Copy cat: is it legal to reproduce an out-of-print book to use with students?(Carrie on Copyright)

A teacher wants to make 85 copies of a book that's out of print. Its author is P. Gordon B. Stillman, who died in 1995, and the book was originally published in 1972 by the Independent School Press. I can't find any current contact information for the publisher. Amazon has 10 used copies of the book available for $2.70 apiece. What would you recommend?

-Kathleen Krepps, library director Hinsdale Central High School, Hinsdale, IL

Before making copies of the book, you might want to try one more thing--contact the author's heirs. You can easily find Stillman's obituary online, and it lists his remaining family members. Because of the length of the author's copyright-the …