What Are Public Libraries For

Libraries are morphing from book repositories into providers of a diverse, sometimes startling variety of services and programs.

Libraries still have books, but they offer so much more than books alone that many branches no longer resemble traditional visions of a library. In part, they evolved because library use was declining so alarmingly that the Donald Trump administration suggested cutting library budgets. Becoming relevant to contemporary users is a matter of survival for these institutions.

Not only do libraries differ in appearance and service from their traditional antecedents, but within a single library system, each branch may serve various communities in particular ways. Rapidly changing technology presents challenges to library leaders who attempt to keep their facilities updated. One system opened its computer lab just as the iPhone rendered...