In part, the crisis of The New York Public Library stems from the fact that it’s a weird entity. It’s not a state or city agency; instead, the library was founded as a private, nonprofit institution. It has always been governed by a board of trustees typically drawn from Manhattan’s 1 percent.
NPR reviews Scott Sherman’s new book, Patience and Fortitude, and takes a look at the strange and often difficult task of funding the New York Public Library.