College and Research Libraries 530 College & Research Libraries There are occasional lapses, 'as when they refer to "a flair of unreality," or fail to at- tribute a comment to an initial, rather than to a secondary source. Their view of edu- cation is wholesome and holistic. Since all are or were (Bailey, evidently the mentor of the group of authors, is dead) associ- ated with schools of education, their de- 'fense of teachers and clear recognition of their special problems are expected and understandable. Less clear, as noted ear- lier, is what the audience for this book may be. While one might wish to skim over some of the more detailed comments, the lay reader should find the book pro- vocative and informative. The pity is that multiple copies of this book are likelier to be found on the shelves of academic or professional libraries rather than in the "Current and Choice" bins of public li- braries where they would have a good chance to find the literate, concerned au- dience the book is meant to reach.-Peggy Sullivan, College of Professional Studies, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb. The Right to Information: Legal Questions ahd Policy Issues. Ed. by Jana Varlejs. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 1984. 88p. $9.95. LC 83-26750. ISBN 0-89950-097-8. It is in the maelstrom of current contro- versy about access to published informa- tion that one can appreciate The Right to In- formation. The Right to Information is the published proceedings of the twenty-first annual symposium sponsored by the • alumni and faculty of the Rutgers Gradu- ate School of Library and Information Sci- ence held on April 1, 1982. The book con- sists of four essays and an extensive bibliography about right-to-information issues. The latter emphasizes such issues as access to government information, the right to privacy, private versus public sec- tor competition in the dissemination of in- formation, censorship, and the role of technology. What is remarkable is that this conference was held three years ago and the debate is as heated as ever. "The Right to Privacy vs. the Right to Know'' by Edward Blaustein is a balanced essay about the First Amendment. Irving Louis Horowitz' article on "Librarians, Publishers and the New Information Envi- ronment'' discusses many issues includ- November 1985 ing copyright and publishing in an envi- ronment that is essentially electronic. The private sector is represented by Paul Zurkowski's contribution that focuses on the AT&T divestiture and the distribution of Medline, among other problems. The last essay by Shirley Echelman, ''The Right to Know: The Librarian's Responsi- bilities" rounds out what must have been a truly stimulating conference. The words "right to information" bring to mind two discrete concepts: the right to publish and the right to access published information. For the first of these con- cepts, consider the obstacles an idea must go through before making its way into print. From the conception of the idea to its printed form, editorial judgments, market conditions, and distribution net- works must be faced. Once these obstacles have been overcome, there are other hur- dles, mostly external and sometimes in- visible. Pressure and special interest groups certainly fall into these categories. Then there is the governmental presence that controls book and magazine rates that are admittedly still preferential. It is also the government that passes regulatory actions such as copyright legislation that can have a major impact on the printed word. Once this outer veneer is stripped away, there is the more direct threat of the cen- sor. In the narrow sense, censorship is the hiring of an official censor to read manu- scripts and pass judgment on their suit- ability for publication. Fortunately, there is little of this type of censorship in the United States. However, in the broader sense of the definition, censorship is any action taken to remove a printed item from its potential audience. When arguments of libel, obscenity, and national security are factored into the equation, it is a won- der anything makes it to print at all. The second broad concept that comes to mind when the phrase "right to informa- tion" is mentioned, deals with the "right to access published information.'' Indeed, in the last decade this has become one of the key information policy issues. This is where The Right to Information becomes a valuable addition to the literature. The ''free or fee'' debate over accessing online databases is one such issue. There is also the question of cutbacks at the Govern- ment Printing Office that impacts on ac- cess to census data. The number of issues is growing. The question of access is especially pro- nounced since the arrival of the Reagan administration in Washington in 1981. It appears that those people directing the "Second American Revolution" have their own ideas of what a national infor- mation policy should be. The zealous im- plementation of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 (Public Law 96-511) is at the heart of the de facto Reagan administra- tion information policy. The act directed the OMB to develop federal information policies and standards and to reduce in- formation collection, among other things. There is also the move to increase the amount of information that is classified (Executive Order 12356). Polemics aside, there are individuals, some librarians in particular; who do not share the Reagan . administration's view on the access to in- formation. The reduced access is espe- cially true for government documents. Pe- ter Hernon and Charles McClure are perhaps the most vocal among those har- boring reservations about recent govern- ment changes. In their recent article in the Drexel Library Quarterly (75, no. 3 [Summer 1984]), "Impact from U.S. Government Printing on Public Access to Informa- tion,'' they spell out what changes at GPO have meant to library users. The American Library Association's ALA Washington Newsletter also has been monitoring events in Washington vis-a-vis access to information. So far they have issued five reports that chronicle the events of the last few years. The first four of these chronolo- gies have been published as a book, Less Access to Less Information by and about the U.S. Government, a 1981-1984 Chronology: April, 1981-December 1984. The Right to Information enhances the reader's appreciation of issues regarding access to information, especially from a historical perspective. It is brief, cogent and easy to read. The discussions at the end of the four chapters adequately em- bellish the speakers' comments. Although some of the specific issues brought up at the conference may have been resolved since 1982, the broader questions have Recent Publications 531 not. Reading this book was in many ways the next best thing to attending the conference.-Tom Smith, Paul Himmelfarb Health Sciences Library, The George Washing- ton University Medical Center, Washington, D.C. Middleton, Bernard C. The Restoration of Leather Bindings. rev. ed. Chicago: American Library Assn., 1984. 266p. $25. LC 83-15371. ISBN 0-8389-0391-6. Ritzenthaler, Mary Lynn. Archives and Manuscripts, Conservation: A Manual on Physical Care and Management. Chicago: Society of American Archivists, 1983. 144p. $10 LC 83-50878. ISBN 0-931828- 58-9. The premise of The Restoration of Leather Bindings (first edition, 1972) is that restora- tion of old and worn bookbindings is more than a technical skill: rather, it is a special- ized craft that calls for an understanding of historical methods, specific technical terms, and aesthetic styles in order to be developed fully. The second edition is a commendable follow-up to the first, con- tinuing from this premise. Additions to the book are intended pri- marily to update the binder's technical ter- minology and resource listings, with the only new section being a detailed descrip- tion of the rebinding of antiquarian books. The Restoration of Leather Bindings is thus an extensive instruction manual and refer- ence guide for those who practice or wish to practice leather bookbinding restora- tion. In the section concerned with terminol- ogy, bookbinding styles, tools, tech- niques, and materials are defined and ex- plained in such a way as to provide historical and procedural background to their usage. The new edition differs from the first in that stylistic adjustments and typographic corrections have been made as well as a few new subjects added. The section on tools, equipment and materials follows that on terms by provid- ing advice on supplies and their usage. For example, "Gold," in the section on terms is described in its three forms used in bookbinding; in the workshop section, gold leaf is recommended as a necessary supply item in contrast to foil. The 1984 edition contains a part devoted to "recent