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CHAPTER IX

BOOK SELECTION

The remarks and suggestions already made on the subject of book-selection throughout this little work render further comment on the theoretical side of the question unnecessary. What will be attempted in this chapter will take the form of a few practical hints, and a series of suggestions in class order of books which may be considered eminently desirable as the foundation stock of a small municipal library. For reasons of space and utility, it is not considered wise to give titles in the case of a large number of works suggested, because any one directed to a subject and an author associated with it can generally contrive to discover who and what is meant. Thus, if the works of Brown, Jones and Robinson are recommended as representative in the subject of costume, there will be little trouble in finding out who is meant, by reference to full catalogues or bibliographies. So with pure literature. It is not necessary to do more than specify the names of Scott, Dickens, Thackeray, Hugo or Dumas in fiction. It will be understood that sets of the

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