Books in 132 Languages

The All-Union State Library of Foreign Literature in Moscow contains one of the largest collections of classical and modern world fiction, as well as works on the humanities, natural sciences and fine arts.

A reader can order any publication out of the more than four million volumes in 132 languages and receive it within halt an hour.

The library has 14 reading halls, including an audio-visual department. Here a person can listen to tape recordings, records, or watch slides and educational films People who arc studying a foreign language often come here in order to listen to lingua phone records.

The library has a permanent mem bership of 60,000 men and women from all walks of life. The daily attendance runs between 1,500 and 2,000. Readers in 590 towns and cities across the Soviet Union receive books from the Foreign Literature Library through an inter-library ex change service.

A new spacious library building on Ulyanovskaya Street, possessing the latest equipment, was build in 1966. At the present time an automatic system of servicing readers with the help of electronic installations is being tested.

The library has a staff of 700. The study of contemporary foreign literature falls within the scope of its activities, as well as publishing. The library produces information bulletins on foreign fiction, fine arts, natural and social sciences, methodology of teaching foreign languages and provides bibliographical lists.

The library has extensive foreign connections. It is a collective member of friendship societies with Hun gary, Poland, Cuba, the Korean People's Democratic Republic, France and other countries. It cooperates with UNESCO and the International Federation of Library Associations There is a permanent book exchange arrangement with libraries, publishers, universities and scientific establish ments in 85 countries. Some 5,000 titles of newspapers and magaznes arrive from 92 countries.

Visitors to Moscow — famous writers, poets, scientists, cultural figures — frequently give lectures and talks at the library. At various times Henri Barbusse, Richard Aldington. Pablo Neruda, James Aldridge, С. P. Snow, have appeared here. Regular spe cialised book displays are arranged, and ones devoted to the works of progressive world writers.

During my tour of the library I stopped to talk to Elena Karabegova, a fifth-year philology student at Moscow University She comes from Yerevan Armenia, and this is her final year at university.

"I have been a steady visitor'here since my first year, but recently even more so since I am working on my thesis on the early Heine. I have access here to the most varied works in German."

Another reader is student Vladimir Belikov, who is specialising in structural and applied linguistics. Before him lay several books in English but the one he was reading was in a language totally unfamiliar to me.

Vladimir explained that the title was Hatoaian Antiquities and Folklore He said he was studying Hawaian and that in the library he could get many rare books in little-known tongues.

In the Asia-Africa reading room I had one more encounter — with Zakhid Kamilov. a postgraduate student at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

"I’m from Tashkent," Zakhid said "I teach Hindi and Urdu in the local university. Before that I studied at Luknou University in India on an exchange basis. At present 1 am work ing on my thesis on the grammar of Hindi and Bengali The conditions for work here are excellent."

by Oleg DOBROVOLSKY
from the newspaper MOSKOVSKY KOMSOMOLETS

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