Iowans are proud of the fact that the Hawkeye State leads the nation in the proportion of citizens able to read and write. Iowa boasts several outstanding institutions of higher education. So it only would be logical to assume that Iowans are well served by public libraries. But that is far from the case.

The state’s public library services are so limited that nearly all the farm population is without free library service. And among the many persons living in small rural towns and villages the situation is little better.