the job gives her freedom and that she enjoys it, says that communal living is fun, and hopes to get along better with him. He agrees to take her to a ball so they can learn about possible individuals involved in the book burning. She reports back what she saw. Later, Ukai realizes he was wrong about her and endeavors to become better friends with her. At the end of the episode, a woman is shown dead, with a tome, a romantic novel, nearby.

While I could go further, I decided to stop watching this series at this point, as it wasn’t to my fancy, and because I’ve already noted the existing library themes here.

© 2023-2025 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] Motofumi is the only character who speaks, as the others are only as background characters.

[2] “Brief Information on Libraries in Japan,” Japan Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “History,” National Diet Library, Japan, accessed Jul. 18, 2023;

[3] Hoffman, Michael. “The Taisho Era: When modernity ruled Japan’s masses,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; Hoffman, Michael. “‘Taisho Democracy’ pays the ultimate price,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; “IJN Imperial Japanese Navy / ( Nihon Kaigun ),” globalsecurity.org, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Japan: a country study (Washington, D.C., Library of Congress Federal Research Division, ed. Ronald E. Dolan and Ronald L. Warden: 1990), xviii, 46, 49-53. The Library of Congress country study says there were two other periods of history: Showa from 1926 to 1989 and Hensai from 1989 to present. The latter era actually ended in 2019, and replaced by the Reiwa era, which is currently ongoing.

[4] Jensen, Paul; Theron Martin; Nick Creamer; Rebecca Silverman, “The Spring 2018 Anime Preview Guide: Libra of Nil Admirari,” Anime News Network, Apr. 8, 2018; Silverman, Rebecca. “Libra of Nil Admirari Episodes 1-12 streaming Review,” Anime News Network, Jun. 28, 2018.

[5] “Become a Librarian,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Matthews, Rose. “Research Librarian Job Description,” Chron.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is a Research Library?,” Linda Hall Library, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is Research Library,” IGI Global, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “research library,” dictionary.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “Special Libraries,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023.

#abandonedSeries #AnimeNewsNetwork #bookBurning #fanService #history #Japan #JapaneseLibrarians #LibraOfNilAdmirari #LibraryWar #MyRoommateIsACat #RODTheTV #rareBooks #referenceLibrarians #research

Sacred tomes, curses, and research librarians in “Libra of Nil Admirari”

The library is introduced in the show’s second episode

Happy United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities! When I started watching Libra of Nil Admirari (also known as Nil Admirari no Tenbin), I had a sense that libraries would be a part of the story. Reading that the story was about a group of people who try and track down cursed books reminded me of R.O.D. the TV, and even Library War a bit. This series is a dark fantasy and a reverse harem. While I’m not, necessarily, a fan of the latter genre, the former was much more intriguing. So, let me get started! As a warning, there will be description of attempted suicide in this article.

The first episode hits like a freight train. Protagonist Tsugumi Kuze (voiced by Juri Kimura) watches her brother, Hitaki Kuze (voiced by Ayumu Murase) try to kill himself by self-immolation. Horrified, she blamed herself, but later learns that a cursed book, written in Japanese handwriting, named a maremono is responsible. She joins the Imperial Library Information Assets Management Bureau (also known as Fukurou), willing to use her ability to “see” the tomes, which she gained following a traumatic experience (her brother’s attempted suicide). In the next episode, she becomes more familiar with the bureau, which has a compound similar, in some ways, to the situation of the Library Defense Force in Library War. She does wear a strange uniform with a cut-out for her breasts, an unnecessary form of fan service which could have easily been avoided in this series, as could the fact that her work uniform has a relatively short skirt.

Within this compound is a room with cursed tomes, guided around by Hayato Ozaki (voiced by Yuuki Kaji), a member of Fukurou who tried to recruit her in the first episode. She meets Yutaka Nabari (voiced by Hikaru Midorikawa), who can also see auras of books, like her, and is researching cursed tomes. Later, Shiori Tokimiya (voiced by Rio Natsuki) shows Tsugami around the Fukurou building, walking through a secret passage to the research division, headed by Motofumi Mashiko (voiced by Kazuyuki Okitsu), who is wearing a mask and has a toucan on his shoulder. A small library room is shown at first, but this is only the beginning. Motofumi is said to be well-versed in many fields, like ornithology and folklore. From there, she goes into a huge room described as the only national library in the country, and there are at least ten library assistants, carrying books. [1] It is noted that Fukurou was originally a department for managing “precious books” and they are still diligently performing this goal. He welcomes Tsugami with open arms and she is grateful for that.

The claim that this is the “only” national library in Japan is accurate! The National Diet Library of Japan was not established until 1948, even though Japan had its first public library in 1872, following introduction of Western culture to the island, and the Japan Library Association (JLA) was founded in 1892 to “promote library services and librarianship in Japan,” with a first All Japan Library Conference held in 1906. [2] There’s more context, that should be established. This series is set in an alternative universe in which the Taisho era of Japan is still ongoing, in 1936. This is a period of Japanese history, from 1912 to 1926, in which there was a liberal movement with growth of power among democratic parties and away from elder politicians. It is also the period Japan developed its first aircraft carrier, and emerged from World War I as a “major industrial nation”. [3]

Although the later part of the episode, where Tsugami goes on patrol with Osaki, Kōgami, and Hisui Hoshikawa, going to bookstores and other shops, looking for cursed books, is not directly about libraries, it is related nonetheless. I haven’t played the otome visual novel video game, Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Teito Genwaku Kitan (written by Yuma Katagiri), that this series is based on, or the manga, written by Shō Yuzuki, but I’d imagine it probably has similar themes. The director of this anime, Masahiro Takata, is well-known for many other productions, including as an episode director of My Roommate is a Cat! Despite mixed reviews from Anime News Network writers, apart from Rebecca Silverman (who was more positive), [4] I decided to keep watching, and expected there would be more library scenes.

Tsugami opposes book burning in the third episode, saying what we can/should all agree with.

Clearly, Motofumi Mashiko and the other unnamed assistant librarians, are all research librarians, as they are researching these tomes, and storing them in a huge space. While undoubtedly librarians instruct, research, connect people to technology, manage social media, build websites, and digitize archives. Research librarians specifically analyze information requests to “determine which materials will best meet that researcher’s needs”. In some sense, the library in this series is a research library, as it has an in-depth collection, even though it doesn’t have a large volume of peer-reviewed work, and other works. More accurately, it is a special library, in that it is serving a particular population and is dedicated to a certain collection. [5]

By the third episode, Tsugami sees a book burning. In the process, she meets Sagisawa Rui, a doctor-in-training. While she calls herself “Kuze” here, I am calling her Tsugami in this article to distinguish from her brother. Later, they have a debriefing with Shiori Tokimiya, where it is revealed that a group called “Kagutsuchi” is stealing people’s books and burning them, in a number of recent incidents. Other members explain that the public burn cursed tomes because they are afraid of them and see them as dangerous. Tsugami later meets with Sagisawa. A man holding a cursed tome later dies on the train tracks, horrifying them all, and it is guessed that someone is purposely creating cursed tomes. Later, she tells Sagisawa that burning potentially dangerous books is wrong, which is a sentiment we can all agree with. At the end of the episode, she raids a building, with the help of her fellow agents, where the Kagutsuchi are holed up, and trying to burn books.

Tsugami meets the pompous son of the Prime Minister, Ukai, who also attempted society. However, she sympathizes, as he tried to kill himself, but she struggles with this, because he is so arrogant… She later learns that a legislator jumped from a building, and died, with a tome in one hand. She is informed she can’t do anything, even though people are dying, and is told this is why they are investigating every day and getting information from the press. She later tells Ukai that the job gives her freedom and that she enjoys it, says that communal living is fun, and hopes to get along better with him. He agrees to take her to a ball so they can learn about possible individuals involved in the book burning. She reports back what she saw. Later, Ukai realizes he was wrong about her and endeavors to become better friends with her. At the end of the episode, a woman is shown dead, with a tome, a romantic novel, nearby.

While I could go further, I decided to stop watching this series at this point, as it wasn’t to my fancy, and because I’ve already noted the existing library themes here.

© 2023-2025 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] Motofumi is the only character who speaks, as the others are only as background characters.

[2] “Brief Information on Libraries in Japan,” Japan Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “History,” National Diet Library, Japan, accessed Jul. 18, 2023;

[3] Hoffman, Michael. “The Taisho Era: When modernity ruled Japan’s masses,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; Hoffman, Michael. “‘Taisho Democracy’ pays the ultimate price,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; “IJN Imperial Japanese Navy / ( Nihon Kaigun ),” globalsecurity.org, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Japan: a country study (Washington, D.C., Library of Congress Federal Research Division, ed. Ronald E. Dolan and Ronald L. Warden: 1990), xviii, 46, 49-53. The Library of Congress country study says there were two other periods of history: Showa from 1926 to 1989 and Hensai from 1989 to present. The latter era actually ended in 2019, and replaced by the Reiwa era, which is currently ongoing.

[4] Jensen, Paul; Theron Martin; Nick Creamer; Rebecca Silverman, “The Spring 2018 Anime Preview Guide: Libra of Nil Admirari,” Anime News Network, Apr. 8, 2018; Silverman, Rebecca. “Libra of Nil Admirari Episodes 1-12 streaming Review,” Anime News Network, Jun. 28, 2018.

[5] “Become a Librarian,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Matthews, Rose. “Research Librarian Job Description,” Chron.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is a Research Library?,” Linda Hall Library, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is Research Library,” IGI Global, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “research library,” dictionary.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “Special Libraries,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023.

#abandonedSeries #AnimeNewsNetwork #bookBurning #fanService #history #Japan #JapaneseLibrarians #LibraOfNilAdmirari #LibraryWar #MyRoommateIsACat #RODTheTV #rareBooks #referenceLibrarians #research

Sacred tomes, curses, and research librarians in “Libra of Nil Admirari”

The library is introduced in the show’s second episode

Happy United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities! When I started watching Libra of Nil Admirari (also known as Nil Admirari no Tenbin), I had a sense that libraries would be a part of the story. Reading that the story was about a group of people who try and track down cursed books reminded me of R.O.D. the TV, and even Library War a bit. This series is a dark fantasy and a reverse harem. While I’m not, necessarily, a fan of the latter genre, the former was much more intriguing. So, let me get started! As a warning, there will be description of attempted suicide in this article.

The first episode hits like a freight train. Protagonist Tsugumi Kuze (voiced by Juri Kimura) watches her brother, Hitaki Kuze (voiced by Ayumu Murase) try to kill himself by self-immolation. Horrified, she blamed herself, but later learns that a cursed book, written in Japanese handwriting, named a maremono is responsible. She joins the Imperial Library Information Assets Management Bureau (also known as Fukurou), willing to use her ability to “see” the tomes, which she gained following a traumatic experience (her brother’s attempted suicide). In the next episode, she becomes more familiar with the bureau, which has a compound similar, in some ways, to the situation of the Library Defense Force in Library War. She does wear a strange uniform with a cut-out for her breasts, an unnecessary form of fan service which could have easily been avoided in this series, as could the fact that her work uniform has a relatively short skirt.

Within this compound is a room with cursed tomes, guided around by Hayato Ozaki (voiced by Yuuki Kaji), a member of Fukurou who tried to recruit her in the first episode. She meets Yutaka Nabari (voiced by Hikaru Midorikawa), who can also see auras of books, like her, and is researching cursed tomes. Later, Shiori Tokimiya (voiced by Rio Natsuki) shows Tsugami around the Fukurou building, walking through a secret passage to the research division, headed by Motofumi Mashiko (voiced by Kazuyuki Okitsu), who is wearing a mask and has a toucan on his shoulder. A small library room is shown at first, but this is only the beginning. Motofumi is said to be well-versed in many fields, like ornithology and folklore. From there, she goes into a huge room described as the only national library in the country, and there are at least ten library assistants, carrying books. [1] It is noted that Fukurou was originally a department for managing “precious books” and they are still diligently performing this goal. He welcomes Tsugami with open arms and she is grateful for that.

The claim that this is the “only” national library in Japan is accurate! The National Diet Library of Japan was not established until 1948, even though Japan had its first public library in 1872, following introduction of Western culture to the island, and the Japan Library Association (JLA) was founded in 1892 to “promote library services and librarianship in Japan,” with a first All Japan Library Conference held in 1906. [2] There’s more context, that should be established. This series is set in an alternative universe in which the Taisho era of Japan is still ongoing, in 1936. This is a period of Japanese history, from 1912 to 1926, in which there was a liberal movement with growth of power among democratic parties and away from elder politicians. It is also the period Japan developed its first aircraft carrier, and emerged from World War I as a “major industrial nation”. [3]

Although the later part of the episode, where Tsugami goes on patrol with Osaki, Kōgami, and Hisui Hoshikawa, going to bookstores and other shops, looking for cursed books, is not directly about libraries, it is related nonetheless. I haven’t played the otome visual novel video game, Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Teito Genwaku Kitan (written by Yuma Katagiri), that this series is based on, or the manga, written by Shō Yuzuki, but I’d imagine it probably has similar themes. The director of this anime, Masahiro Takata, is well-known for many other productions, including as an episode director of My Roommate is a Cat! Despite mixed reviews from Anime News Network writers, apart from Rebecca Silverman (who was more positive), [4] I decided to keep watching, and expected there would be more library scenes.

Tsugami opposes book burning in the third episode, saying what we can/should all agree with.

Clearly, Motofumi Mashiko and the other unnamed assistant librarians, are all research librarians, as they are researching these tomes, and storing them in a huge space. While undoubtedly librarians instruct, research, connect people to technology, manage social media, build websites, and digitize archives. Research librarians specifically analyze information requests to “determine which materials will best meet that researcher’s needs”. In some sense, the library in this series is a research library, as it has an in-depth collection, even though it doesn’t have a large volume of peer-reviewed work, and other works. More accurately, it is a special library, in that it is serving a particular population and is dedicated to a certain collection. [5]

By the third episode, Tsugami sees a book burning. In the process, she meets Sagisawa Rui, a doctor-in-training. While she calls herself “Kuze” here, I am calling her Tsugami in this article to distinguish from her brother. Later, they have a debriefing with Shiori Tokimiya, where it is revealed that a group called “Kagutsuchi” is stealing people’s books and burning them, in a number of recent incidents. Other members explain that the public burn cursed tomes because they are afraid of them and see them as dangerous. Tsugami later meets with Sagisawa. A man holding a cursed tome later dies on the train tracks, horrifying them all, and it is guessed that someone is purposely creating cursed tomes. Later, she tells Sagisawa that burning potentially dangerous books is wrong, which is a sentiment we can all agree with. At the end of the episode, she raids a building, with the help of her fellow agents, where the Kagutsuchi are holed up, and trying to burn books.

Tsugami meets the pompous son of the Prime Minister, Ukai, who also attempted society. However, she sympathizes, as he tried to kill himself, but she struggles with this, because he is so arrogant… She later learns that a legislator jumped from a building, and died, with a tome in one hand. She is informed she can’t do anything, even though people are dying, and is told this is why they are investigating every day and getting information from the press. She later tells Ukai that the job gives her freedom and that she enjoys it, says that communal living is fun, and hopes to get along better with him. He agrees to take her to a ball so they can learn about possible individuals involved in the book burning. She reports back what she saw. Later, Ukai realizes he was wrong about her and endeavors to become better friends with her. At the end of the episode, a woman is shown dead, with a tome, a romantic novel, nearby.

While I could go further, I decided to stop watching this series at this point, as it wasn’t to my fancy, and because I’ve already noted the existing library themes here.

© 2023-2025 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] Motofumi is the only character who speaks, as the others are only as background characters.

[2] “Brief Information on Libraries in Japan,” Japan Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “History,” National Diet Library, Japan, accessed Jul. 18, 2023;

[3] Hoffman, Michael. “The Taisho Era: When modernity ruled Japan’s masses,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; Hoffman, Michael. “‘Taisho Democracy’ pays the ultimate price,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; “IJN Imperial Japanese Navy / ( Nihon Kaigun ),” globalsecurity.org, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Japan: a country study (Washington, D.C., Library of Congress Federal Research Division, ed. Ronald E. Dolan and Ronald L. Warden: 1990), xviii, 46, 49-53. The Library of Congress country study says there were two other periods of history: Showa from 1926 to 1989 and Hensai from 1989 to present. The latter era actually ended in 2019, and replaced by the Reiwa era, which is currently ongoing.

[4] Jensen, Paul; Theron Martin; Nick Creamer; Rebecca Silverman, “The Spring 2018 Anime Preview Guide: Libra of Nil Admirari,” Anime News Network, Apr. 8, 2018; Silverman, Rebecca. “Libra of Nil Admirari Episodes 1-12 streaming Review,” Anime News Network, Jun. 28, 2018.

[5] “Become a Librarian,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Matthews, Rose. “Research Librarian Job Description,” Chron.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is a Research Library?,” Linda Hall Library, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is Research Library,” IGI Global, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “research library,” dictionary.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “Special Libraries,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023.

#abandonedSeries #AnimeNewsNetwork #bookBurning #fanService #history #Japan #JapaneseLibrarians #LibraOfNilAdmirari #LibraryWar #MyRoommateIsACat #RODTheTV #rareBooks #referenceLibrarians #research

Sacred tomes, curses, and research librarians in “Libra of Nil Admirari”

The library is introduced in the show’s second episode

Happy United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities! When I started watching Libra of Nil Admirari (also known as Nil Admirari no Tenbin), I had a sense that libraries would be a part of the story. Reading that the story was about a group of people who try and track down cursed books reminded me of R.O.D. the TV, and even Library War a bit. This series is a dark fantasy and a reverse harem. While I’m not, necessarily, a fan of the latter genre, the former was much more intriguing. So, let me get started! As a warning, there will be description of attempted suicide in this article.

The first episode hits like a freight train. Protagonist Tsugumi Kuze (voiced by Juri Kimura) watches her brother, Hitaki Kuze (voiced by Ayumu Murase) try to kill himself by self-immolation. Horrified, she blamed herself, but later learns that a cursed book, written in Japanese handwriting, named a maremono is responsible. She joins the Imperial Library Information Assets Management Bureau (also known as Fukurou), willing to use her ability to “see” the tomes, which she gained following a traumatic experience (her brother’s attempted suicide). In the next episode, she becomes more familiar with the bureau, which has a compound similar, in some ways, to the situation of the Library Defense Force in Library War. She does wear a strange uniform with a cut-out for her breasts, an unnecessary form of fan service which could have easily been avoided in this series, as could the fact that her work uniform has a relatively short skirt.

Within this compound is a room with cursed tomes, guided around by Hayato Ozaki (voiced by Yuuki Kaji), a member of Fukurou who tried to recruit her in the first episode. She meets Yutaka Nabari (voiced by Hikaru Midorikawa), who can also see auras of books, like her, and is researching cursed tomes. Later, Shiori Tokimiya (voiced by Rio Natsuki) shows Tsugami around the Fukurou building, walking through a secret passage to the research division, headed by Motofumi Mashiko (voiced by Kazuyuki Okitsu), who is wearing a mask and has a toucan on his shoulder. A small library room is shown at first, but this is only the beginning. Motofumi is said to be well-versed in many fields, like ornithology and folklore. From there, she goes into a huge room described as the only national library in the country, and there are at least ten library assistants, carrying books. [1] It is noted that Fukurou was originally a department for managing “precious books” and they are still diligently performing this goal. He welcomes Tsugami with open arms and she is grateful for that.

The claim that this is the “only” national library in Japan is accurate! The National Diet Library of Japan was not established until 1948, even though Japan had its first public library in 1872, following introduction of Western culture to the island, and the Japan Library Association (JLA) was founded in 1892 to “promote library services and librarianship in Japan,” with a first All Japan Library Conference held in 1906. [2] There’s more context, that should be established. This series is set in an alternative universe in which the Taisho era of Japan is still ongoing, in 1936. This is a period of Japanese history, from 1912 to 1926, in which there was a liberal movement with growth of power among democratic parties and away from elder politicians. It is also the period Japan developed its first aircraft carrier, and emerged from World War I as a “major industrial nation”. [3]

Although the later part of the episode, where Tsugami goes on patrol with Osaki, Kōgami, and Hisui Hoshikawa, going to bookstores and other shops, looking for cursed books, is not directly about libraries, it is related nonetheless. I haven’t played the otome visual novel video game, Nil Admirari no Tenbin: Teito Genwaku Kitan (written by Yuma Katagiri), that this series is based on, or the manga, written by Shō Yuzuki, but I’d imagine it probably has similar themes. The director of this anime, Masahiro Takata, is well-known for many other productions, including as an episode director of My Roommate is a Cat! Despite mixed reviews from Anime News Network writers, apart from Rebecca Silverman (who was more positive), [4] I decided to keep watching, and expected there would be more library scenes.

Tsugami opposes book burning in the third episode, saying what we can/should all agree with.

Clearly, Motofumi Mashiko and the other unnamed assistant librarians, are all research librarians, as they are researching these tomes, and storing them in a huge space. While undoubtedly librarians instruct, research, connect people to technology, manage social media, build websites, and digitize archives. Research librarians specifically analyze information requests to “determine which materials will best meet that researcher’s needs”. In some sense, the library in this series is a research library, as it has an in-depth collection, even though it doesn’t have a large volume of peer-reviewed work, and other works. More accurately, it is a special library, in that it is serving a particular population and is dedicated to a certain collection. [5]

By the third episode, Tsugami sees a book burning. In the process, she meets Sagisawa Rui, a doctor-in-training. While she calls herself “Kuze” here, I am calling her Tsugami in this article to distinguish from her brother. Later, they have a debriefing with Shiori Tokimiya, where it is revealed that a group called “Kagutsuchi” is stealing people’s books and burning them, in a number of recent incidents. Other members explain that the public burn cursed tomes because they are afraid of them and see them as dangerous. Tsugami later meets with Sagisawa. A man holding a cursed tome later dies on the train tracks, horrifying them all, and it is guessed that someone is purposely creating cursed tomes. Later, she tells Sagisawa that burning potentially dangerous books is wrong, which is a sentiment we can all agree with. At the end of the episode, she raids a building, with the help of her fellow agents, where the Kagutsuchi are holed up, and trying to burn books.

Tsugami meets the pompous son of the Prime Minister, Ukai, who also attempted society. However, she sympathizes, as he tried to kill himself, but she struggles with this, because he is so arrogant… She later learns that a legislator jumped from a building, and died, with a tome in one hand. She is informed she can’t do anything, even though people are dying, and is told this is why they are investigating every day and getting information from the press. She later tells Ukai that the job gives her freedom and that she enjoys it, says that communal living is fun, and hopes to get along better with him. He agrees to take her to a ball so they can learn about possible individuals involved in the book burning. She reports back what she saw. Later, Ukai realizes he was wrong about her and endeavors to become better friends with her. At the end of the episode, a woman is shown dead, with a tome, a romantic novel, nearby.

While I could go further, I decided to stop watching this series at this point, as it wasn’t to my fancy, and because I’ve already noted the existing library themes here.

© 2023-2025 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] Motofumi is the only character who speaks, as the others are only as background characters.

[2] “Brief Information on Libraries in Japan,” Japan Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “History,” National Diet Library, Japan, accessed Jul. 18, 2023;

[3] Hoffman, Michael. “The Taisho Era: When modernity ruled Japan’s masses,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; Hoffman, Michael. “‘Taisho Democracy’ pays the ultimate price,” Japan Times, Jul. 29, 2012; “IJN Imperial Japanese Navy / ( Nihon Kaigun ),” globalsecurity.org, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Japan: a country study (Washington, D.C., Library of Congress Federal Research Division, ed. Ronald E. Dolan and Ronald L. Warden: 1990), xviii, 46, 49-53. The Library of Congress country study says there were two other periods of history: Showa from 1926 to 1989 and Hensai from 1989 to present. The latter era actually ended in 2019, and replaced by the Reiwa era, which is currently ongoing.

[4] Jensen, Paul; Theron Martin; Nick Creamer; Rebecca Silverman, “The Spring 2018 Anime Preview Guide: Libra of Nil Admirari,” Anime News Network, Apr. 8, 2018; Silverman, Rebecca. “Libra of Nil Admirari Episodes 1-12 streaming Review,” Anime News Network, Jun. 28, 2018.

[5] “Become a Librarian,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; Matthews, Rose. “Research Librarian Job Description,” Chron.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is a Research Library?,” Linda Hall Library, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “What is Research Library,” IGI Global, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “research library,” dictionary.com, accessed Jul. 18, 2023; “Special Libraries,” American Library Association, accessed Jul. 18, 2023.

#abandonedSeries #AnimeNewsNetwork #bookBurning #fanService #history #Japan #JapaneseLibrarians #LibraOfNilAdmirari #LibraryWar #MyRoommateIsACat #RODTheTV #rareBooks #referenceLibrarians #research

The “sanctity” of library property in fiction and the reality of library theft

Desiree (then under a different name) tells Sarah to think about the “sanctity of library property” in an episode of Too Loud

Since today is Labor Day in the U.S. (elsewhere in the world it is celebrated on May 1), it seems the perfect opportunity to write about library property, theft, and more in fiction. [1] There will be spoilers for the webcomic Glass Case, as well as the animated series Totally Spies!, Too Loud, Kim Possible, Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil, Courage the Cowardly Dog, and Carl Squared, and the anime series Library War. I will connect this to the realities that libraries face.

One of the most pertinent examples of library property and theft is in the webcomic, Glass Case. In this relatively recently-ended webcomic, a girl names Katherine Ashdown welcomes another patron, named Elaine, into the library, but this is all a ploy. Elaine uses her magic to smash a glass case surrounding a book and steals The memoirs of Ashdown. In order to camouflage her escape, she uses a spell to cause Katherine to fall asleep, and she hopes, forget what happened. Later, after waking up, Katherine worries about what her dad would day, she thinks about what Elaine (whose name she doesn’t know yet) would do, and she laments at the exhaustion from being a librarian. Somehow she finds where Elaine is staying, gets the book back, and Elaine makes fun of her, saying that librarians are “so efficient nowadays”. In response, she criticizes Elaine for taking the book and destroying the glass case, but doesn’t report her. The story is later continued with Katherine following Elaine to her destination, using the library in the Clatworthy Mansion (to find specific books), they tease one another, Katherine stops Elaine from burning books so they can stay warm, they hear the backstory of Cedric, the talking umbrella, and find a secret library. [2]

This is not the only media which features library theft. One of the first examples I noted on here were the protagonists of Totally Spies!, who steal the datebook of the now-buff wrestler librarian. On a rewatch of the episode, I noted that it is only implied that one of them (Sam) opens the locked drawer to look at the date book, not to steal it, meaning it it is likely that “the book was returned to the drawer and locked up again”, considering how important learning is to Sam. More predominantly, in the Too Loud episode “Checked Out”, Desiree talks about the iron fist of the librarian and tells Sarah to think about the “sanctity of library property,” with Sarah agreeing to help them. However, the episode shows how libraries can be punitive with wanting to protect their property and implying the interconnection of this with the criminal legal system, embodied by the book jail.

The library’s role as an institution which maintains its property is reinforced by Ms. Hatchet in Kim Possible episode “Overdue”, who takes away Kim’s communicator and makes her put adhesive labels on every book saying “property of MHS library,” labels she can only adhere to the books with her own spit, I believe. Clearly, this is unsanitary, but it is meant as a watch for Ms. Hatchet to maintain control in one way or another. Otherwise, the unnamed librarian in Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil, who first appears in the episode “If Books Could Kill,” declares that “everything in the library belongs to me, including YOU”. Later, in the episode “Shh!,” the librarian declares that the next time he tries to get his book back, she will kill him.

The sadistic librarians portrayed in animation are not only some of the most stereotypical characters, but they are the ones who uphold the role of the library as a place which clings onto its property, no matter the costs. Others that would fall into this category would be the unnamed librarian in the Courage the Cowardly Dog episode “Wrath of the Librarian”, and Miss Dickens in Carl Squared  in “Carl’s Techno-Jinx”. Last but not least, in  Library War, a patron is tackled while stealing a book. There will be a mention of how books are sold by bookstores and how that is different from how libraries deal with books, in my post in early November entitled “A dusty bookstore in ‘Himawari-San’ and why libraries are different from bookstores”.

Sadistic librarian in Kick Buttowski:Suburban Daredevil tells Kick that everything in the library is hers, with an evil laugh, while holding his book

While the aforementioned examples in Kim Possible, Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil, Courage the Cowardly Dog, and Carl Squared are librarian stereotypes, libraries are serious about property. There are stories of some patrons who have been charged with failing to return library property, while there is policing as to how said property is used,  what patron behavior should be. [3] On a basic level, this is understandable, but it can be discriminatory if such library rules are used unfairly and unevenly.  The ALA has defined assets as what a library “has or owns and considers valuable, including human life, collections, structures, properties, even the good name and operations of the library”, a broad definition. The same document noted the importance of documenting all losses and reporting stolen property. [4] This is interconnected to the idea that patrons should respect library property, as one WikiHow guide states.

Libraries undoubtedly work to ensure library spaces are “free and unrestricted” for people to use and enjoy, but nothing can be stolen, vandalized, or damaged. These library rules are meant to ensure patrons engage in the proscribed behaviors and not those deemed “unacceptable”. Some even threaten prosecution for those who damage library furniture, equipment, property, or materials. [5] Section 99A Code of Massachusetts notes that those who conceal library materials or property and remove these library materials or property,and if this value exceeds $250 dollars, a said person “shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than five years, or by a fine of not less than one thousand nor more than twenty-five thousand dollars”. But, if the value is less than $250 dollars, then there is punishment “by imprisonment in jail for not more than one year or by a fine of not less than one hundred nor more than one thousand dollars”. There would be an order to “pay the replacement value of such library materials or property.”

These policies/rules have the goal of having a library for everyone, but some have questioned this, stating they are innocent in charges against them, and ties libraries into the criminal system. There are even those who offer expunging charges for library theft. On the other hand, is the ever-common issue of people stealing books from libraries and selling them to make a profit for themselves. Some scholars argue that theft is a threat for all institutions and something “libraries open to the public experience frequently.” [6] There is even a Wikipedia page entitled “Library theft”, calling it is a “significant” problem.

The amount of stolen material has led some libraries to go to the extreme, even saying that those who steal materials should be jailed. Such a statement is not unusual, as there are often threats to prosecute offenders. In fact, stealing books has even been described as “most selfish of all forms of theft”, with a history that goes back to the Middle Ages when books were rare. A 1982 study even stated that the most common type of vandalism in libraries is “intentional book damage” and book theft was the “most common and consistent problem”, while only “10 percent of the libraries had book detection systems” of those surveyed. While it is clear that libraries can help those who were released from prison “re-enter” society, they serve an “instrumental role” in the criminal system, which is framed as a positive, but undoubtedly interlocks with oppressive systems. [7]

In fact, some libraries have expressed concern against using money from penal fines, which can account for “3% to 70% of annual budgets for public libraries” in Michigan, as excessive fines and the transparency of processes can unfairly burden “those that commit crimes.” Libraries are posed as something to disrupt pipelines to prison, but what if, sometimes, they support those pathways, and push people into prison? After all, libraries, especially in the U.S. South, upheld racial segregation, and denied opportunities for Black people to become librarians, leading to various protests (including sit-ins). Furthermore, on the state-level, where funding is determined by population, libraries in predominantly White, rural areas where prisons are located increase “their share of political representation and federal funding, while impoverished urban communities” where those prisoners live “lose funds and representation.” In terms of libraries themselves, as Erin Feeley stated, when books are seen as “longer fit for use at public libraries”, they are often sent to prisons or jails as “an act of charity”, something which can be deeply problematic. [8]

Arguably, libraries are within structurally racist systems, as implied by some scholars. In response to negative interactions with police, some libraries have even removed their surveillance cameras. On the other hand, there has been a “problem of violence” in public libraries, whether those in the UK from drunken people, youth who are “unruly” and irate patrons, to the direct killing of librarians in the U.S., making security a bigger push from librarians, understandably. Additional scholars have said that offenses like “library theft” becomes to a referendum on whether “legislators care about public libraries”. [9]

In the end, there will likely be more examples of library theft in fiction which I haven’t focused on, seen, and read before, then connect those to the reality of libraries. Until next time.

© 2023-2024 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] I could have posted this on World Intellectual Property Day (April 26), World Book Day (on April 23), or World Radio Day (on Feb. 13),  I already had posts scheduled near those days, so I decided to schedule it for today instead.

[2] Glass Case, Episode 2, “Aries“; Glass Case, Episode 3,  “Circinus“; Glass Case, Episode 4, “Sagitta“; Glass Case,  Episode 5, “Fornax“; Glass Case, Episode 7, “Caelum“; Glass Case, Episode 10, “Mensa“; Glass Case, Episode 15, “Apus“; Glass Case, Episode 16, “Lynx“; Glass Case,  Episode 17, “Lepus“; Glass Case, Episode 19, “Pisces“; Glass Case, Episode 26, “Virgo“; Glass Case, Episode 28, “Capricornus“; Glass Case, Episode 29, “Cancer“; Glass Case, Episode 30, “Aquila“; Glass Case, Episode 31, “Cetus“; Glass Case, Episode 37, “Chamaeleon“; Glass Case,  Episode 38, “Aquarius“; Glass Case, Episode 39, “Corvus“; Glass Case,  Episode 40, “Equuleus“; Glass Case, Episode 41, “Triangulum“; Glass Case, Episode 42, “Microscopium“; Glass Case, Episode 43, “Canes Venatici“; Glass Case, Episode 44, “Grus“.

[3] Stockburger, George. “Lebanon Police charge four with failing to return library property,” ABC27, Mar. 8, 2023; Zulkey, Claire. “Give Them Shelter?,” American Libraries, Jun. 3, 2019; “Policy – Patron Behavior on Library Property,” LillyLibrary, Jun. 22, 2009; “Borrower responsibilities,” Stanford Libraries, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Rules of Conduct,” The Seattle Public Library, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Services and Policies,” Sarasota County, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “San Francisco Public Library Commission Policy Manual,” San Francisco Public Library, Sept. 2014; “Guidelines governing the use of Montgomery County Public Libraries,” Montgomery County Public Libraries, May 8, 2020; “Appropriate Library Use Policy,” Boston Public Library, Oct. 3, 2019; “Library,” Sutter County, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Conduct on Library Premises,” Library of Congress, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Library Policies,” University of the District of Colombia, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Staff Use of Library Property Policy,” Arapahoe Libraries, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Title 18,” Philadelphia General Assembly, 2023; “§ 42.1-74.1. “Book or other library property” defined,” Code of Virginia, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Library Policies,” Woodward Memorial Library, accessed Apr. 9, 2023.

[4] “Library Security Guidelines Document,” LLAMA BES Safety & Security of Library Buildings Committee, Jun. 27, 2010, p. 3, 6, 8, 13, 15; “ACRL/RBMS Guidelines Regarding Security and Theft in Special Collections,” ACRL Board of Directors, American Library Association, Jan. 2019.

[5] “Patron Use of Library Spaces Policy,” Anoka County Library, Apr. 9, 2023; “Library Use & Behavior Guidelines,” Davidson County North Carolina, Apr. 9, 2023; “Patron Behavior on Library Property Policy,” Tinley Park Public Library, Jan. 22, 2020; “Code of Conduct,” NYU Libraries, October 2015; “User Rights and Responsibilities,” UCLA Library, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Behavioral Rules,” Franklin County Public Libraries, 2014; “Part 1 – Library Law”. When I say “Some even threaten prosecution” I am referring to UCLA Library. Some scholars have noted that destruction of libraries and archives in wartime does not “receive adequate attention” during prosecutions for war crimes.

[6] “Policies,” Iowa Law Library, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “A Library for Everyone,” Oak Park Public Library, Oct. 26, 2021; “Behavior Policy,” The Indianapolis Public Library, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; Pelham, Dennis. “‘We’re innocent,’ says woman in library book prosecution,” Daily Telegram, Apr. 4, 2016; “Policies,” DeKalb County Public Library, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; “Library Book Theft Expungement,” Lento Law Firm, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; Seppi, Gregory and Dainan Skeem, “Picking Up the Pieces: Library Processes and the Theft of Rare Materials,” RBM, Vol. 2, No. 2 (2020); Epstein, Kayla. “Archivist and bookseller plead guilty to pilfering $8M in rare texts from Carnegie Library,” Washington Post, Jan. 14, 2020; Pace, Aaron. “Are People Stealing Library Books to Sell Online?,” Medium, Sept. 30, 2020; Zeidberg, David S. “Guidelines regarding thefts in libraries: A draft,” College & Research Libraries, 47, no. 10 (1986).

[7] Weinreb, Arthur. “Alabama library wants borrowers with overdue books jailed,” Digital Journal, Sept. 4, 2016; “Library User Responsibilities,” University of Nebraska-Lincoln, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; Abbott, E.C. “People who steal books,” Canadian Medical Association Journal, 165, No. 12 (2001); Ringrose, Katelyn. “Libraries & Reentry: The Importance of Public Spaces, Technologies, and Community to Formerly Incarcerated Patrons,”ALA Policy Perspectives, no. 7 (Sept. 2020): 2-14; Sweendy, P.C. “Libraries and the Justice System,” EveryLibrary, Medium, Jan. 20, 2021; de la Peña McCook, Kathleen. “Public Libraries and People in Jail,” Digital Commons @ The University of South Florida, 2004.

[8] “Penal Fines – MLA Advocacy Priority Area,” Michigan Library Association, accessed Apr. 9, 2023; Vercelletto, Christina. “Libraries Can Help Disrupt School-to-Prison Pipeline,” School Library Journal, Jan. 9, 2018; Steele, Chris. “Art Exhibit on Black Panther Challenges Library Patrons to Face Violence of Mass Incarceration Violence of Mass Incarceration,” Collaborative Librarianship, 7 no. 4 (2015): 170-171; Thorpe, Rebecca. “Urban Divestment, Rural Decline and the Politics of Mass Incarceration,” The Good Society, 23 No. 1 (2014): 25;

[9] Gibson, Amelia N., Renate L Chancellor, Nicole A Cooke, Sarah Park Dahlen, Shari A Lee, and Yasmeen L Shorish, “Libraries on the frontlines: Neutrality and social justice,” 2017, 1-4; Robinson, Paul H. “Democratizing Criminal Law: Feasibility, Utility, and the Challenge of Social Change,” Northwestern University Law Review , 111, no. 6 (2017): 1578. Also see books such as Libraries in Prisons: A Blending of Institutions by William Coyle, Security and Crime Prevention in Libraries (first published in 1992).

#books #CarlSquared #CourageTheCowardlyDog #femaleLibrarians #GlassCaseWebcomic #HimawariSan #KickButtowski #KimPossible #librarianStereotypes #libraryPatrons #libraryProperty #libraryRules #LibraryWar #MissDickens #MissHatchet #oppression #prison #racism #segregation #theft #TooLoud #TotallySpies #WhitePatrons