Rare Books

I am writing as the president of the John Bruckman Committee, the group that supports the rare book collection at the Central Library of Los Angeles, in regard to the article published on April 17.

I would like to clarify two points made in the article. First, it was not made clear that the money used to purchase the ornithology books, which consisted of both rare and common titles, is part of the $10 million that was raised to rebuild and enhance the collections lost in the disastrous fires of 1986. The money cannot be used for other purposes. The ornithology collection lost 1,100 books in the fires. In the Martin auction, 800 general and specialized ornithology books were bought as well as complete runs of the two most important periodicals in the field. The periodicals had been held by the library, and they had been heavily water damaged as a result of the fire. Second, the rare books purchased join a dozen rare bird books already in the collection. Some have been there for up to 90 years.

The Bruckman Committee is an advisory group of interested citizens that exists to develop and promote the rich resources of the library’s rare book collection, which is available to all.

MADELYN TEN EYCK

Los Angeles