Readership and reading in the Russian province in the late 19th -early 20th centuries (case study of the Central Black Soil region)

The article deals with the history of private book collections in the provinces of the Central Black Soil region in the late 19f h - early 20 th centuries, the structure of book stocks in the public libraries. On the basis of the records made by the libraries the author distinguishes the basic groups of readers, and analyzes the readers’ preferences and interests. It is noted, that the books became an essential factor of development of the Russian society.