Librarians do everything: plumber, carpenter, printer technician—if something needs to get done, librarians do it, and typically, the duties they assume are not something they learned in library school. General contracting and interior design are also among the duties many librarians will assume at some point in their career. In this book, author Gail Staines approaches library design and redesign from the user’s perspective (whether the user be staff or patron) and focuses on how to incorporate the seven principles of universal design when planning new or remodeled library spaces. These seven principles include design that can be used by people regardless of their physical or mental challenges, designed flexibility of choice (for instance, with regard to handedness), intuitive design, informative design, minimization of potential accidents through design, usefulness enhanced by design, and design that can be maneuvered easily.

Clearly intended for busy professionals, the work is comprised of short chapters that cover the importance of interior design in creating spaces that are universally friendly and conducive to learning. The book also addresses how to identify potential collaborators, such as the writing center or the teaching resource center, during a redesign project.

In the first five chapters, Staines provides practical advice on how to approach redesign projects, including details about ergonomics, lighting, flooring, and so on. Staines also explores comfort (climate control, furniture) and the expectations of today’s students with regard to Web connectivity and amenities. She also addresses the important concepts of security and risk reduction. Staines provides advice on what to consider when designing group study rooms, individual study spaces, information literacy classrooms, and information commons. Because libraries are frequently asked to share space with other departments within an institution, Staines also provides recommendations on some important questions to consider when sharing space (for instance, questions about service hours, IT support, staffing, and so forth).

The sixth chapter provides useful, real-world vignettes about transforming library space using the principles of universal design. These vignettes—rearranging the reference area, creating more group study areas, replacing a floor, combining related services in one area, observing undergraduates’ use of space—provide relevant background on the project as well as suggested actions and processes.

The seventh chapter is a summary that gives busy professionals the chance to quickly learn what they need or do not need. Additionally, abstracts are provided for all chapters, a feature that allows the reader to quickly glean the contents of a chapter to determine its potential relevance. The work is up-to-date and well researched with a substantial bibliography.

This book does not go into the minutia of all aspects of redesign projects (although the extensive bibliography could help in this regard), but it remains a useful guide for starting projects for which most librarians have had little training.