This paper considers the concept of "the archive" in the digital age and the situation of libraries and archives within the lifecycle of information. After discussing the changing nature of books, records, scholarly communication, and the concept of "the archive," this paper merges book and record lifecycle models into a new archival cycle. To avail themselves of the opportunities and to confront the challenges presented by digital materials, librarians and archivists are beginning to assume new roles and reposition themselves within this archival cycle. As professional trajectories converge, preservation can be linked with creation or distribution and it becomes easier to imagine a viable model for curating the archive in the twenty-first century. (Contains 4 figures and 65 notes.)