Description

Post-Second World War mass immigration from Eastern and Central Europe to Britain produced active émigré communities with strong ethnic and political identities. Libraries were an integral part of these communities, their activities and development. This study investigates the phenomenon of community libraries in their particular historical appearance – those Baltic and Slavonic libraries which were established by the immigrant communities in Britain in the second half of the twentieth century. Twelve libraries representing six ethnic groups: Belarusians, Croatians, Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians, Poles and Ukrainians, – were surveyed in 2005. The patterns in the establishing of libraries, the present state and significance of their collections, their adopted work practices, as well as the influence on the libraries of the democratic transformations in home countries and the role of libraries in the life of émigré groups, in creating and maintaining ethnic identity is discussed. ISBN 090-1067-15-6. Available from lulu.com in print.