Richard Ovenden on the fragility and importance of Libraries
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Richard Ovenden \\u200bhas been \\u200bBodley\\u2019s Librarian (the senior executive position of the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford)
since 2014. \\u200bHe is a \\u200b Fellow\\u200b at the\\u200b Society of Antiquaries and Royal Society of Arts; \\u200ba \\u200b\\u200bmember\\u200b of the\\xa0American Philosophical Society;
Treasurer, \\u200bat \\u200bthe Consortium of European Research Libraries; \\u200band \\u200bPresident\\u200b\\xa0\\u200bof \\u200bthe Digital Preservation Coalition. \\u200bHe was \\u200b\\u200bawarded the OBE by The Queen in 2019.\\u200b\\xa0
since 2014. \\u200bHe is a \\u200b Fellow\\u200b at the\\u200b Society of Antiquaries and Royal Society of Arts; \\u200ba \\u200b\\u200bmember\\u200b of the\\xa0American Philosophical Society;
Treasurer, \\u200bat \\u200bthe Consortium of European Research Libraries; \\u200band \\u200bPresident\\u200b\\xa0\\u200bof \\u200bthe Digital Preservation Coalition. \\u200bHe was \\u200b\\u200bawarded the OBE by The Queen in 2019.\\u200b\\xa0
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And almost as big a deal, he joined me recently on Zoom to talk about his new book, Burning the Books,\\xa0a history of the deliberate destruction of knowledge; about the threats to libraries past and present; about fire, war, violence, obsolescence, complacency and underfunding. And about the fragility of libraries, and their fundamental importance to democracy, to truth and facts, to the rule of law, in short, to our treasured Western way of life.\\xa0
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