Library on Wheels: Mary Lemist Titcomb and America's First Bookmobile

This handsomely designed, well-researched biography pays homage to Mary Titcomb, librarian and founder of the first bookmobile in the U.S. From a poor New Hampshire family, Titcomb doesn't take no for an answer as she pursues her education and then delivers books to a large rural Maryland population in 1905. Her library's first horse-drawn book wagon is mistaken for a "dead wagon" until she has the wheels and door panels painted a "bright, cheery red to avoid any confusion with a hearse." Numerous black-and-white photographs, articles, letters, postcards, and other archival documents are combined in scrapbooklike assemblages on goldenrod, blue, and antique white pages. The back matter includes a photographic timeline of bookmobiles through the decades, as well as a lengthy author's note explaining how Glenn (Just What Mama Needs) worked to secure a headstone for Titcomb's unmarked grave in the same Sleepy Hollow cemetery where several famous New England authors, including Nathaniel Hawthorne, lie buried. A select bibliography and index are also included. Ages 8-12. (Apr.)

Gr 3-7--A trip through history that will warm the hearts of librarians. Mary Lemist Titcomb was an innovator who pushed gender and career boundaries in the early 20th century. Glenn uses examples from Titcomb's life to subtly emphasize the marginalized status of most white women during this time period. (Titcomb had to work twice as hard as white male peers and was often unpaid.) Not even deterred by a dismissal from Melvil Dewey, Titcomb tirelessly pursued her vision of libraries that served the poor and the middle class--not just the rich. The "book wagon," also known as the bookmobile, was one answer to this mission; Titcomb was able to travel to and serve remote areas with book collections. Glenn incorporates many quotes from Titcomb's contemporaries into the narrative, providing a well-rounded view of Titcomb and the reception of her work. In addition, the author has collected a wonderful array of photographs, archival letters and postcards, and other contemporaneous memorabilia to support the narrative, and all are excellently reproduced. The book's design resembles that of a well-organized scrapbook, one with plenty of space and room for readers to browse. VERDICT Bibliophiles, history lovers, and fans of libraries will thoroughly enjoy this pleasing addition to nonfiction collections.--Erin Olsen, The Brearley School, NY