Book Reviews 521

a variety of reasons, did not come under 
federal law until the Sound Recording 
Act of 1972. Though certainly a milestone 
in the record industry’s efforts to quash 
piracy, Cummings notes that this new law 
was a harbinger of more changes to come, 
and it “marked a turning point in Ameri-
can thought about culture, technology, and 
property” of all types. As the Copyright 
Act of 1976 and subsequent laws and rul-
ings would later reflect, “the new way of 
thinking emphasized protection of capital 
outlays…rather than incentives [for artists 
to create new works]. By reinterpreting 
copyright in this way, Congress showed a 
willingness to view whatever was good for 
business as being good for copyright and 
the public in general” (135). This is one of 
many strong, compelling points conveyed 
in the book, characterizing not only how 
copyright was remade during the twen-
tieth century but also how large media 
companies have gained the upper hand.

Though ultimately the record industry 
lobbied successfully for changes in the 
law to protect its interests, Cummings 
observes a growing uneasiness about 
the current state of copyright, noting “a 
diverse movement among scholars and 
activists [that has] emerged to counter 
the perceived excesses of intellectual 
property law in the twenty-first century” 
(203). With Democracy of Sound, Cummings 
joins that movement, expanding and re-
framing ideas put forth in other notable 
recent books that grapple with the past, 
present, and future of technology, copy-
right, and personal liberty, such as Lewis 
Hyde’s Common as Air: Revolution, Art, and 
Ownership (New York: Farrar, Straus, and 
Giroux, 2010) and Siva Vaidhyanathan’s 
The Googlization of Everything (And Why We 
Should Worry) (Berkeley: University of Cal-
ifornia Press, 2011), along with serious ap-
praisals of the record industry, like Steve 
Knopper ’s Appetite for Self-Destruction: 
The Spectacular Crash of the Record Industry 
in the Digital Age (New York: Free Press, 
2009). “Uncritical support for intellectual 
property rights places private interests 
high above those of the public” (217), 

Cummings concludes, and Democracy of 
Sound is an important resource to inform 
further such critique. For that reason, 
this book should be part of every library 
collection, and it is essential reading for 
all librarians, who will benefit from the 
historical lessons and be reminded of the 
fundamental freedoms our work relies 
on and must strive to uphold.—D.J. Hoek, 
Northwestern University. 

Tomas A. Lipinski. The Librarian’s Legal 
Companion for Licensing Information 
Resources and Services. Chicago: Neal-
Schuman, 2013. 734p. paper, $130.00 
(ISBN: 978-1-55570-610-4). LCCN: 
2012-18173. 

The Librarian’s Legal Companion for Licens-
ing Information Resources and Services will 
prove to be “the Bible” for librarians—
particularly academic librarians—who 
seek to learn, and navigate, the intricacies 
of licensing agreements. As Professor at 
the School of Library and Information 
Science, Indiana University-Purdue Uni-
versity, Indianapolis, author Tomas A. 
Lipinski, JD, LLM, PhD, is well positioned 
to present the legal issues of licensing in a 
manner narrowly tailored to his principal 
audience, librarians and library admin-
istrators. His research is comprehensive 
and impressive, particularly when he cites 
case law and legal literature as evidence. 
Best of all, this handbook is useful to read-
ers with multiple levels of experience with 
licensure—from the novice to the expert, 
rendering it an invaluable reference tool.

In the Preface, Lipinski clearly articu-
lates his authorial intent. He states, “My 
reason for writing The Librarian’s Legal 
Companion for Licensing Information Re-
sources and Services is simple: to allow you 
to read and understand the law surround-
ing the contracting of information content 
and, to a lesser extent, information ser-
vices in library and related settings.” (xv) 
He emphasizes the role of contract law as 
foundation for all discussion of licensing. 
He emphasizes the role of contract law, 
explores the “intersection of licensing 
and copyright” (xv), and discusses more 



522 College & Research Libraries September 2013

advanced concerns, such as advertising, 
fair trade, and other consumer issues. 
Again, the beauty of this book is that it 
provides information for all levels of read-
ers, supplementing the standard library 
school curriculum, which is frequently 
deficient in providing instruction on 
practical licensing issues.

Easy to use, the book is organized into 
three overarching parts. Part I, “Before You 
Read the License: Essential Background 
Concepts,” provides a basic introduction 
to contract law. It contains four chap-
ters that unfurl the context for licensing 
agreements and explains why librarians 
need to be acquainted with the rules gov-
erning contract law. These chapter titles 
are self-explanatory and provide ready 
access points for readers. In chapter 1, 
“The Information Acquisition Landscape 
Today,” the author establishes context 
for his discussion and demonstrates the 
need for librarians to acquire additional 
knowledge regarding contract, licensing, 
and copyright law. In the second chapter, 
“Basic Contract Law Concepts,” he sup-
plies a fundamental lesson in contract 
law, defining and explaining such legal 
terms of art as “offer” and “acceptance.” 
Chapters 3 and 4, “Contract Formation and 
Enforceability” and “Broader Legal and 
Policy Issues in Licensing,” expand the 
discussion and summarize salient points.

Part II, “The Range and Nature of 
Information Resource Licenses That Li-
braries Encounter,” proceeds to address 
more particular, complex issues, such 
as electronic signatures, shrink-wrap 
licenses, basic music and media licenses, 
and others. Lipinski shows readers how 
contract law informs these licensing 
concerns. More advanced readers can 
enhance their knowledge by examining 
the nine chapters in Part II, learning about 
“Electronic Signatures in the Global and 
National Commerce Act and the Uniform 
Electronic Transactions Act,” “Negotiated 
and Nonnegotiated Licenses,” “Shrink-
Wrap, Click-Wrap, and Browse-Wrap 
Licenses,” “End User License Agreements 
(Websites),” “General Public Licenses, 

Open Source Agreements, and Creative 
Commons Agreements,” “Basic Music 
and Media Licenses,” “The Uniform Com-
puter Information Transactions Act,” “The 
Developing Law of Implied Licenses,” 
and “The Future Look of Licenses.” These 
chapters are especially helpful to librar-
ians who wish to advance their knowledge 
of the statutory and common law bases 
of various sorts of licensing agreements.

Finally, Part III, “A Licensing Refer-
ence Toolkit for Everyday Use,” focuses 
upon the practical application of licensing 
concepts. Here Lipinski begins by offer-
ing “A Basic Licensing Glossary,” which 
defines essential terms, such as “fair use,” 
“authorized users,” “proprietary rights,” 
and so on. After setting the groundwork 
for comprehension, in “Four Common 
Library Licenses Deconstructed,” Lipin-
ski analyzes a handful of typical licenses 
that librarians might expect to encounter. 
These include the Access Newspaper 
Archive License, the BioOne License, the 
Nature (Academic: Americas) License 
and the Amazon.com Kindle License. By 
deconstructing the varieties of licenses, he 
instructs his readers on the ways in which 
licenses operate. In the following chapter, 
“Twenty Sample Key Clauses to Look for 
in Content Licenses,” Lipinski enumerates 
the relevant legal terms of art and explains 
their significance in plain English, so that 
librarians can understand the meaning 
of licensure language. In the concluding 
chapter, “Look before You License: 126 
Questions and Answers for Evaluating 
Licenses,” he provides additional practical 
advice for librarians who will be evaluat-
ing licensure terms and making purchas-
ing decisions. In essence, this chapter 
functions as a checklist of considerations 
that librarians must take into account 
before entering into a licensing contract.

In addition to providing a thorough, 
lucid explanation of every facet of the li-
censure process, The Librarian’s Legal Com-
panion for Licensing Information Resources 
and Services offers extraordinarily helpful 
“Summary Points” at the conclusion of 
each chapter. These are ideal reviews of 



Book Reviews 523

chapter content, and the “Endnotes” sec-
tion following each chapter are superb, 
focusing on legal authorities that sup-
port Lipinski’s interpretation of the law. 
Fortunately, though…[etc.]” Fortunately, 
though, the author has relegated these 
to the end of the chapter, so that readers 
who wish to analyze the legal basis of 
the content have extensive means for do-
ing so, while readers who do not require 
intensive legal documentation can easily 
skip the notes and still benefit from the 
content. Readers who choose to do so can 
also gain selective access to the content by 
using the superb subject index included 
at the end of the handbook. 

In conclusion, it is readily apparent 
that this hefty handbook is the “go-to” 
resource for librarians who wish to learn 
more about the intricacies of licensing. 
As the definitive source, it offers helpful, 
practical information for all audience 
levels, thereby rendering it indispensable 
for all academic libraries. Ultimately, The 
Librarian’s Legal Companion for Licensing 
Information Resources and Services is unpar-
alleled in its coverage and will remain so 
for a very long time.—Lynne F. Maxwell, 
West Virginia University College of Law.

Steven K. Galbraith and Geoffrey D. 
Smith. Rare Book Librarianship: An 
Introduction and Guide. Santa Barbara: 
Libraries Unlimited, 2012. 185p. acid-
free paper, $55.00 (ISBN 978-1-59158-
881-8). LC 2012-012354.

Rare Book Librarianship: An Introduction and 
Guide by Steven K. Galbraith and Geoffrey 
D. Smith marks one of the first handbooks 
published about rare book librarianship 
and rare books in over twenty years. This 
publication is also the first to include in-
formation about the impact of digital tech-
nologies and how new technologies relate 
to the management and maintenance of 
rare book collections. The authors’ goal for 
the book “…is to help prepare students for 
a career in this exciting and challenging 
field and to offer guidance to librarians 
who are relatively new to the field” (xvi). 
The book is divided into twelve chapters, 

each touching on important skills and 
knowledge needed to manage rare book 
collections successfully. Additionally, each 
chapter offers suggested practices that re-
late to collection development and work-
ing with rare book dealers, handling and 
conserving rare items, and education and 
outreach as it relates to users. Each chap-
ter concludes with a section of notes and 
further readings, and the book closes with 
a comprehensive index. It is the authors’ 
intention that the topics discussed in this 
book will be applicable to library science 
graduate students, rare book librarians, 
and any professional working with special 
collections in a library setting.

The first chapter, “A Brief History of 
Rare Book Libraries,” provides a short 
survey history of rare book libraries from 
the late nineteenth century to the pres-
ent day. There is some mention of very 
early rare book collections and libraries 
to help convey the evolution of rare book 
libraries through time. The concepts that 
determine what makes a book rare and 
where many rare book libraries began are 
sprinkled throughout this chapter, as well 
as information concerning the formation 
of academic and independent rare book 
libraries. The authors conclude the chapter 
with a discussion about rare book libraries 
in the twenty-first century and the pros-
pect of a bright future in these libraries.

Chapter 2, “Rare Books as Texts and 
Historical Artifacts,” is divided into two 
parts: Bibliography and Books from the 
Hand-Press Period 1450–1800; and Mod-
ern Printing. This chapter discusses in 
depth all the fundamental components 
associated with rare books and rare 
book librarianship. Galbraith and Smith 
state, “We would suggest that the great-
est joy of any rare book librarian is the 
actual handling of books for the purpose 
of description in all its physical aspects 
from format to paper to type to binding 
and more” (13). Part I covers the basic 
definition and aspects of bibliography 
including types, descriptions, printing 
process, and scholarly importance of 
bibliographies. Part II discusses in detail