Five thousand years ago, the Sumerians created writing, and established libraries to preserve the hymns, prayers, and documents necessary for progress in both religion and commerce. Ever since, libraries have reflected and shaped the society that created them, preserving the thoughts and deeds of their ancestral cultures, and transmitting them to our own generation and descendants.This book -- the first of its kind in many years -- describes the crucial role libraries played in ancient Egypt, Han-dynasty China, the ancient Western Classical world (the great library of Alexandria, which was actually lost to us in stages over many years), the Baghdad of Harun-al-Rashid, and medieval and Renaissance Europe. It continues with the libraries of colonial America, the Library of Congress, university libraries, and today's large public library systems.