Sociological service of the central regional library of Izobilnenskymunicipal district: from work experience
In the early 90s, librarianship in our country was on the verge of significant changes. Many central library systems have already begun profiling libraries. We remember the first libraries of family reading, libraries-museums, libraries of historical and spiritual revival, etc.

In 1991, on the initiative of director L. G. Matorikina, a sociological center was created on the basis of the central regional library, the research of which helped determine the directions of socio-cultural programs for libraries in the Izobilnensky district.

Thus, for many years, the Ptichenskaya rural library (the “Seven-I” program), the Baklanovskaya rural library (the “Cossacks” program), the Staroizobilnenskaya rural library (the “Ancient Antiquity” program), and the Ryzdvyanenskaya village library (the “Ecology” program) have been successfully working on targeted programs ").

In the process of implementing these programs, many questions arose regarding the study of the information needs of readers and the compliance of library collections with them, the introduction of the most effective forms and methods of mass work, attracting potential readers to the library, etc., which needed to be answered. As a result, the ongoing episodic studies became systematic.

To provide a scientific basis for this work, the specialists of the Central District Hospital developed a package of regulatory and methodological documents: a standard regulation on the sociological service, a concept for the development of the sociological service for the next 5 years, a comprehensive target program for the development of the sociological center and a work plan for the sociological service. A series of classes on sociological research was also developed and staff training sessions were held at the School of Library Innovation.

Since 1995, fruitful cooperation between the central library and the research department of the Russian National Library (St. Petersburg) began on reading problems in small towns of Russia. The following problems have been studied on the basis of district libraries:

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  Contemporary literature: scale of values;
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  Reading modern domestic literature, historical fiction, reading for young people;
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  Modern literary process and real reader demand;
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  The place and role of books in the life of society;
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  The fate of literary and artistic magazines and their role in preserving the unified cultural space of Russia;
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  The path of a book to the reader and the role of libraries in this process;
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  Reader preferences in the libraries of the Izobilnenskaya Central Library.

Days of continuous recording of reader demand were held in the district's libraries: reader forms were studied, a survey of readers was conducted, and the reading range of various categories of readers was identified.

The Russian National Library has published information publications “Reading in Russian Libraries”, which uses data obtained during sociological research conducted in the libraries of the Izobilnensky district.

In 2002, the sociological center of the Central District Library took part in the second All-Russian competition of municipal libraries “Modern trends in serving readers” with materials on the study of readers and reading in the Izobilnenskaya Central Library and was awarded a special prize.

The most important sociodemographic factor influencing the demand for libraries today is, of course, the education sector. We are seeing an increase in the share of students among library visitors, and the percentage of requests related directly or indirectly to education, to the regional component, and to programs of secondary and higher educational institutions is growing even faster. Today these requests account for more than 50%. Information services are used by 38% of education workers. Marketing research “Information support for the educational process” conducted by the Central District Library allows you to monitor the situation in schools and libraries, including adjusting the library’s work on scientific and methodological support for the teaching process. Research helps to find out how ready teachers are to work with new programs, use new technologies in teaching, and collaborate with partners.

The Central District Hospital pays special attention to informing socially vulnerable groups of the population. The main goal of this work is to create an information system for people with disabilities, including information support centers. The priority tasks of the sociological service in this area are: studying the information needs of this category of readers, analyzing the state of library collections, organizing its completion and expanding the range of periodicals, providing disabled people and the elderly with copies of legislative documents relating to social protection and pensions.

The Izobilnenskaya Central Library has developed the “Concept of Continuous Environmental Education and Upbringing,” which defines the main directions of work aimed at creating a system of information support for environmental education and mass dissemination of environmental knowledge. The Ryzdvyanensky village library became the base platform for work in this direction. The sociological center of the Central District Hospital has developed questionnaires and prepared materials for conducting surveys and interviews on this topic. More than 20 specialists from 11 teams and more than 60 students were interviewed. The results obtained made it possible to identify the information needs of respondents and analyze their attitude to the environmental problem. And librarians were able to determine the most effective forms of working with different categories of readers.

The Central District Hospital pays much attention to issues of youth adaptation in society, their interests and leisure activities. Marketing research conducted by the sociological service helps to identify the degree of socialization of our youth and outline the role of the library in this process. Employees of the Moscow, Novotroitsk and Solnechnodolsk libraries place a special emphasis on working with young people. The connection with Novotroitsk Vocational School No. 36 and Moscow Vocational School No. 43 became close.

The concern of library institutions in the region about the increasing negative phenomena among young people contributes to the cooperation of interested organizations in the prevention of alcoholism and drug addiction. By joining forces, the education department, the central library and the Izobilny deanery developed a comprehensive program “Spirituality. Moral. Culture". Its implementation was preceded by research work. The Sociological Center conducted surveys “Drugs and Youth” (teenagers and their parents were surveyed) and “Morals and Spirituality: What do these concepts mean to you?”

One of the most attractive topics that the sociological service works on is reading and leisure in the family. Problems such as a young family, raising children, family relationships, and conflict situations in the family are closely intertwined here.

Conducted sociological research on local self-government issues gives us the opportunity to study the public opinion of the population on the most important aspects of the life of municipalities, determine the reading range of specialists, the level of awareness and political culture of respondents, identify the most pressing topics of information, and find more effective forms of servicing them.

While studying the interests of readers, we came across a group of extraordinary people who are interested in theater, painting, classics and poetry. At their request, a literary theater was formed on the basis of the literary and musical club “Sobesednik”, which delighted our readers with theatrical performances based on the works of I. Bunin, M. Tsvetaeva, M. Zoshchenko, I. Ilf and E. Petrov, A. Pushkin, A. Akhmatova, A. Chekhov.

The Izobilny district literary association “Svetyolka”, operating on the basis of the Central District Hospital, unites writers of the region - venerable authors and those just starting to try their hand at writing. Specialists from the sociological center conducted a series of interviews and surveys in schools in the district in order to identify talented youth, thanks to which the literary association “Svetelka” was replenished with new members.

The library is currently becoming a center of attraction for people who are looking for the truth, their meaning in life. For this category of readers, the Central District Hospital operates a Sunday school for children and adults, among whom sociological surveys are also constantly conducted, touching on such vital issues as morality, spirituality, attitudes towards Orthodoxy, the holy places of the Fatherland and others.

The data obtained in the course of many studies conducted by the sociological center of the Central District Hospital of the Izobilnensky district are used not only in library practice. We try to bring them to the general public through the media. The data from the conducted research is also used by specialists of the Central District Hospital when preparing works for participation in all-Russian and regional competitions.

The acquired experience in conducting sociological research was reflected in the organization of problem-solving seminars and round tables, in improving the quality of library services to readers and raising the professional level of library workers.

The sociological service of the Izobilnenskaya Central Library Service sees the prospect of its activities in creating favorable conditions for promptly providing users with information, modernizing librarianship in the region, introducing new information and management technologies, and forecasting priority areas of library services for the population of the region.
Anointed Valentina Vladimirovna,

methodologist of MUK "Trunovskaya Intersettlement

central district library"
Questioning and its role in attracting readers

to the Trunovsky district libraries
There are many communication means and techniques for getting closer to the reader, finding out his interests - individual conversations, interactive forms of work, observing readers visiting the library, and much more. Our library experience in studying the reader suggests that the most effective and efficient forms of study are questionnaires, testing, surveys, collection and analysis of reader feedback, i.e. techniques used in sociological research.

The librarians of the municipal institution “Trunovo Inter-Settlement Central Library” have been systematically studying readers, especially intensifying this work in the last five to six years. The reasons for this are the following: firstly, knowing our reader, we can serve him better, have a clearer idea of ​​what a modern person needs from a library; promptly take into account the requirements, requests and wishes of all categories of readers; identify trends in the development of information needs and thereby anticipate their implementation; influence the acquisition of the fund. Secondly, taking into account the research results, we plan the further work of libraries. Thirdly, questionnaires, tests and surveys, if carried out correctly, are usually liked by readers. This helps to establish closer contact and the opportunity to invite the reader to a frank conversation, despite the fact that the librarian observes the condition of anonymity. Fourthly, with our mini-studies, we try to awaken readers’ interest in some topical and important issues, and unobtrusively draw their attention to things that you don’t always ask or talk about.

Conducted for children readers game-questionnaire “Who owns these feelings?” The address to the reader says: “In fantasy works and fairy tales there are plots when people lose their feelings for one reason or another. Some people sell them, as in D. Crews’ story “Tim Tyler or Sold Laughter,” while other people lose these feelings and this loss turns into a real tragedy for the person. Remember how this happened to Kai in H.H. Andersen’s fairy tale “The Snow Queen”? Let's imagine the incredible: our friends from various literary works have lost their feelings.

Lost feelings are listed for you. Tell me who to return them to. Just don’t make a mistake, otherwise a person will cease to be himself.”

IN survey “I love these books!” P 77 respondents aged from 9 to 15 years took part. Among them are 72% women and 28% men. Readers were asked to name their favorite writers, favorite books, and favorite genres, and also answer the question: “How do you know about books that are worth reading? Whose advice do you usually follow?

The most authoritative recommendations in choosing books to read are the advice of teachers, library workers and parents. But television does not at all make young people want to touch a book. The surveyed category of readers is looking for an exciting plot in the book, opportunities to learn goodness, and cultivate fortitude. Many expressed a desire for it to be written with humor. The author’s language and ease of perception are of no small importance. The bulk of the respondents’ favorite books are written in an action-packed fantasy style (J. R. R. Tolkien, J. K. Rowling, N. Perumov, etc.). Teenagers also know and read universally recognized classics - A. S. Pushkin, W. Shakespeare, A. Dumas.

On September 8, 2007, library workers held "Reader's Day" campaign. Employees of the ICB and the Don Rural Library conducted surveys of the population “What are they reading today?”, “What is reading for you?”, “Name the five best modern books” and “What books have influenced your life and how have they changed it?” On this day, 49 people aged from 15 to 60 years were interviewed.

The survey was conducted in the most visited parts of the village of Donskoy: in the park, in the central part of the village. Each librarian who conducted the survey wore a badge with a holiday symbol. I would like to note that almost all respondents treated our action with respect and understanding and made contact easily, and instead of a traditional survey, we had mini-conversations about the role of books in a person’s life, about their favorite works and their authors.

The most difficult question for survey participants was “What books influenced your life and how did they change it?” Many significant books were named: M. A. Sholokhov “Quiet Don”, L. N. Tolstoy “War and Peace”, M. Mitchell “Gone with the Wind”, M. A. Bulgakov “The Master and Margarita”, L. Voynich “ Gadfly”, A. Dumas “The Three Musketeers” and “The Count of Monte Cristo”, M. Gorky “Childhood”, M. Prilezhaeva “The Fourth Height”, V. Titova “In Spite of All Deaths”, O. Krasnikova-Yashchenko “Hear, I’m Russian!”, poems by V. Kochetkov and novels by D. Steele. But the majority of respondents could not answer how these books influenced their character and actions. Here are a few statements that were made about the role of books: “D. Steele’s books help in raising children,” “V. Kochetkov’s poems teach you to value your loved ones”; “the works of M. Sholokhov, V. Bykov open life, teach perseverance, patience and honesty,” etc. But there were also such statements: “books don’t have much influence on my life, because it’s all fiction,” “ I decide everything in my life myself, not books.”

During the Year of the Family, celebrated in 2008, a number of libraries in the Trunovsky district celebrated Questionnaire “About yourself, about your family, about your desires.” The main objective of the study is to study how children, adolescents and young people relate to their families, to find out about their relationships with their parents, and what problems bother them.

In the rural library of the village of Donskoy, child readers aged 9 to 11 years (31 people) took part in the study. To the question “I want our family...” the children unanimously answered: the family should be “friendly, strong, happy.”

“I don’t want the family...” to have quarrels, unpleasant situations and illnesses, to “leave me”, “to wish me harm.”

“I want to go with my mother to the park, walk and play, go on vacation, spend free time together, go to concerts, just go somewhere, to shops and cinema. Several answers included the following: “I want to live together,” “I want to live together,” “I want to live in the same house.”

To the question “I want to be with my dad...” the answers were as follows: “to be always with us”, “to be friends with me”, “not to yell at us”, “to be always kind”, “to love me”, “to live with my mother” “,” “was the best in the world,” “so that dad wouldn’t get sick and live long.”

“I don’t like it when mom…” swears, and 90% of children’s mothers swear. The rest of the children noted that they do not like it when their mother is upset, worried, tired, crying, or sick.

What is the best thing in life for children? “My beloved, dear family,” absolutely everyone answered.

An analysis of the questionnaires revealed problems and mistakes that parents make when raising children of this age, believing that the main thing is to punish the child in a timely manner for wrongdoing, not realizing that one cannot transfer one’s problems to the fragile souls of children, and not take into account the feelings of one’s child. The results of the survey were used by librarians to adjust their work with parent audiences, when designing thematic book exhibitions, and compiling memos and booklets.
A survey was conducted in February 2008 “What does reading mean to me?” The objects of the study were students of the 11th social and humanitarian class (6 girls and 14 boys).

The purpose of the survey: to study the reading preferences of young people, their attitude towards books and what they read.

During the analysis of questionnaires, librarians were faced with the fact that young people do not know how to share their impressions of what they read, they do not have ideals in literature, and many do not have favorite works. Based on the results of the survey, librarians outlined a work plan, which includes:

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  recommending to young people literature necessary for study and recreation, through organizing round tables, reading conferences, presenting book exhibitions, conducting reviews of books of cultural value, for the socialization of the young person’s personality;
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  supplementing the collections of municipal libraries with classical literature, as well as books by modern authors - winners of prizes in the field of literature.

The research activities carried out by the libraries of the Trunovsky district make it possible to create a portrait of the modern reader, identify needs, understand his views, find out opinions on a variety of problems and issues, and determine his intellectual, psychological and moral levels. Thanks to this, we make timely adjustments to our work in this direction.

2018

In the 2018 phase, 37 research bases out of 51 constantly working with the Russian National Library (~73%) took part.

The DS was carried out in April-October 2018 (the bases conducted the study on days convenient for them). 36 bases from 25 regions participated. 2518 people were surveyed.

The bulk of book distribution was fiction (approx. 86%). About 80% of this figure is made up of domestic fiction, foreign literature - about 20%. The bulk of the issued fiction (both domestic and foreign) are books of entertainment genres (detective, romance, adventure).The leaders of book distribution in the top three were T. Polyakova, E. Vilmont, M. Metlitskaya

The book issue of industry literature amounted to just over 10% of the total book issue; approx. 250 copies literature. The most common topics of requests are law, history, medicine, and psychology.

Questionnaire for the head (specialist) of the service department for working with industry literature - information was received from 35 libraries (40 questionnaires).

2017

In the 2017 phase, 37 research bases out of 51 constantly working with the Russian National Library (~73%) took part.

The DS was carried out in April-October 2017 (the bases conducted the study on days convenient for them). 35 bases from 23 regions participated. 2285 people were surveyed.

The main part of book distribution was fiction (approx. 70%). About 80% of this figure is made up of domestic fiction, foreign literature - about 20%.

The leaders of book distribution in the top three were D. Dontsova, V. Kolychev, T. Polyakova.

106 thematic requests for industry literature were recorded; approx. 500 copies literature. The most common topics of requests are history, handicrafts, and psychology.

Questionnaire for the head (specialist) of the acquisition department - information was received from 33 libraries.

Questionnaire for the head (specialist) of the service department - information was received from 34 libraries.

Questionnaire “Popular scientific literature in library collections and reading by Russians” - information received from 33 libraries.

2016

Day of continuous recording of reader demand (information from 35 databases, 27 regions, 2536 people surveyed)

Library questionnaire for the Year of Russian Cinema (information received from 31 databases)

Questionnaire Survey of fellow countrymen for the Year of Cinema (information received from 23 databases)

2015

Day of continuous recording of reader demand (information from 34 databases, 20 regions, 2046 people surveyed)

Questionnaire - characteristics of the library’s work with literary and artistic journals (information received from 26 databases, 20 regions)

Questionnaire - characteristics of the results of the Year of Literature in Russia (information was received from 31 databases).

2014

Day of continuous recording of reader demand (information from 31 databases, 22 regions, 2327 people surveyed)

Characteristics of the research library-base (information received from 31 databases, 22 regions)

Questionnaire - characteristics of library practice in the electronic environment (information received from 28 databases, 21 regions)

Questionnaire describing the results of the Year of Culture in Russia (information was received from 21 databases).

2013

Day of continuous recording of reader demand (information from 35 databases, 21 regions, 2384 people surveyed);

a questionnaire on reading science fiction (information was received from 35 databases, library staff and experts were interviewed);

a questionnaire on reading modern literature (works awarded with the main Russian literary awards over the past 5-7 years) (information was received from 34 databases, library staff and experts were interviewed);

part of the 2012 report on the work of the library - a research base to support reading (information was received from 19 databases).

The city of Starodub, with a population of 19 thousand, was and is a cultural center with established cultural traditions, which librarians always try to maintain. The district library is one of the oldest libraries in the region; it was opened in November 1874 at the Starodub public meeting.

Today the library is a cultural, spiritual center, a place of communication and leisure. In our activities we focus on meeting and developing the information needs and interests of users. To what extent the library satisfies their needs, what and how the residents of our city read, these questions have always worried us, so we came to the conclusion that understanding the social role of books and libraries is impossible without systematic and practical work on studying reading and the reader.

Our library has extensive experience in research work and for the past 16 years has been the base of the all-Russian study “Reading in Russian Libraries”, conducted by the Reading Center of the Russian National Library of St. Petersburg.

For us, this is a unique opportunity to take part in research conducted at the all-Russian level, since it is especially valuable not only to reveal the audience of users of our own library, but also to compare it with many users in other cities of Russia, having different social, natural, historical, cultural conditions and traditions.

Since 1997, the library annually hosts “days of continuous accounting of reader demand.” A systematic study of their readers gave library workers the opportunity to study the intensity and content of reading, to find out the place of the library in the reading of residents, the degree of satisfaction of reader demand, and the level of bibliographic culture of library readers.

During the research, we used a complex of sociological, library science and statistical methods for collecting information and analyzing the reading repertoire and reader demand. Using methods of statistical analysis of reader forms, it was possible to collect information about the main reading groups and their reading. During the research, documents and materials characterizing the state and dynamics of reading were studied. All data collection methods used complement and correct each other, and some of them are used to monitor the dynamics of reader interests.

In 1997–1998, a study was carried out related to reading historical fiction. In 2000, we monitored the reading of German literature; we monitored the reading of literary and artistic magazines. All these research materials became the basis for holding scientific and practical conferences in our library. The first conference took place in 2004, where we presented the results of the study “Reading in the life of Starodub residents (1997-2003).”

The participants of the 2006 conference were offered research projects “The attitude of residents of the city of Starodub to books and reading: results of a sociological study.” Residents who do not read in libraries were surveyed through telephone surveys and questionnaires distributed at their place of residence, in organizations and at enterprises. In conducting preparatory work for the CPD, we tried to go beyond traditional library work, based on the study of only its limited resources, to demonstrate how reader interest can be used to support the library and reading, how to use Internet resources, what new services provided by library departments can to interest city residents – potential readers. Summing up the study, we concluded that residents of the city of Starodub read, although they do not always go to the library for certain reasons. To attract passive “non-reading” readers to the library, they have significantly intensified the holding of public events, such as the “Time to Read” campaign (in the city square and in the park), information days, meetings with writers and presentations of books by fellow countrymen.

In June 2008, the 3rd scientific and practical conference “Reading and Time” was held with the participation of specialists from the Reading Center of the Russian National Library of St. Petersburg. The research material “Propaganda of books and reading on the pages of regional newspapers” was presented to the attention of the conference participants. The purpose of the monitoring is to study the reflection on the pages of regional newspapers of the current state of propaganda of books and reading in the Bryansk region. Materials from the newspapers “Bryansk Teacher’s Newspaper”, “Bryansk Worker”, “Bryansk Crossroads” were analyzed. The study analyzed all publications that in one way or another touched upon the problem of promoting books and reading, and examined the work to promote reading by various institutions with an educational mission. The reasons for the publications were summarized. The reason for the publication of the largest portion of materials (34%) are anniversaries and memorable literary dates. Second place was taken by publications about work to promote reading in the Bryansk region (25%). In third place are publications about the promotion of writers' creativity (17%). 12% is allocated to publications about regional literary events. Fifth place is occupied by publications about the presentation of books (10%) and in last place, 2%, are letters from newspaper readers with reflections on the role of books and reading in human life. The main goal of the conference was to present the results and summarize the experience of library research activities in the field of reader studies and reading.

On September 14, 2010, the fourth scientific and scientific conference “Reading and Time” took place at the IRB. The 2010 scientific and practical conference was held in absentia and in person. At the first stage (in absentia), based on the ratings based on the results of the blitz survey “Looking for the Positive,” a plan was drawn up for an extensive exhibition “I Read - I Rejoice,” which ran throughout the summer period. The great interest of users in positive literature led to the decision to create a positive reading corner on the subscription, which, in the opinion of our readers, reflected positive literature. It turned out to be not only fiction, but also books from sections 36.99 “Cooking”, 37.279 “Household Economics”, 37.248 “Handicraft”, “Hairdressing”, 42.37 “Ornamental Gardening”, 63.3 “History”, 85.12 “Decorative and Applied Arts” . On the day of the conference, a regional action “Course on Positivity” took place, in which materials and results of the library’s research work were used.

As part of the Year of Russian History and the 1150th anniversary of the birth of Russian statehood, on September 6–7, 2012, the Fifth Interregional Scientific and Practical Conference “Reading and Time” was held on the basis of the Starodub inter-settlement regional library. Employees of the Oryol, Smolensk, Bryansk libraries took part in the conference regions.

Among the guests of honor is Sereychik S.S. Director of ICBC named after. M.Yu. Lermontova (St. Petersburg), Tsvetkova T.V. deputy Director of ICBC named after. M.Yu. Lermontova (St. Petersburg), Stepanova A.S. senior researcher at the Reading Center of the Russian National Library (St. Petersburg), Chudinova V.P. deputy Director of the Russian State Children's Library (Moscow), Director of the Seredinobud Central Library Service, Sumy Region (Ukraine).

The opening of the scientific and cultural complex began outside the library with the regional event “Starodub in the history of the Russian state.”

During the scientific and practical conference, the reports presented the results of comprehensive research, summarized material on the research activities of libraries in Russia and individual regions, and also reflected various aspects of reading literature on history, gave a portrait of a provincial reader of historical fiction, and examined the state and problems of reading among adolescents .

As part of the fifth NPC, on September 7, 2012, a meeting of residents of Starodub and the region with the writer, publicist, co-editor of the Zvezda magazine Yakov Arkadyevich Gordin took place.

We have accumulated extensive experience in research work, which we put into practice. We can say that the conducted research allows us to better imagine the nature and content of library users’ reading. Research materials are used in annual work plans, in organizing literature exhibitions, and in compiling a collection. As the base for the research work of the Reading Center of the Russian National Library of St. Petersburg, the district library is the most important institution that studies reading and makes books accessible to residents. And library staff hold their professional standards high.

Director of MBUK SMRB N.P. Gasich

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Russian National Library

IN LIBRARIES

Information publication

FUN READING IN LIBRARIES

Saint Petersburg

Responsible compiler A. G. Makarova, scientific. co-workers

Compiled by: E. A. Voronina, research assistant.

A. S. Stepanova, Art. scientific associate

Editor: S. A. Davydova, Ph.D. Philol. Sciences Sixth issue of the information publication “Reading in Russian Libraries”

continues to publish materials from a study of the same name, which has been conducted since 1995 by the Reading Center of the Scientific and Medical Education of the Russian National Library. The issue is dedicated to Russians reading literature of popular entertainment genres: science fiction, adventure, detective stories, romance novels.

The publication is addressed to employees of research libraries, libraries of all systems and departments, as well as a wide range of specialists interested in reading problems.

ATTENTION! PAGE NUMBERS IN THE PRINTED AND ELECTRONIC OPTIONS MAY NOT MAY BE THE SAME.

Published according to the resolution of the Editorial and Publishing Council of the Russian National Library. Signed for publication on September 13, 2007.

Format 60Х84/16. Writing paper. Offset printing. Conditional oven l. 9.5.

Uch. ed. l. 9.0. Circulation 500 copies. Order No. 84.

Publishing house "Russian National Library", OP.

191069, St. Petersburg, Sadovaya st., 18.

ISBN 978-5-8192-0333-0 © Russian National Library 2007

Contents List of abbreviations ……………………………………………………………... Preface ………………………………………………… ……………………… Glukhova L. V., Libova O. S. Entertaining reading in the past and present ………………………………………………………………………………… …………. Makarova A. G. Love novel and its readers ……………………………………. Makarova A. G. Novels about love: review of publishing houses and series ………………….. Voronina E. A., Stepanova A. S. Adventure literature ………………….. Voronina E. A., Stepanova A. S. Detective …………………………………… Voronina E. A., Stepanova A. S. Fiction …………………………………. Appendices ………………………………………………………………………………… Authors and compilers of the collection ……………………………………………………………… ... LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS GBL – State Library of the USSR named after. IN AND. Lenina DS - Day of continuous accounting of reader demand ITR - engineering and technical worker KLF - science fiction fan club NIICSI SPbU - Research Institute of Complex Social Research of St. Petersburg State University NMO - scientific and methodological department SF - science fiction OB - regional library PFA RAS – St. Petersburg branch of the Archive of the Russian Academy of Sciences R.p. - working village of the Republic of Belarus - regional library of the Russian National Library - Russian National Library SPA - reference and search apparatus of St. Petersburg State University - St. Petersburg State University Central Bank - Central Library of the Central Library - Centralized Library System of the Central City Library - Central City Library Central District Library - Central District Library Preface Sixth issue of the information publication " Reading in Russian libraries"

continues a series of publications that has been carried out for a number of years by the research group of the Reading Center of the Russian National Library.

This issue is devoted to reading entertaining literature - books that dominate both the book market and library demand. We considered it necessary to consider this large layer of literature in the context of the attitude of philologists, literary critics, publishers, librarians and readers towards it.

Entertaining, mass literature in our country has long been treated with prejudice. When discussing literature and reading, experts paid practically no attention to the analysis of books of entertainment genres; they focused on the classics or “serious”, “necessary” books. The publication (release) of this literature was under strict control and had a certain quantitative limit. The spread and popularity of the “light genre” were considered a fact of “grassroots” culture and, as a rule, this fact was explained by the undeveloped taste of a certain circle of readers, mainly teenagers and youth, as well as “common people.” It was believed that one had only to explain to the reader all the inconsistency of the genre, and he would move on to reading more “necessary”, “useful”, etc.

books. It seems that the entertainment genre was deliberately excluded from the analysis of the literary process.

In post-Soviet society, when censorship and government orders to publishing houses almost disappeared, circulation of entertainment literature grew every year, as the commercial approach dictated its terms, and the demand for “unread”

literature was enormous. Even a poor selection of authors, bad (sometimes monstrous!) translations of foreign works, poor design and low-quality paper did not become an obstacle for such books on the way to the reader. Gradually, the quality of publishing entertainment literature became higher, publishing houses that survived the competition produced an increasingly extensive repertoire of book products, but the “light genre” still continues to lead in supply and demand in the book market.

This situation cannot but worry the cultural community. However, a detailed analysis of what is happening is still ahead, although in recent years dissertation research has been conducted on this topical topic, monographs have been published, and many articles have been published in the press. We, for our part, invite readers to familiarize themselves with the facts and observations discovered during the study.

Libraries find themselves in a difficult situation. On the one hand, an adult reader, a library visitor, is a consumer of entertaining literature of his own free will; no one forces him to choose B. Akunin, D. Dontsova, T. Ustinova, etc. On the other hand, there is a thesis supported by the statements of many authoritative scientists about the harmfulness of such literature.

Since at the moment there are different opinions in society regarding mass literature, naturally, library staff also have different opinions. This applies to the acquisition of entertaining literature, its placement in the fund, and recommendations to readers. Initially, our research team did not consider it necessary to distinguish the “light genre” from the general reading repertoire of Russians.

But due to the fact that this literature has occupied a significant place in book lending and library demand, we considered it possible to offer in this collection material about its reading obtained during the research. In particular, a survey of heads of acquisition departments, conducted in 2006 in 28 study libraries, showed that the majority purchase books of these genres both from budget funds and from income from commercial activities (60.9% and 65.3%, respectively ). Some libraries are of the opinion that acquisition should be carried out in strict accordance with reader demand;

in others, literature of an entertaining nature is acquired “on a residual basis”, in fact at the expense of the readers themselves - with funds received from paid services or a paid subscription; in some places, the fund of such literature is completed mainly from gifts from readers. But no one stands for a complete refusal to stock the library with such literature. As a rule, works of “light” genres are distributed to both free and paid subscriptions, but some libraries provide most entertainment literature, including the latest, for free, while others prefer to keep it on a paid subscription, this is confirmed by data from annual monitoring of reader demand in libraries.

But, despite the difference in approaches, all interviewed heads of acquisition departments complain about the lack of entertaining literature, its small number of copies given the existing high demand.

So should libraries buy, let alone offer the reader the fruits of mass culture, if the reader has approached him with a vague request - “give me something to read”? The answer to this question “hangs in the air.” Actually, we share the negative attitude of many specialists towards this literature in general, but at the same time we understand that no pedagogical tricks will help to “educate” the right reader and completely wean him from reading entertaining literature.

The data bank collected during the study “Reading in Russian Libraries” in 1995-2006 made it possible to answer some questions: what areas of entertainment literature are preferred by residents of provincial Russia, whether the authors of popular works in the past remain in the reading of Russians, and, most importantly, How do readers and librarians feel about such literature on library shelves?

Various techniques were used to collect data on reading and readers:

annual monitoring “Days of complete registration of reader demand” (DS), analysis of reader forms, surveys of readers (1995 and 2003), surveys of librarians (1995, 2000, 2002, 2006, including questionnaires on book donations, acquisition entertaining literature, etc.). The materials of the surveys, carried out thanks to many years of cooperation with the Research Institute of Information and Communication Sciences of St. Petersburg State University 1, made it possible to compare the data obtained in libraries with the opinions of Russian residents who do not visit libraries.

This issue includes articles on reading several popular genres: adventure, detective, women's romance and fantasy, i.e. those genres that occupy the top lines of reader preference ratings in almost all modern library research.

The information publication opens with an article by L. V. Glukhova and O. S. Libova “Entertaining reading - in the past and present,” in which an attempt is made to acquaint the library community with the views of Russian and foreign cultural figures of the past, starting from the 19th century, and modernity in place and the role of “easy” In 1998 - a questionnaire survey “Youth of Russia at the turn of the century”;

in 1999 – “Fathers and Sons:

– “Continuity of generations: dialogue or conflict”;

into dialogue or conflict";

2002 – “Youth and education in modern Russia”;

in 2003 – “Social health of young Russians” and “Problems of extremism among Russian youth”;

in 2005 – “Problems of social health of young Russians” and “Countering extremism and literature” in the reading repertoire of the general population. The article contains controversial material that provides food for thought. The authors chose the method of citing the opinions of writers, philologists, literary critics, cultural scientists and sociologists in order to illustrate a complex picture that does not allow both library scientists and practicing librarians to make hasty conclusions.

The articles "Adventure Literature", "Detective Literature" and "Fiction" include characteristics of each genre, a brief overview of its directions and information about reading works of this genre. Articles "Adventure Literature" and "Detective"

written jointly by A. S. Stepanova and E. A. Voronina, the article “Fiction” - E. A.

Voronina with the participation of A. S. Stepanova and A. G. Makarova.

The article by A. G. Makarova “The Romance Novel and Its Readers” reveals the historical roots of the emergence of the romance novel genre, its development and current state, some information about the most famous authors and Internet resources, gives an idea of ​​the readers and reading of the romance novel in Russian libraries, the state fund of these books. Its continuation is the article by the same author, “Novels about love: a review of publishing houses and series”, which, from our point of view, is useful, from our point of view, for library workers, information about publishing houses that have published romance novels since 1993 and romance novel series.

The proposed material is provided with tables summarizing those collected during the research “Reading in Russian Libraries” and characterizing readers and reading entertainment literature.

The information publication is addressed to library workers and a wide range of specialists interested in reading problems.

Please send your feedback and comments to the following address: 191069, St. Petersburg, Sadovaya, 18, Deputy Director for Research.

The research team of the Reading Center of the Russian National Library thanks the library bases of the study “Reading in Russian Libraries” for many years of joint work and expresses hope for further fruitful cooperation.

terrorism";

in 2006 - “Conditions and factors of extremist sentiment among young people.” All questionnaires included a block of questions about reading developed by the RNL research group.

L. V. Glukhova, O. S. Libova Entertaining reading in the past and present.

The phenomenon of “mass literature” today attracts the attention of many cultural scientists, sociologists, bibliologists, and literary critics both in Russia and abroad.

Publications on this topic amount to many books and articles. There is no doubt: “mass literature” as part of “mass culture” is a complex social, economic, socio-psychological and aesthetic phenomenon. One of the aspects of the problem of mass culture – the existence of the most common genres of so-called “mass literature” in the reading of Russians – is directly related to librarianship. The data collected during our study 1 confirms the complexity of the problem and the impossibility of giving an unambiguous assessment of what is happening. Therefore, first of all, we consider it necessary to recall the thoughts of domestic and foreign writers, scientists, and public figures about the place and role of entertaining literature in the reading of children and adults. The most controversial opinions are offered to your attention: this is rather an “invitation to reflection” than an answer to a question that worries many.

For two hundred years, reading books has occupied a different place in the cultural life of Russians. For a long time, for the residents of our country, the attitude towards a book determined a person’s cultural status in society. Now the image of “the most reading country in the world” has faded somewhat. However, according to a nationwide survey of the adult population conducted by the Levada Center (May - June 2005), 29% of Russians constantly read books and 42% do this occasionally; non-readers make up 37% of the country's population. Among “active readers,” according to the Levada Center, women are more common than men, although in the group of “non-book readers”

both are presented equally 2.

A study conducted by the Sociological Center of the Russian Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation (December 2004) showed that approximately half of Russian residents believed that their typical form of recreation was reading books, magazines, and newspapers. This answer option was encountered constantly, and gave way to the Study “Reading in Russian Libraries”, which since 1995 has been conducted by the National Educational Institution of the Russian National Library in the cities of the Russian province.

Bulletin of Public Opinion: Data. Analysis. Discussions. 2005. No. 5. P. 44, 47. Interviewed N = 2400 people.

first place only for “watching TV shows and videos” 1. Let's agree:

if half of the country’s residents say that they read books and newspapers in their leisure time, that’s also not bad. Of course, if what they read does not cultivate aggression, intolerance of dissent and the romance of the criminal world. Has there ever been dangerous literature in the reading repertoire of Russian residents? Does she exist now?

The library reading repertoire of Russians contains a wide variety of literature, from highly specialized books and magazines to collections of jokes by modern kings of humor. The so-called “mass literature” occupies a large place in it. This term is used very widely today. In the monograph by M.A.

Chernyak “The Phenomenon of Mass Literature of the 20th Century” says: “The term “mass literature” is quite arbitrary and does not mean the breadth of distribution of a particular publication, but a certain genre paradigm...” It, the term, arose as a result of the delimitation of fiction according to its aesthetic quality and means “the lower tier of literature, including works that are not included in the official literary hierarchy of its time” 2. However, what is considered the “literary hierarchy of its time”? M. A. Chernyak examines a layer of literature, including the works of A. Verbitskaya and M. Artsybashev, A.

Marinina and B. Akunin, L. Gursky and T. Ustinova... Maybe this is “grassroots literature”, we won’t object, but in relation to what, that is the question?

Nowadays, the formerly popular terms “compensatory”, evadistic, escapist reading, which previously served as synonyms for “entertaining” literature, are almost never used. In explanatory dictionaries, the adjective “compensatory” means “received in the form of compensation or reward for something” 3. Consequently, the attachment of readers to books of a certain genre was rightly explained by the desire to compensate for what the reader is deprived of in life. Many people choose literature that gives them the opportunity to immerse themselves in the experiences of incredibly beautiful and rich heroes and heroines who belong to a circle far removed from the daily lives of readers. Others relax, feeling like a participant O. Mitroshenkov. Half a reading country // Culture. 2005. March 17-23. P. 5. A survey of young residents of Russia, conducted by the Research Institute of Social Sciences of St. Petersburg State University in the spring and summer of 2005, gave approximately the same results. Answering the question, “What activities do you prefer in your free time?”, young people under the age of 30 put “Communicating with friends”, “Watching TV shows” second, and “Reading books” third.

Chernyak M. A. The phenomenon of mass literature of the twentieth century. St. Petersburg, 2005. pp. 3 - 4.

Ozhegov S.I. Dictionary of the Russian language. 7th ed. M., 1968. P. 281.

extreme events, winning victory over the forces of evil - real and unreal, etc. This is indisputable. However, for some readers, compensatory reading is a special kind of reading, which they themselves call “vital, truthful literature.” In Russia there have always been and, probably, there will be readers for whom books that depict events of very real, even ordinary life play a compensatory role. The content of such works can be reduced to a typical cliché plot. Without exception, all library and sociological studies note the stable interest of readers in “Soviet” literature, the so-called epic novels (“Gypsy” by A. Kalinin, “The Uncrying Willow” by M.

Alekseeva, “Ivan Ivanovich” by A. Koptyaeva, “Hop”, “Red Horse”, “Black Poplar”

A. Cherkasov and P. Moskvitina, Y. German’s trilogy “I am responsible for everything”, novels by A.

Ivanov, I. Lazutin, etc.), in which the fate of the heroes takes place against the background of those historical upheavals, of which there were so many in our country. Attachment to books of this genre, from our point of view, is explained by the desire to receive moral compensation, a kind of reward from the feeling of involvement with the events depicted in the works, with the actions of the characters, with an assessment of their actions. Just like lovers of action-packed literature, lovers of epic novels experience the lives of all the characters through themselves, i.e. live their lives.

Readers are attracted by the artistic features of these novels, written in the genre that we called “conservative realism” 1. We formulated the specifics of these works as follows: a clear division of characters into positive and negative, pronounced melodrama in the behavior of the heroes and plot collisions, the obligatory victory of good and virtues over evil and acquisitiveness, the Russian version of “happy ending”. Unlike the American novel, dictated by the laws of Protestant ethics, good in Russian novels wins as a result of sacrifice, sometimes even the death of the hero in the name of justice.

Psycholinguistic analysis of such texts gives the following characteristics:

“light”, “simple”, “active”. From our point of view, the traditional interest of readers in books of this kind indicates that the term “compensatory reading” implies a motive broader than the desire to have fun.

The terms evadist (from the French - s"evader - to run away, avoid), escapist (from the English escape - to leave, disconnect, withdraw, withdraw into oneself) are applied to For more information about this, see: Librarian and reader: problems of communication. St. Petersburg. , 1993. S. 54 - 56;

Reading in Russian libraries. St. Petersburg, 2002. Issue. 3. pp. 29 - 30.

those books that help you relax, perform a relaxation function (restores strength), and carry a recreational load (promotes rest). Not everything is clear here either. These books are very different both from the point of view of artistic features and the moral tasks that their creators set for themselves. Let's ask ourselves, does reading thrillers and literature that instills fear contribute to relaxation? Could our ancestors have experienced relaxation while reading the novels of Paul de Kock or “The Diary of a Maid” and “The Garden of Torture” by O. Mirbeau, “Venus and Sadie’s Tales” 1? What makes our contemporaries in furs” by L. Sacher-Masoch ask the prison fighters of E. Monk in libraries? What do you call this kind of literature? Entertaining? "Easy reading"? I don’t want to think that reading such prose could have entertaining or, even more so, compensatory value for the reader. Maybe they satisfy the need for intense experiences and sensations, “throwing adrenaline into the blood”? The question remains open, but, in the general series of “frivolous reading,” we consider such literature, meaning its “lower tier,” works of obviously low aesthetic quality 2.

There are other terms for this phenomenon. Thus, during a protest against the dominance of mass culture, one of its participants called “escapism”

“psychedelic culture” and “narcotic hedonism”, others spoke about the “apotheosis of insolent obscenity”, and that in the United States at one time there was a deliberate policy to save young people from the influence of such a “counterculture”. But in Russia? The participants of the action came to the conclusion that mass culture is simply killing us, not so much with aggressiveness, but with disgusting vulgarity, the apotheosis of insolent obscenity 3.

In the end, we chose the term "entertainment literature" as the most appropriate in our case. How should the reader treat it? For the first time in Russian, the work of the Marquis de Sade was published in 1810 under the title “A Theater for Lovers, Presented in Historical, Pleasant, Curious and Entertaining Incidents That Happened in France, Spain, England, Italy and Switzerland, composed by Mr. Sadiy." Here and below, references are made to the names of writers and titles of works that have completely disappeared from the reading repertoire of Russians. Writers and books that were popular in their time, much less those that have become “iconic,” will not be deciphered.

Chernyak M. A. The phenomenon of mass literature of the twentieth century. St. Petersburg, 2005. pp. 3-4.

Save our ears! Mass culture throws down the gauntlet to society. Society accepts the challenge // Nevskoe Vremya. 2006. April 28;

see also: http://www.nevskoevremya.spb.ru/cgi bin/pl/nv?art= librarian, if there are no overtly “harmful” elements in the works, but nevertheless it does not meet the high standards of art?

Writers, literary critics, library scientists paid close attention to the question of the legitimacy of the presence of entertaining literature - “bad books” - in the reading circle of the “cultural public”. Let's start with a discussion on the very right to the existence of “entertaining reading,” which was conducted by major writers in Russia and abroad throughout the 19th century.

Benefit or harm?

N. M. Karamzin believed that any reading is beneficial, and, starting with trifles, one can gradually move on to increasingly complex texts. He insisted: it doesn’t matter what, how or why people read, the most important thing is that as many people as possible be involved in this process. “I don’t know about others, but I’m happy, as long as they read it! And the most mediocre novels, even those written without any talent, in some way contribute to enlightenment. Whoever is captivated by “Nicanor, the ill-fated nobleman” stands even lower on the ladder of mental education than its author, and does well to read this novel: for, without any doubt, he learns something in thoughts or in their expression. As long as there is a great distance between the author and the reader, the former cannot have a strong effect on the latter, no matter how smart he is. Everyone needs something closer: one Jean-Jacques, another Nikanor.

... Moral taste reveals to a person the correct analogy of an object with his soul;

but this soul can rise gradually - and whoever begins as a malicious nobleman often reaches Grandison 1. Every pleasant reading has an influence on the mind, without which neither the heart feels nor the imagination imagines. The worst novels already have a certain logic and rhetoric: whoever reads them will speak better and more coherently than a complete ignorant who has never opened a book in his life. In addition, today's novels are rich in all kinds of knowledge. ... It is in vain to think that novels can be harmful to the heart: they all usually represent the glory of virtue or a moralizing consequence. It is true that some characters in them are both attractive and vicious;

but why are they attractive? some good properties with which the author painted over their blackness: therefore, good in N. M. Karamzin is referring to the novel by Samuel Richardson (1689-1761) “English Letters, or the History of the Cavalier Grandisson” in 8 volumes, which was very popular in Russia in the first quarter of the 19th century.

evil itself triumphs. Our moral nature is such that you cannot please your heart by depicting bad people and you will never make them their favorites (emphasis added by us. L.G., O.S.). What novels do you like best? Usually sensitive: the tears shed by readers always flow from love for good and nourish it. No no! Bad people don’t even read novels. Their cruel soul does not accept the gentle impressions of love and cannot deal with the fate of tenderness.

... It is undeniable that novels make both the heart and the imagination... romantic:

what a disaster;

so much the better, in a sense, for us, the inhabitants of the cold and iron north! Without a doubt, it is not romantic hearts that are the cause of the evil in the world about which we hear complaints everywhere, but rude and cold hearts, that is, completely the opposite of them!

... In a word, it’s good that our public reads novels too”1.

There are facts in the history of Russian book culture that call into question some of the writer’s thoughts. So, for example, it is impossible to consider all popular (entertainment) literature as a single whole. Karamzin cites a work of the melodramatic genre as a “harmless” example.

Much more often than the sensitive story of “The Malignant Nikanor,” crime novels devoted to the adventures of robbers were published at that time.

For example, Matvey Komarov’s novel “A thorough and true description of the good and evil deeds of the Russian swindler, thief, robber and former Moscow detective Vanka Cain, his whole life and strange adventures,” which was published not only under this title, was very popular among Russians. But was this book capable of making both hearts and imaginations “romantic”?

It seems appropriate to us to recall that the favorite of the Russian reading public, Charles Dickens, thought about this, whose opinion differed from the opinion of N.M.

Karamzin. The moral and ethical impact on readers of “entertaining literature” each time depends on the plot of a particular book and on the principles that guided their author, Dickens believed. The English public of the first quarter of the 19th century, in his opinion, too often read crime novels, where the focus of the authors was galloping across a moorland bathed in moonlight, cheerful feasts in a cozy cave, seductive outfits, lace, over the knee boots, crimson vests and other details that from time immemorial Cited. by: Karamzin N. M. Selected articles and letters. M., 1982. pp. 98 - 100. The article “On the book trade and the love of reading in Russia” was first published in 1802 in No. 9 of “Bulletin of Europe”.

they embellish the “high road”. Dickens objected to books in which thieves were portrayed as "good fellows": "impeccably dressed, a tight purse, experts on horses, self-confident in their bearings, successful in gallant intrigue, masters of singing songs, drinking bottles, playing cards or dice - fine society for the most worthy..." This creates an incorrect picture of the Thief’s daily life and serves as a temptation “for young people and with bad inclinations,” for “stupid youths.” The writer insisted: literature addressed to a wide range of readers, especially young people, must “depict the real members of the criminal gang in all their ugliness, with all their vileness, show their wretched, impoverished life, show them as they really are.” But in fact, according to Ch.

Dickens, thieves “are always creeping... alarmed, along the dirtiest paths of life, and wherever they look, a big black terrible gallows looms before them.” In his action-packed works, Dickens offered just such a series of images: “the cold gray streets of London at night, in which there is no refuge;

dirty and smelly lairs are the abode of all vices;

dens of hunger and disease;

miserable rags that are about to crumble" 1.

Charles Dickens's compatriot G. K. Chesterton, on the contrary, like N. M. Karamzin, advocated “In Defense of Cheap Reading” 2, including detective stories and crime novels. “Of all the genres of entertaining reading, the one that gets the most... is adventure literature. This genre is subject to the most caustic attacks. ... Denying people the opportunity to revel in literary series is the same as denying them the right to talk about everyday topics or to have a roof over their heads.

The natural human need for an ideal world in which fictional characters act unhindered is immeasurably deeper and older than the verified postulates of literary mastery. ... Refusing to openly admit the well-known fact that unpretentious youth have always been and will be carried away by formless and endless romantic adventures, we embark on lengthy discussions about the harmful influence of “cheap reading matter” on virgin young souls. ... There is a custom, especially among judges, to attribute a good half of the crimes committed in the capitals to the harmful effects of cheap novels. The boys themselves, having repented, often blame the novels they read for everything... ... Our hostility is based on the conviction that Cit. by: Dickens Ch. The Adventures of Oliver Twist // Complete. collection op. t. 4. M., 1958. S. 6 - 7.

Chesterton G.K. In defense of “cheap reading matter” // Writer in the newspaper. M., 1984. S. 35 - 39.

Every novel aimed at teenagers is criminal and low in spirit, which leads to greed and cruelty. ... Nonsense from beginning to end. Among these stories there are those that sympathetically describe the adventures of robbers, robbers, and pirates;

in them, thieves and murderers appear in a sublime, romantic aura. ... We know from ourselves that the turbulent life of the heroes of adventure literature delights young people not because this life is akin to their own, but because it is different from it. ... This trivial romantic literature is not at all the lot of plebeians - it is the lot of every normal person. ... We examine entertainment literature as a kind of deadly disease, while it is only a slight illness to which every reckless and brave heart is subject. There is, in essence, nothing bad in this kind of literature. She embodies the usual combination of heroism and optimism."

The right to the existence of entertaining reading was also defended by another famous English writer, Jerome K. Jerome. He justified his views by defending lovers of melodrama. The writer called for indulgence in books that take us “from the dusty roads of the real world to the flowering meadows of the world of dreams... let our heroes and heroines not be the way people are in reality, but the way they should be. May Angelina remain impeccable, and may Edwin remain faithful. Let virtue triumph over vice in the last chapter, and let it be considered an immutable truth that the wedding ceremony resolves all insoluble questions." 1 However, the writer warned, escaping from our world into the land of dreams, the reader must remember: "it is impossible to live in this country, and familiarity with its geography helps little when we return to the land of harsh reality. ... If literature is designed to help us, and not just serve as entertainment, ... it should show us ourselves not as we want to appear, but as we are... What is the purpose of literature:

flatter the reader or explain yourself to him?” According to Jerome Jerome, both types of literature are necessary. But the reader must know what kind of book he is holding in front of him.

Russian culturologists at the end of the 19th century, unlike English ones, were absolutely merciless towards entertainment literature. “Western enlightenment in the hands of the maklaks Ibid. pp. 36, 37, 38.

publishers is reflected in it [literature published in Russia and addressed to the broad masses] in an extremely distorted form. The religious spirit is replaced... by a romantic spirit, in the form of naked cynicism, indecent love accidents. With this side, popular print publishers wanted to lure the rude, uneducated reader, to please his rude, undiscriminating taste. The calculation, as expected, turned out to be correct - I liked the stories.” Thanks to “publishers sensitive to profit, by the age of ... [literature for the people] was a mixture of all sorts of unimaginable nonsense with greasy tales of love adventures and tricks of various knights, my lords and merchant wives.” The influx of such “nonsense”, the author of these lines E.

Nekrasova was assessed as “one disgrace.” “Everything here is made up: both people and life itself,” she says indignantly.

Publishers reacted little to criticism from those who completely rejected popular prints.

literature or questioned the literary merits of specific works. Obviously, for them, G. K. Chesterton's argument was more convincing:

“Vulgar” literature is not vulgar if only because it captures the ardent imagination of millions of readers.” 3. The entire 19th century. “literature for the people” was published in illustrated weeklies, people's daily newspapers and serial publications. As already mentioned, works about robbers and criminals prevailed. For example, in the St. Petersburg “Newspaper - Kopeyka” up to 60% of published novels were devoted to criminal stories and crimes. From 1909 to 1916 The series of novels about the robber Anton Krechet 1 enjoyed unprecedented popularity.

At the turn of the 19th – 20th centuries. in St. Petersburg, one of the most popular magazines was the weekly “Nature and People” published by P. P. Soykin. The fiction section of the magazine regularly published adventure works by Russian and foreign writers. But the thin journal of a natural science nature was intended for other purposes, so from 1890 to 1915. P. P. Soykin published the most popular series - “Library of Novels. Adventures on land and sea." Since 1910, in the form of a monthly supplement to the magazine “Nature and People” for children, Citation began. by: Jerome J. K. Should writers tell the truth // Jerome J. K. Three in a boat (not counting the dog). How we wrote the novel. A haunted party. Stories. L., 1958. S. 542-543.

Nekrasova E. Folk books for reading in their struggle with popular prints. Vyatka, 1902. S.

Chesterton G.K. In defense of “cheap reading matter” // Writer in the newspaper. M., 1984. P. 35.

"World of Adventure" is released. It, as the name suggests, published adventure and science fiction stories, novels and stories by the classics of the genre: H. Wells, G. London, G. Chesterton, R. Sabatini, D. Conrad, R. Kipling, J. Verne , G. R. Haggard, A. Conan Doyle. “There was not a single famous master of fantasy and adventure who was not published on the pages of “World of Adventure” 2. In addition to Wells and Conan Doyle, it published the stories of Mark Twain “The Circle of Death”, Ruddyar Kipling’s “The History of Pambe Serang” "And others. Publishers also found new names; Max Pemberton's novel "The Diamond Ship", stories by V. Jacobs "The Tiger", Octave Belliard's "Travel in Time" were published on the pages of the magazine.

P. P. Soykin published the complete works of Louis Boussenard in 40 books, 4 editions of the 36-volume collected works of Fenimore Cooper, 12-volume collected works of Gustav Aimard, 9-volume of Pascal Grousset (Andre Laurie), 88 volumes of the works of Jules Verne, collection works in 4 volumes by Max Pemberton, 2 editions of the collected works of Henry Rider Haggard, the complete works of Alexandre Dumas in 84 books, etc., etc. Let us recall that it is precisely this literature - adventure and crime fiction - that Charles Dickens had the most serious claims. As for Russian culturologists, at the turn of the 19th–20th centuries. they objected not only to adventure literature, but also to “love novels,” books like “The Malignant Nikanor.” The writer and historian S. A. An-sky (S. A. Rappoport) considers the “category of books” that he calls pornographic to be an “extremely dirty stream” of entertainment literature. “The heroes here are no longer daring robbers and avengers with volcanic passions... but simple scoundrels, debauchees, card sharpers and women without shame or honor. ... The purpose of life is debauchery and wealth, no matter how it is obtained;

heroism - deceiving a husband or causing a woman to fall.

... The novels of Paul de Kock are quite suitable for this category." more and more often they begin to be decorated with images of naked or half-naked women, in J. Brooks. When Russia learned to read: literacy and folk literature //What do we read? What are we like? St. Petersburg, 1993. Issue 1. pp. 151-171.

Admiralsky A., Belov S. Knight of the Book. Essays on the life and work of P. P. Soykin. L., 1970. P. 105.

See more in the book by Admiralsky A. and Belov S.S. 103-143.

various more than relaxed poses, or scenes representing hugs and kisses of the fair and non-fair sex, etc. At the same time, ladies are usually depicted in ballroom or fancy dress costumes (this is for the people!), always low-cut to the last degree.” 2.

Thus, in Russia at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries. There was a dual situation. Part of society read entertaining literature. There were publishers who fully satisfied their requests, others considered this situation unacceptable.

It is not surprising that people who shared A. S. Prugavin’s views on the duties of the intelligentsia began a direct analysis of the people’s reading repertoire, set up an experiment that was supposed to reveal “what is understandable to the people, what they like and don’t like, how they think about this or that question" 1.

At the end of the 19th century. the famous reading researcher Kh. D. Alchevskaya and her colleagues, Kharkov teachers, who carefully and passionately studied the reading repertoire of the “common people”, bypassed the work of Dumas and Montepin. However, they included several popular books in their experiment, choosing the most popular and typical: “The Battle of the Russians with the Kabardians”, “Guac or Invincible Loyalty”, “The Story of the Brave Knight Francis Venetian”, “The Tale of the Adventures of the English My Lord George”. The observations are extremely interesting, like everything from Kh. D. Alchevskaya, and extremely relevant. First of all, the researchers found out whether the villagers had these “works” in their personal use and how much the owners valued them. The villagers had these books, they treasured them and re-read them many times. The teachers then read three of the four books aloud and recorded the listeners' impressions.

The first two books, from Alchevskaya’s point of view, “do not harm the people.” They awaken in simple-minded hearts “noble feelings of courage, selflessness, determination and generosity.” However, according to researchers, when re-editing, editing or additional literary processing is necessary. Alchevskaya considered “Franzyl Venetian” and “The Adventures of My Lord...” unsuitable for public libraries. The teachers did not even dare to read them aloud (which was a mandatory condition of the experiment), the plots of the books made such a negative impression on them. The audience nevertheless listened to “The Tale of the Adventure of the English My Lord Rappoport S. A. (S. A. An-sky) Essays on Folk Literature. St. Petersburg, 1894. P. 40.

Quote by: Rappoport S. A. (S. A. An-sky) Essays on folk literature. St. Petersburg, 1894. P. 40.

George and the Brandenburg Margravess Friederike Louise” as retold by a girl who really liked the book. In her interpretation, “the cynical scenes... completely lost their unpleasant flavor and bore the character of simplicity and artlessness.” However, Kh. D. Alchevskaya and her colleagues “would not want to see these books in the hands of the people,” not recognizing “absolutely any merit” in them 2.

* cnh At the same time, in Russia there was an opinion that the literary preferences of readers were directly related to their social origin. Great attention to the specifics of the perception of entertaining literature by “people of the people”

paid by S. A. An-sky. He argued, for example, quite speculatively (specific data from his research is not given), that there is a big difference between the reading tastes of workers and peasants. For the sake of an enticing book, he believed, workers forget their work, food, tea, cards, and harmonica;

the peasant is less impressionable and less susceptible to strong sensations. A villager is not averse to listening to an entertaining story, but no matter how complex and entertaining the plot of the story is, it does not capture the village listener as much as the worker, and remains entertainment and amusement for him. He begins to take a book seriously only when he finds something useful in it: teaching, instructions on how to live.

Therefore, they show less interest in novels and “another group close to novels—adventures.” The worker “(miner, tramp) does not tolerate teaching, he puts artistic truth in the first place” 3.

The researchers' arguments based on an analysis of book lending in Moscow reading libraries seem more convincing to us. “...Almost everywhere the main demand is for a book that, without tiring the reader, would give him the opportunity to take a break from the conditions of everyday life and receive other impressions, more vivid than those given by the surrounding reality. ... Extraordinary incidents, the virtues of heroes that are not encountered in reality, lift the reader’s spirits. In the description of virtue that does not exist in the world, the triumph of good, the punishment of evil, the reader strives to satisfy his search for truth and goodness. This is a search for the ideal of a better future, trying it on with the present. This ideal of something Alchevskaya Kh. D. What should people read? Critical index of books for popular and children's reading. St. Petersburg, 1884. P. VI.

Quote from: Mass reader and book. M., 1925. P. 42.

something higher and purer serves as a counterbalance to the impressions from the life around him. In the world of fantasy, the possibility of realizing this ideal seems clearer, because the temporarily complex relationships that limit it in reality recede into the background, as if blurred. He is inspired by a certain hope for the best, and this hope raises his spiritual strength. There is a great demand for historical novels, which vividly reflect the ancient way of life, and especially the time of the increased pace of life of the people, such as the Time of Troubles in Rus' with the beloved heroes Minin and Pozharsky, 12, Sevastopol Defense, especially attract the reader, because, undoubtedly, satisfy demands of a purely ideal nature" 1.

A unique illustration for identifying the true reasons for the popularity of entertaining literature can be memories of childhood experiences in the memoirs of our famous compatriots. Maxim Gorky believed that entertaining literature served as a bridge for him to move to reading higher examples of prose and poetry. His reader's biography could serve as an illustration for N.M. Karamzin's article. The trilogy “Childhood”, “In People”, “My Universities” by M. Gorky is considered an autobiography. The second book of the trilogy contains a detailed analysis of the future writer's involvement in reading. The process of transforming a semi-literate teenager into a discerning reader began with the popular, “empty little books” of Misha Evstigneev “Guac, or Invincible Loyalty” 2, “Franzyl Venetian”, “The Battle of the Russians with the Kabardians, or the Beautiful Mohammedan Woman Dying on the Coffin of her Husband”, which he got it from the “common people.” Soon the teenager developed a critical attitude towards popular literature, a feeling of “angry annoyance” arose: “it seemed that the book was mocking me as if I were a fool, telling incredible things in heavy words” 3.

At the next stage of his reading biography, he began to take books elsewhere, where the future writer was offered a number of adventure novels that were fashionable at that time. M. Gorky writes that he read with great interest the novel “Xavier de Montepin, long, like all his novels, rich in people and events, depicting an unfamiliar, rapid life.” He puts on a par the “thick Collection of reviews of books for reading by the Commission of Free Reading-Libraries of the Moscow Metropolitan Trusteeship of People’s Sobriety. M., 1904. Issue 1.

Quote by: Gorky M. In people // Selected works. M., 1951. T. 3. P. 311, 316-329.

books" by Dumas the Father, Ponson de Terrail, Montepin, Zaccone 1, Gaboriau, Aimard, Buagobe 2. Reading these authors, he felt like a participant in an extraordinary life.

“However, I very soon realized that in all these interestingly intricate books ... they are all talking about one thing: good people are unhappy and persecuted by bad people, bad people are always luckier and smarter than good people, but, in the end, something elusive defeats bad people, and the good ones are sure to triumph. … And suddenly I came across Goncourt’s novel “The Brothers Zemganno”, I read it immediately, in one night, and, surprised by something that I had not experienced before, I again began to read a simple, sad story... my hands were shaking from the pleasure of reading this book... I asked to give me another one just like it" 3. The next "same" book was "The True Story of a Little Raggard" by J. Greenwood 4. "... the very first page aroused a smile of delight in my soul, - so with this smile I and read the entire book to the end, re-reading some pages two or three times. ... And soon after that I came across a real, “correct” book - “Eugenia Grande”. ... It was a shame that the book was so small. ... Goncourt, Greenwood, Balzac had no villains, no good people, there were simply people, wonderfully alive;

they did not allow any doubt that everything they said and did was said and done exactly this way and could not have been done differently. Thus, I realized what a great holiday a “good, correct” book is. I wanted books that would excite and delight, like the wonderful Balzac" 5.

books to the “good” ones. Most often, in the reading biographies of teenagers, books of different genres and artistic merits exist in parallel. At the end of the 19th century. F.

Chaliapin read the same books, but, unlike Gorky, entertaining literature and classics were in his hands at the same time. The environment led Chaliapin to read: his comrades were “zealous readers”, “literary Lawné - more often published under the name Law Pierre (1817-?), French writer, author of multi-page criminal novels “Boulevard Nights”, “Buvard, Detective Police Agent” , “Madame Rocombol”, etc.

Boisgobey Fortune - Duboisgobey Fortune (1821-1891) - French writer, author of numerous adventure, crime and adventure novels, such as “The Devil's Chariot”, “Murder in a Masquerade”, “The Dying Years of the Famous French Detective Lecoq”, “Half-light During terror" etc.

Gorky M. In People // Selected Works. M., 1951. T. 3. P. 327.

James Greenwood (1833-1929) - English children's writer. His novel “The True Story of a Little Ragged Man” was republished several times in Russia throughout the twentieth century, including in a retelling by K. Chukovsky.

Gorky M. In People // Selected Works. M., 1951. T. 3. P. 329.

People". Constantly hearing conversations about Pushkin, Gogol, Lermontov and not wanting to fall behind his friends, the 12-year-old boy read “The Inspector General,” “Marriage,” and the first part of “Dead Souls.” He did not understand everything that was natural, but he became addicted to reading. In winter, on the stove, F.I. Chaliapin and a friend “read “Quarteronka,” “The Headless Horseman,” “The Deadly Shot” and many other similar works.” The boy and his friend liked these books “more than Gogol.” “I take the library catalog and select the most tempting book titles from it. ... Thus, I read a bunch of novels that described villains and robbers in cloaks and wide-brimmed hats, waiting for their victims in the dark streets;

duelists who killed seven people in one evening;

omnibuses, cabs;

twelve strokes of the bell on the tower of Saint-Germain of Lauxerrois and other horrors" 1.

We also find an analysis of the reading repertoire, which combines both classical and popular literature, in the autobiographical story of S. Ya.

Marshak "At the Beginning of Life". Like Gorky, the 11-year-old was supplied with books by his neighbors. The first was a craftsman, “a grey-moustached, stern and judicious dyer, who had a large selection of third-rate novels, replete with cheap adventures [sic! – L.G., O.L.] from the appendices to the petty-bourgeois magazine “Rodina”. The neighbor was very proud of his books 2.

S. Ya. Marshak is trying to find an answer to the question of how “The Captain’s Daughter”, “The Overcoat”, “Hero of Our Time” “coexisted peacefully” in the minds of a teenager with “low-grade” literature. Let's listen to these arguments! “Perhaps children's romantic stories, devoid of much depth, but full of events, were to a certain extent relaxation and entertainment for me. ... Gustav Aimard, Mine Reid, and a little later Alexandre Dumas most of all fascinated me and my peers with the rapid development of the plot that modern children and teenagers find on the screen. … These story books with illustrations were our films before the invention of cinema. I devoured them in one gulp, sometimes skipping lines and even entire pages in order to quickly find out the outcome of the tangled tangle of events.

Like Americans, I loved happy endings. ... I found the most poignant, mysterious, intricate plots in translated novels. Having overcome such a novel, Quote. by: Shalyapin F.I. Memoirs. M., 2000. P. 47. One of Chaliapin’s friends was friends with an employee of the Library of the Noble Assembly of Kazan and “got various books from him.”

Quote by: Marshak S. Ya. At the beginning of life. M., 1961. S. 95, 191, 192.

We are talking about “Little Lord Fauntleroy” by F. Burnet and “Prince Iliko” by V. Zhelikhovskaya.

I could retell its contents in some detail, but my memory rarely retained the lines of the original text, the remarks of the characters.”1

These examples, taken from well-known memoirs, serve to confirm that lovers of Mayne Reed, Gustav Aimard, Alexandre Dumas and even Ponson du Terrail and Montepin do not necessarily remain fans of only “entertainment literature”. French culturologist Emile Faguet wrote about the same thing.

First of all, he believed, we “must ask ourselves: “Why do we read?” Do we read to increase our knowledge? Or to criticize a work? Or to enjoy it? E. Fage considers it natural that there are “serious” and “entertaining” books in the reading repertoire of a completely cultured public. “I was pointed out to me a very worthy follower of Montesquieu, enjoying Ponson du Terrail,” 2 he writes.

Memoirs present us with more amazing cases. Sometimes, as a result of some strange metamorphosis, highly respected personalities made the opposite path - from Shakespeare to Montapin. We find a statement of this fact in the autobiography of Charles Darwin. Until the age of thirty, the scientist was fond of the works of Milton, Byron, Wordsworth, Coleridge, and Shelley. During my school years I read Shakespeare with great pleasure, especially his historical dramas.

But by the age of sixty, he noticed that he could not bring himself to read a single line of poetry; he “tried to read Shakespeare, but it seemed incredibly boring to me.” A scientist and philosopher, Charles Darwin fell in love with novels and “fantasies of a not very high order,” which served him as “a wonderful source of calm and pleasure” 3.

These facts give rise to the assumption that a direct connection between literary tastes and the reader’s social origin is not confirmed. In addition, the predictions of those who considered excessive enthusiasm for entertaining literature dangerous for teenagers did not always come true. However, in the 19th century. many shared the point of view of K. D. Derunov: “... a daredevil who plunged into the boundless paper sea of ​​systematic reading of stupid and immoral books, if provided. by: Marshak S. Ya. At the beginning of life. M., 1961. S. 95, 191, 192.

Fage E. How to read. M., 1912. P. 49. Emile Fage (1847-1916) - literary critic, specialist in the field of reading, member of the French Academy. At the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. In Russia, his books and articles “How to Read”, “Reading Good Old Books”, “Political Thinkers and Moralists”, etc. were published in large editions.

Darwin Ch. Memoirs of the development of my mind and character: (Autobiography): Diary of work and life. M., 1957. P. 147.

to himself, then after 10 years of voyage, even if he happens to come across a good and important book, he will either not understand it at all or will misunderstand it: so deeply will he have time to distort his taste.”1

The Russian reading public - both commoners and aristocrats - had to choose for themselves whose opinion to listen to, what to read and what to ignore.

Entertainment literature in library collections: theory and practice of the PFA RAS. F. 158. Op. 4. Unit hr. No. 9. L. 290.

Encyclopedic Dictionary / [F. A. Brockhaus, I. A. Efron]. St. Petersburg, 1893. T. XI.

“Library master” N.A. Rubakin devoted more than one page to him in his fundamental work “Among Books” (the first issue of this book was published in 1906).

He believed that library collections should contain only those books that deserve serious attention. It is impossible to “clutter up” libraries with the works of secondary and tertiary authors, whose names “may be known to fairly wide circles of the reading public, but there is hardly any need to prove that the wide readability of one or another of these authors still says absolutely nothing about the literary and ideological merits of his works" 2. Especially readable authors - Montepin, Bouvier, Ponson du Terrail, A. Dumas the father and G. Born - N.A.

Rubakin defined them as “deliberate literary rubbish” 3. From his point of view, their books of “extremely low literary merit” are known to millions of people by their titles, by the names of the authors, “even their content is more or less known to the reading crowd and passes from mouth to mouth, especially in circles there is little cultured public.” These “crappy works” attract “many thousands of people” to libraries, who are eager to read them because they do not know that other really good books exist. N.A. Rubakin developed a special system of serving readers who want to read entertaining literature. He spoke out for the presence in the collection of a few, “even if they are trashy, but extremely readable books,” calling his method “books to trick readers” 1.

N.A. Rubakin’s recommendations were as follows: firstly, such books should be in libraries in a minimum quantity. These books should not be listed in catalogs, and “the library itself should not take any steps to distribute them.” They should be kept in a special cabinet and issued only in extreme cases and only to those readers who do not agree to replace them with any other books. At the beginning of the twentieth century. N. A. Rubakin included “The Adventures of Rocombol” and “The Youth of Henry IV” by Ponson du Terrail, “Three Encyclopedic Dictionary / [T-vo “Br. A. and I. Granat and K "]. M., . T. 19. pp. 350-351.

Rubakin N.A. Among the books. Experience of a reference manual for self-education and for systematization and acquisition of general education libraries, as well as bookstores. St. Petersburg, 1906. P. 103.

Right there. P. 104.

musketeer" A. Dumas, "Petersburg slums" Sun. Krestovsky, “Secrets of the Madrid Court” and “Secrets of the French Court” by G. Born, “The Mysterious Monk” and “Leonid” by R. Zotov, “Lecoq” by E. Gaboriau, works by G. Aimard, Main Reed, M.

Zagoskina, Sun. Solovyov, E. Salias. From his point of view, by observing these conditions, the library will not consider itself a distributor of “crappy” books; on the contrary, it will do everything possible to prevent their distribution. At the same time, she will maintain respect for the reader, “as a person who has his own needs, his own taste, his own horizons.” Like N.M. Karamzin, N.A. Rubakin firmly believed: every person, no matter what low level of “mental and spiritual” development he stands at, is capable of “further development.” He attributed the existence of “deliberately hardened readers” who do not want to improve their taste to the area of ​​“reader mythology.” Having re-read the entire repertoire of “books for routing”, “hardened readers” will have to take up the best books or look for literary trash elsewhere 2.

Library scientist A. A. Pokrovsky shared the same point of view. He developed the theoretical principles of N. A. Rubakin and created a system that he taught to novice librarians. “Study “popular” and “tabloid” literature distributed among the population of the city and the region where the library itself is located, those books that are bought by people at the market, from a peddler, at a kiosk on a city street - especially those books which have great and lasting success (for example, in the villages - old books about Francis Ventsian or about the English milord, about the robber Churkin or about the soldier who saved the life of Peter the Great;

in the cities - some crime novels and adventures of famous detectives, “Secrets of the Madrid Court”, “Letters for Lovers”;

in Moscow, works by Pazukhin, etc.). ... Moreover, of course, it is still necessary to choose less bad ones from the “novels” loved by the general public” 3.

“Most readers come to the library for books only “for easy reading”, and demand “entertaining novels”, “something more fun”... ... The library should have, according to A. A. Pokrovsky, a sufficient selection of such Ibid. P. 104.

Right there. P. 105.

Pokrovsky A. A. On the selection of books for public libraries (Advice for beginning librarians) // Librarian. 1915. No. III-IV. pp. 251, 254.

books, “which still could not lower, but at least somehow increase their literary taste, their moral and social ideas” 1.

The well-known librarianship theorist and bibliographer K. N. Derunov was categorically against the acquisition of entertainment literature in the collections of mass libraries. He was a supporter of the ideal library, the idea of ​​which, from his point of view, was substantiated by J. Ruskin. Unfortunately, we did not find quoted phrases in the works of J. Ruskin published before 1902 in Russian. The closest in meaning to the position of K.N. Derunov seems to us to be the following statement: “Art is only in its proper place when it is subordinated to benefit. His task is to teach, but to teach lovingly;

and it is shameful, and not sublime, when it is only pleasing to people, and does not help them discover the truth." 2. An ideal library, believes K. N. Derunov, should consist of "beautiful volumes, light, elegant in strong bindings," and represent a strict “selection of a whole series of selected books that are the best in each department” 3. Entertaining literature should not be on the shelves of such a library, even if these books are in great demand among millions of people. The library theorist did not consider the arguments that readers “need to be attracted to libraries in every possible way, even by adapting to them, in order ... to lead them forward and upward” - the library theorist did not consider convincing. He examines in detail N.A. Rubakin’s idea of ​​“books to attract readers” and gives his arguments against it: “what good can be expected from advocates for the so-understood “properly organized” library, if the most fundamental reforms do not go further... simple movement of books from one closet to another? Even greater indignation is heard in the assessment of the theory of A. A. Pokrovsky. Here K. N. Derunov allows unparliamentary expressions: “The restless Swiss of “lectures of conversations”, comfortably seated on a very long workbench, one end of which rests on the Moscow “lectern”, and the other on the St. Petersburg editorial office, with the bitterness of a sectarian-fanatic, fills with his advice “beginning” librarians: “for the sake of attracting readers... to allow popular print books into the library - all these Ibid. C. 254.

Tolstoy L.N. Thoughts of John Ruskin. Odessa, 1904. P. 3.

PFA RAS. F. 158. Op. 4. Unit hr. No. 9. L. 288 vol. Here and further highlighted by K. N. Derunov. In Russia, it was customary to give all books and periodicals purchased by libraries, even rural ones, to bookbinders.

Sample library catalogue. A collection of the best books in Russian since the 60s. according to Excerpts from the preface to the 2nd part of the 1st edition. Quote by: Derunov K.N. Favorites.

Works on library science and bibliography. M., 1972. P. 152.

“Rocomboli” 1.

of “dubious” value: “Secrets of the Madrid Court” and The consequences of such complacency, according to Derunov, can be terrible: “the level of merit” of the book repertoire is descending lower and lower, and the mass of the so-called educated public is plunging more and more into the most hopeless... ignorance" 2. Confirming his fears, Derunov suggests opening a catalog of a “reasonably compiled” library. “Names: Gaboriau, Heinze, Dumas, “Kok”, Leikin, Meshchersky, Montepin, Myasnitsky, Pazukhin, Ponson (du Terail) and many like them - just pour in, and the “works” of some (Terail) take up three pages. But this is not enough. Expand after the printed catalog - handwritten with later acquisitions - and you will see that Montepin, Myasnitsky, etc. were bought, and even (like Paul de Kock) “complete works”! The library, when it loses such authors, is annoyed with its subscribers and grieves if it does not find the lost book dealers;

she happily resumes them in the form of “complete collected works” - and this at a time when, as reported in the press, the complete collection. op. P. Du-Terraille "tightly" disagrees with the public. That means his admirers are gone!... So what role do libraries play in our country? – Strange, incomprehensible, wild... We see with our own eyes that a modern library not only abandons any educational mission;

Not only is it, like any other shop, adjusted to the “low and rude” tastes of customers - No! She systematically tries to accustom the public to something from which it has just begun to wean itself;

she, this library, is dragging the public back!!... Isn’t this an unnatural distortion in the way our library work is organized? And is this tolerable? At the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. Practicing librarians from the capital and provinces often shared the position of K.N. Derunov. In a report for 1910-1911, a library worker at the Ligovsky People's House in the imperial capital, St. Petersburg, notes the increased interest of readers in “new works in fiction.” However, in her opinion, this demand should be treated with great caution and refuse readers’ requests for “The Keys of Happiness” by A. Verbitskaya, “Selfless Hearts” by Paul Adam, or the trilogy of G. Man (Diana, Minerva, Venus). These and other similar works, according to the librarian, “although they sometimes have an artistic quality Derunov K.N. Typical features in the evolution of the Russian “public” library. A separate reprint from the journal “Bibliographic News” M., 1924. P. 95. K. N. Derunov is referring to the article by A. Pokrovsky, quoted above.

PFA RAS. F. 158. Op. 4. Unit hr. No. 9. L. 292 vol.

value, but completely unacceptable due to the outright cynicism of the content" 1. We find the following attack by a professional librarian against, so to speak, public opinion interesting: "... expert advice often suffers from one-sidedness... Printed reviews can be trusted even less: they are very subjective, especially in evaluation of works of fiction. For example, I can refer to the laudatory reviews of Man’s novels [as in the text – L.G., O.L.] (Trilogy:

Minerva, Diana, Venus), which are praised not only in Russian, but also in foreign magazines. ... These highly praised novels are so openly pornographic that they surpass anything imaginable of this kind.

And if you fulfill the reader’s wishes, you would have to purchase “The Keys of Happiness”, “Sanina” 2, etc. books or Black Hundred magazines. On the one hand, it would seem that an adult reader has the right to decide for himself the question of what to read;

and on the other hand, the Library cannot and should not be an indifferent transmitter of books that it recognizes as undesirable” 3.

This is what practitioners working in St. Petersburg thought. Their opinion was shared by those who created libraries in the provinces at the beginning of the twentieth century. The need to open the Polish library-reading room (Arkhangelsk province, Onega district), according to its creators, “was the love of reading noticed in the local literate population, which initially manifested itself in reading novels and all kinds of popular publications with immoral and fantastic content, which were available to many people involved in barge haulers, in large quantities" 4. Of course, there should have been other literature in libraries, primarily that which was called “spiritual and moral.”

“The selection of books for libraries,” writes A. A. Pokrovsky, “essentially should be the business of the librarian himself, and not the business of the institution to which the library belongs, and not even the business of that team - a committee, board, library commission, etc. P. - in whose hands is the general management of the library.

It is desirable, of course, that the lists compiled by the librarian of the books he offers for purchase are included in the board of the head of the library, so that this board Poshekhonov A. From the life of one free library // Librarian. 1913. No. 3. P. 178.

Novels of melodramatic content by A. Verbitskaya and M. Artsibashev received a sharply negative assessment from the so-called “progressive public.”

Right there. P. 181.

could know and control the general nature of the selection of books. But responsibility for the selection itself still remains with the librarian.”1

Attitudes towards recreational reading in 1917-1985.

In the very first days after the revolution of 1917, librarianship found itself in the hands of like-minded people K.N. Derunov and A. Poshekhonova. The work of all authors of entertaining literature was declared harmful to the builders of a new society.

On November 22 (December 5), 1917, the People's Commissariat of Education adopted and submitted to the Council of People's Commissars a decree on copyright, in which “the most serious attention” was paid to “displacing popular prints from the market” 2. December 29, 1917 Gosizdat was created by decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. The state (in the terminology of that time - the workers' and peasants' power) considered it necessary to take into its own hands not only political education, but also the education of the working people and the satisfaction of their spiritual needs.

According to party leaders, the holdings of pre-revolutionary libraries were completely unsuitable for workers, peasants, and Red Army soldiers. The Chairman of the Central Library Commission M. Smushkova, on the pages of the newly resumed professional magazine, which began to be called “The Red Librarian,” argues: “In order for the library to meet its purpose, it is necessary ... for the book composition to be revised, many books need to be removed” 3.

“... All former school libraries,” she writes in an article published in the next issue of the magazine, “were stocked with books approved by the Ministry of Education of Tsarist Russia and published specifically for reading by the people. … It is clear that the campaign to confiscate [the books] … will leave no stone unturned” 4 in their holdings.

* page Unfortunately, from then on, the only one that had the right to exist was the point of view of those who were in power: before allowing the people to use the topic, Pokrovsky A.A. On the selection of books for public libraries (Advice to beginning librarians) // Librarian. 1915. No. III-IV. P. 245.

Bystryansky V. State Publishing House and its tasks // Book and revolution. 1920. No. 1.

Smushkova M. Results and prospects of library work // Red Librarian. 1923. No. 1.

Smushkova M. The next task // Red Librarian. 1923. No. 2-3. P. 25.

what now belonged to him had to be carefully cleaned out of everything that was harmful for the people to read. Naturally, literary preferences and assessments of works of art by the “mass reader” could not change radically in the five to seven years that passed after the October Revolution. Therefore, it was necessary “... to educate, educate and educate the reader, ... in every possible way to warn him against the rottenness of literature, which reflects fragments of the past, fragments of a dying class with its pathology, with its pederasty, nymphomania, masturbation, neurasthenicism,” wrote M. Alatyrtsev, author of the article “The Soil Under Your Feet,” published in 1923 in the “Literary Weekly” 1. “Warning” and “education” implied protecting the reader from “harmful” literature, mainly by removing it or, in accordance with the terminology of the time, “ cleaning" of library collections.

“Red Librarian” began printing “Sample lists of books for instructions on cleaning libraries.” In the first list, “popular”, “tabloid”, and adventure literature were widely represented. 2. Popular books of such a nature as “The English My Lord George”, “Bova Korolevich”, “Eruslan Lazarevich” ... etc. publications were subject to confiscation Balashov, Brilliantov, Zemsky, Konovalova, Sytin and others. “Lubochka” songs ... from the same publishing houses.” In addition, “issues of pulp novels such as: ... “Casanova”, ... “Garibaldi”, “Nat Pinkerton”, “Nick Carter”, “Leuchtvis Cave”, “Secrets of the German Court” 3 were confiscated.

included “adventure novels and authors like Burroughs’ Tarzan,” Jaccolay, Emar, Conan Doyle, Ferry, Karazin, Halgard. Works by such authors as Werner, Marlad, Gip, Prevost, Onne, Bourget, Kolinz Locke..." and others. 4 We deliberately did not correct the distortions of the names of famous authors, so that it would become more clear what the book culture of those who now managed the library funds was like. .

“Instructive letter on the revision of the book composition of the fund...”

ordered the removal “from pre-revolutionary literature” of works that “do not represent significant artistic or social value, and especially Cit. from: Dobrenko E. Molding of the Soviet reader. St. Petersburg, 1997. P. 228.

Red Librarian. 1924. No. 1. P. 137-140.

Quote from: Guiding catalog for the removal of all types of literature from libraries, reading rooms and the book market K.S.S.R. Orenburg, 1924. P. 1, 3, 6. This catalog uses the same instructions that were published in the “Official Department” of the magazine “Red Librarian” (1924. No. 1. P. 135-141).

those that, without having major literary significance, are imbued with reactionary tendencies, religious, superstitious, nationalistic, militaristic, etc., eroticism, vulgar philistinism, etc.” 1 In addition to “popular books” from small libraries serving mainly “poorly prepared”

readers, “works of the tabloid type” were to be confiscated “even in those cases when they are covered with pseudo-revolutionary phraseology”, when they give “a distorted idea of ​​the class struggle, of the pressing issues of our time”, and promote “alien ideology”. Subject to confiscation were “even sometimes significant in terms of literary mastery” works that “conducted a mood of disbelief in the creative possibilities of the revolution, a mood of social pessimism.” Examples include “The Diaboliad” by M. Bulgakov, the works of E. Zamyatin and S. Sergeev-Tsensky and the books “irrelevant in their ideological position” by M. Proust, S. Lagerlef, S. Zweig and others. This document, signed by N. K. Krupskaya and M. A. Smushkova, was based on the conclusions of theorists who directly linked the specifics of perception of works of art with the class origin of readers.

This approach was found in sociological and library studies of reading even before the revolution. In the first post-revolutionary decade, it supplanted all others. Thus, in the early works of E. Khlebtsevich we encounter the following rezume: “readers who are keen on the plot (a very common type). The meaning of the book is not important to them; they do not require ideological or scientific content;

use almost exclusively fiction. For the Red Army, readers of this type [are] usually found among Red Army peasants and semi-intellectuals. They are difficult to process. [emphasis added by us - L. G., O. S.] ... Conscious readers ... on a class basis are most characteristic of the urban proletariat" 2. The author states:

“As for fictional literature, ... our experiments confirm An-sky’s earlier conclusions on this matter. ... Books in the department (fiction) are read most often. The survey question was answered: historical, adventures and incidents, poetry, prose, dramatic works, “how people live in this world,” political, about love, war stories” 3.

Instructive letter on the revision of the book content of mass political and educational trade union libraries. M., 1930. P. 32.

Khlebtsevich E.I. Study of the reading interests of the broad masses (From the experience of library work in the Red Army). M., 1923. S. 16, 19.

Right there. P. 25.

The desire to protect readers from “harmful books” is found even in literature devoted to the classification and cataloging of fiction for mass libraries. L. Kogan, for example, identified three directions in the perception of fiction by readers: thematic, genetic and formal. According to L. Kogan, readers’ interests were primarily determined by “class psychology,” and readers of the same class were divided into “different layers.” “Layering” was determined by the influence of profession, degree of culture, age and environment. Thus, he drew the attention of librarians to the fact that the interests of a worker with extensive experience, a leader and a social activist differ from the interests of a worker who has just arrived at the plant from the village;

A metalworker makes different demands on a book than a construction worker; an old worker differs from young workers in his choice of books. At the same time, the most dangerous thing for a librarian is “to go with the flow of the reader’s interests.”

It is necessary to direct the flow in the right direction, accustoming “the reader to the systematic and critical reading of selected literature, ideologically significant, and artistically standing at a fairly high level” 1.

B. Bank and A. Vilenkin adhered to the same positions. They gave recommendations not only to librarians, but also to publishing houses. Researchers have seen differences in the perception of fiction among young readers from working-class and peasant backgrounds. “The romance of adventure, of course, attracts peasant youth, but with its characteristic practicality and everyday realism, it reacts primarily to that adventure fiction that does not go beyond the framework of the real and the action of which unfolds around a core that is socially close to it.

This fact is confirmed by her negative attitude towards translated adventure fiction, her wary and suspicious attitude towards Blyakhin’s “Red Devils” (“entertaining, although I think it’s embellished”) and the unconditional recognition of Neverovsky’s “Tashkent” as an example of adventure fiction” 1.

“Socio-economic affiliation” automatically determines the “bad taste” of the “bourgeois semi-intelligentsia and urban philistinism,” bearing the name “everyman.” They “reacted hostile to the revolution, nothing Kogan L. Library work with fiction. L., 1931. P. 12.