Libraries and Information Services in China

This in-depth introduction to the libraries and information services of the People's Republic of China, accords particular attention to the present situation with regard to the way in which library services are structured and the types of activities in which they engage to meet the growing appetite for information throughout the country. The book consists of seven chapters. The first two cover the history of China and provide a general overview of its libraries. Chapters three through seven examine each of the principal activities in which libraries engage and reflect on where China's libraries seem to be heading. The final chapter is an abbreviated directory of principle libraries in China. Together, the discussion of these topics should provide information professionals, as well as students of comparative librarianship and sinologists interested in China's evolving institutional infrastructures, with a better understanding of the current situation and likely prospects for libraries and information services in the People's Republic of China.