Open divide : critical studies on open access /

Open Divide: Critical Studies on Open Access is an important, timely work that should be considered essential reading for practitioners working in the OA space. Schopfel and Herb present OA as a grassroots-led solution to the problem of access to scholarly literature. However, as the OA movement matures, the editors ask the important question: Is OA truly expanding access to scholarly literature in a global sense? Or, in its current form, is it actually furthering the knowledge divide between the global North and global South (developed and undeveloped nations)? The brief yet impactful chapters of this volume illustrate that OA began as an ideal--as a challenge to the scholarly communication system. Yet the movement, with its increased focus on gold (publisher-driven) OA, has become largely subsumed under established businesses and subjected to existing power structures. As a result, OA may be in the process of transforming into a neocolonial tool that not only fails to solve the problems of access and dissemination of local research in the global South but also supports existing power structures that further reinforce the dominance of the global North. An invaluable resource for scholarly communications practitioners. Summing Up: Highly recommended. General readers and professionals. --Andrew Wesolek, Clemson University