Something Wicked This Way Comes: Special Collections As Viewed by a Technocrat

Abstract

When the title of my presentation today began to make the rounds a few months ago, I was asked by several people the inevitable question: Who is the wicked one? Us (special collections) or you (the technocrat)? The answer, inevitably, is “Yes,” which is, of course, why I settled on that title in the first place. As a science fiction reader, I could have selected any number of other titles suitable to the topic, including “The Year’s Best Horror Stories,” “Worlds of Weird,” or “The Dispossessed.” None, however, as evocative as Mr. Bradbury’s.

As a point of departure, and since . . .