90 · SPEC Kit 296
Pennsylvania State University
bookmark, which gives some basic rules for handling. If a book seems to require special
attention, please give the patron some extra time and instruction.
Please make sure that patrons are using pencils, not pens. Scan the
reading room periodically to make sure that all patrons are in compliance.
Offer foam book props to support oversized or particularly fragile books.
For pages that do not stay open or books that do not open fully, please
offer patrons book weights to lay across pages. (This is better for the book
than a sweaty hand or another book propped against a page.)
Many of our books are old and fragile, so please use extra care when
retrieving them from the shelves. Grasp the spine, not the top, of the book.
Push back the two adjacent volumes slightly in order to grasp the book
firmly. Pulling a book by the head-cap can damage it.
Use special care when pulling oversized or folio books from shelves.
Please use an appropriate ladder or stepstool. Ask for assistance from a
colleague if the item is particularly heavy or shelved on a high shelf.
(Some books are heavy enough to cause serious injury if they fell on you
or others.) Use bookends so that the remaining books on the shelf don’t
fall over, or have someone else help you so that you can hand a heavy
book to another person from the ladder. It’s difficult to hold and stabilize
the books that you’re leaving behind on the shelves. (Some books have
ties that can catch on the next book and cause them to fall.)
When removing an oversized or folio book from the bottom of a stack,
please remove the books on top one at a time, and afterward put them
back in the same manner.
Please adjust bookends on shelves so that the books remaining are in
upright position. Books should be gently compressed, not jammed
together.
Please use care when carrying books or transporting them by book trucks.
Improper loading and removal of books from book trucks is one of the
most frequent causes of damage to library materials and the most
preventable if all staff observe proper handling and transportation
techniques. Above all, do not drop books. Many a front or back board has
become detached from the force of hitting the floor.
When hand-carrying books, carry moderate armloads.
When using book trucks, place books on trucks in an upright position with
no other materials stacked on top of them. If a shelf of a truck is only
partially full, keep books vertical with a book end or with a group of books
laid flat to support the others. Do not place them on their fore-edges for
even a short period of time doing so can cause the body of a book to
come loose from its covers. Place large folio volumes flat on a shelf.
Do not overload book trucks and try to distribute the weight evenly. Do not
jam books too tightly on the shelf. Even, balanced distribution and normal
loads make the truck easier to manage and prevent it from tipping over.
Move book trucks carefully on and off elevators, around corners, and in
narrow passages, paying special attention to any material that may
protrude. If a truck seems wobbly or unstable, do not use it for rare
materials.
When books are returned to you by patrons, please take a look at the
patron’s table to make sure that items associated with the book (boxes,
flyers, red strings, pam-binder inserts, etc.) have not been left behind.
Make sure that all flyers are in the book and that the flyer on the call
number matches the call number written in the back of the book,
particularly if the patron has used more than one book. If an item is
housed in a pam-binder, please make certain that the material is indeed
inside the pam-binder and its inner wrapper. If books have red ties, please
see that the knot is tied on the spine of the book so that the bow is facing
out. Lumpy knots on the side of books can make dents in soft covers if
they are shelved too closely to other books. (If you have trouble, ask a
Rare Books staff member for help in tying a “library knot.”)
All staff should be aware of books as physical objects and be concerned
that no practice interferes with the preservation of these items. The more
staff members know about proper care and handling of books, the less
accidental damage occurs.
Pennsylvania State University
bookmark, which gives some basic rules for handling. If a book seems to require special
attention, please give the patron some extra time and instruction.
Please make sure that patrons are using pencils, not pens. Scan the
reading room periodically to make sure that all patrons are in compliance.
Offer foam book props to support oversized or particularly fragile books.
For pages that do not stay open or books that do not open fully, please
offer patrons book weights to lay across pages. (This is better for the book
than a sweaty hand or another book propped against a page.)
Many of our books are old and fragile, so please use extra care when
retrieving them from the shelves. Grasp the spine, not the top, of the book.
Push back the two adjacent volumes slightly in order to grasp the book
firmly. Pulling a book by the head-cap can damage it.
Use special care when pulling oversized or folio books from shelves.
Please use an appropriate ladder or stepstool. Ask for assistance from a
colleague if the item is particularly heavy or shelved on a high shelf.
(Some books are heavy enough to cause serious injury if they fell on you
or others.) Use bookends so that the remaining books on the shelf don’t
fall over, or have someone else help you so that you can hand a heavy
book to another person from the ladder. It’s difficult to hold and stabilize
the books that you’re leaving behind on the shelves. (Some books have
ties that can catch on the next book and cause them to fall.)
When removing an oversized or folio book from the bottom of a stack,
please remove the books on top one at a time, and afterward put them
back in the same manner.
Please adjust bookends on shelves so that the books remaining are in
upright position. Books should be gently compressed, not jammed
together.
Please use care when carrying books or transporting them by book trucks.
Improper loading and removal of books from book trucks is one of the
most frequent causes of damage to library materials and the most
preventable if all staff observe proper handling and transportation
techniques. Above all, do not drop books. Many a front or back board has
become detached from the force of hitting the floor.
When hand-carrying books, carry moderate armloads.
When using book trucks, place books on trucks in an upright position with
no other materials stacked on top of them. If a shelf of a truck is only
partially full, keep books vertical with a book end or with a group of books
laid flat to support the others. Do not place them on their fore-edges for
even a short period of time doing so can cause the body of a book to
come loose from its covers. Place large folio volumes flat on a shelf.
Do not overload book trucks and try to distribute the weight evenly. Do not
jam books too tightly on the shelf. Even, balanced distribution and normal
loads make the truck easier to manage and prevent it from tipping over.
Move book trucks carefully on and off elevators, around corners, and in
narrow passages, paying special attention to any material that may
protrude. If a truck seems wobbly or unstable, do not use it for rare
materials.
When books are returned to you by patrons, please take a look at the
patron’s table to make sure that items associated with the book (boxes,
flyers, red strings, pam-binder inserts, etc.) have not been left behind.
Make sure that all flyers are in the book and that the flyer on the call
number matches the call number written in the back of the book,
particularly if the patron has used more than one book. If an item is
housed in a pam-binder, please make certain that the material is indeed
inside the pam-binder and its inner wrapper. If books have red ties, please
see that the knot is tied on the spine of the book so that the bow is facing
out. Lumpy knots on the side of books can make dents in soft covers if
they are shelved too closely to other books. (If you have trouble, ask a
Rare Books staff member for help in tying a “library knot.”)
All staff should be aware of books as physical objects and be concerned
that no practice interferes with the preservation of these items. The more
staff members know about proper care and handling of books, the less
accidental damage occurs.
