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| Part of the new SPR library |
On
4 August 2016 I was elected chair of the Society for Psychical Research’s
Library Committee, the previous incumbent, Guy Lyon Playfair, having stepped
down (though he remains a member). Guy
had held the position for many years, and I was honoured to be asked to take his
place.
I have
been on the committee since 2010 though I had originally been invited to join
it in the mid-1990s by the then chair, Andrew MacKenzie. Unfortunately I had recently moved out of
London and didn’t think I would be able to attend meetings regularly enough, so
declined. These days a lot of our
business is done by email, though we do have occasional meetings at the SPR’s
London premises.
Being
chair ties in well with my role as Reviews Editor of the SPR’s Journal. which involves keeping my ear
to the ground for suitable new books. I
add details of these, plus others of a more popular nature, to a section of the
SPR website devoted to publications of interest.
The
SPR’s collection is among the best of its kind in the world. Its formation was one of the first acts of
the new Society in 1882, and it has continued to grow. It is split between London and Cambridge
University Library, where the rare books (designated ‘Z’) are housed in secure
conditions, along with the archives.
The
Library Committee’s primary responsibility is to procure new books and
periodicals, either by purchase or donation, exercising quality control over what
goes onto our shelves. Its members have considerable
expertise between them and are able to ensure that researchers have access to
as wide a range of material as possible within psychical research and
parapsychology. Suggestions for
potential purchases, and of course donations, are always welcome.
With
the move from very cramped quarters at Marloes Road to our own premises at
Vernon Mews earlier this year we have extra space to house acquisitions, and
the reading experience is much improved.
While the Library Committee may not have the cachet of some other SPR committees, such as those devoted to
spontaneous cases or survival research, it is nevertheless a vital component of
the Society’s organisation, and I am pleased to be able to play a significant
part in its activities.
