Sources: The Library Juice Press Handbook of Intellectual Freedom: Concepts, Cases, and Theories

The Library Juice Press Handbook of Intellectual Freedom: Concepts, Cases, and Theories. Edited by Mark Alfino and Laura Koltutsky. Sacramento: Library Juice Press, 2014. 469 p. Paper $50 (ISBN: 978-1-936117-57-4).

Intellectual freedom is a concept that is widely debated but frequently misunderstood. The American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights outlines core policies for libraries in promoting intellectual freedom, but as anyone who has dealt with this concept in practice knows, its application is nuanced and ever-evolving. Rather than a guide on day-to-day issues of intellectual freedom in libraries, this collection of essays explores the idea of intellectual freedom from historical, philosophical, legal, and practical angles. Despite its title, this work takes a more comprehensive than library-specific approach to intellectual freedom; topics addressed span its early historical origins in Athens to contemporary issues, including the open access movement and government secrecy and censorship. This is not to suggest that the book is not useful to practicing librarians; most of the collection's more lofty writings, including a piece on Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci's work, discuss how their ideas are applicable to libraries, and Loretta Gaffney's "Intellectual Freedom and Libraries" is a remarkable reflection on how the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) prompted ALA to reconsider its stance on internet filters in libraries. However, most of the essays in this book assume that readers are familiar with First Amendment law and relevant political and social philosophies, and those who are not will have a difficult time making sense of their topics. This collection would be thought-provoking reading material for a graduate level course on libraries and intellectual freedom, so long as its ideas are actively discussed and clarified. At times, the breadth of information covered in these essays seems overwhelming, which is perhaps a testament to how intellectual freedom as an idea is too often oversimplified and misunderstood. While the essays in this collection are not always accessible, they treat this complex topic with the depth it deserves. This volume will appeal most to scholars and graduate students with an interest in political and social theory.—Allison Embry, Access Services and Distance Learning Librarian, Rogers State University, Claremore, Oklahoma