Hello Caroline,

As luck would have it, a friend from the U.S. e-mailed the following excerpt
to me this week:

There are public libraries and medical libraries, secret libraries and
forbidden libraries, libraries of records and libraries of auction
catalogs, and there are archival libraries, which is a fancy term for a
collection of files and documents rather than books. Archival libraries
are usually found at universities, museums, or other quiet places -- such
as underneath a table -- where people can go and examine whatever papers
they like, in order to find the information they need.

From "The Carniviorous Carnival" by Lemony Snicket

This is a thread running through the Leomny Snicket books (which are
wonderful books I have to say!).

All the best,

Kate

Archives Department
University College Dublin





>From: Caroline Adams <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: Caroline Adams <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Archivists in fiction
>Date: Fri, 29 Nov 2002 15:27:00 +0000
>
>This is a Friday afternoon - or even an over-the-week-end request.
>
>Many moons ago, when I was editor of the Society of Archivist's Newsletter
>as it was then, I requested instances of archivists or archive offices in
>fiction. For about a year, we received enough examples to make a regular
>small feature in the back of the Newsletter. The examples did not give our
>profession a good press, viz. this example from Joanna Trollope:
>
>Crossing the Close back to the hotel car-park, Archie was intercepted by
>his sister-in-law, Clare. She worked for the city archivist, a job she
>claimed any filing clerk could do. [To give Joanna Trollope credit where
>it may not be due, this does depend on which city archivist she was working
>for.] She was wearing a grey flannel skirt and a navy-blue blazer, and was
>carrying a shopping basket containing files and a tin of cat-food. He
>kissed her and asked her how she was. She said, "Oh, you know. Dusty and
>depressed." ...She drooped. "Walk back to the car with me", Archie said.
>"I'll drive you home". He took her basket. "You and the medieval
>records". "Saxon, actually. It's amazing how fascinating it ought to be
>and how boring it is".
>
>Believe me, many examples are much worse.
>
>In 1996, I wrote up all the examples as a talk, which I am quite happy to
>send a copy to anyone interested. I have now been asked to resurrect the
>talk and give it next Friday. But there must have been other fiction about
>archivists and archive offices written since. Do we have a better press?
>
>Please would people let me know of anything they have read? The quality of
>the writing is immaterial. Please reply on or off list.
>
>Caroline Adams
>Senior Archivist
>West Sussex Record Office
>County Hall
>Chichester
>West Sussex
>01243 753617


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