Best of
Library-Science

2014

The One-Shot Library Instruction Survival Guide


Heidi E. Buchanan - 2014
    Authentic learning with student interaction may seem unattainable in only an hour. But it's not. The keys are communicating clearly with the course instructor, developing a realistic plan, and employing effective teaching strategies. With more than 30 years' combined experience in teaching information literacy, Buchanan and McDonough invite librarians to turn everyday challenges into instruction that is meaningful and relevant for students, supplying the knowledge and tools to make it happen.

Useful, Usable, Desirable: Applying User Experience Design to Your Library


Amanda Etches - 2014
    Every decision you make affects how people experience your library. In this useful primer, user experience (UX) librarians Schmidt and Etches identify 19 crucial touchpoints such as the library website, email, furniture, parking lot, events, and newsletters. They explain why each is important to your library's members and offer guidance on how to make improvements. From library administrators to public relations and marketing staff, anyone concerned with how members experience your library will benefit from this book's * Coverage of the eight principles of library UX design, explaining how they can guide you to better serve your library's members * Advice on simple, structured ways to evaluate and improve aspects such as physical space, service points, policies and customer service, signage and wayfinding, online presence, and using the library * Scorecard system for self evaluation, which includes methods for determining how much time, effort, and skill will be involved in getting optimum performance

The Librarian Stereotype: Deconstructing Perceptions and Presentations of Information Work


Nicole Pagowsky - 2014
    Through twelve chapters, the book reignites an examination of librarian presentation within the field and in the public eye, employing theories and methodologies from throughout the social sciences. The ultimate goal of this volume is to launch productive discourse and inspire action in order to further the positive impact of the information professions. Through deconstructing the perceived truths of our profession and employing a critical eye, we can work towards improved status, increased diversity, and greater acceptance of each other.

Intellectual Privacy: Rethinking Civil Liberties in the Digital Age


Neil Richards - 2014
    Courts all over the world have struggled with how to reconcile the problems of media gossip with our commitment to free and open public debate for over a century. The rise of the Internet has made this problem more urgent. We live in an age of corporate and government surveillance of our lives. And our free speech culture has created an anything-goes environment on the web, where offensive and hurtful speech about others is rife. How should we think about the problems of privacy and free speech? In Intellectual Privacy, Neil Richards offers a different solution, one that ensures that our ideas and values keep pace with our technologies. Because of the importance of free speech to free and open societies, he argues that when privacy and free speech truly conflict, free speech should almost always win. Only when disclosures of truly horrible information are made (such as sex tapes) should privacy be able to trump our commitment to free expression. But in sharp contrast to conventional wisdom, Richards argues that speech and privacy are only rarely in conflict. America's obsession with celebrity culture has blinded us to more important aspects of how privacy and speech fit together. Celebrity gossip might be a price we pay for a free press, but the privacy of ordinary people need not be. True invasions of privacy like peeping toms or electronic surveillance will rarely merit protection as free speech. And critically, Richards shows how most of the law we enact to protect online privacy pose no serious burden to public debate, and how protecting the privacy of our data is not censorship. More fundamentally, Richards shows how privacy and free speech are often essential to each other. He explains the importance of 'intellectual privacy, ' protection from surveillance or interference when we are engaged in the processes of generating ideas - thinking, reading, and speaking with confidantes before our ideas are ready for public consumption. In our digital age, in which we increasingly communicate, read, and think with the help of technologies that track us, increased protection for intellectual privacy has become an imperative. What we must do, then, is to worry less about barring tabloid gossip, and worry much more about corporate and government surveillance into the minds, conversations, reading habits, and political beliefs of ordinary people. A timely and provocative book on a subject that affects us all, Intellectual Privacy will radically reshape the debate about privacy and free speech in our digital age.

Informed Agitation: Library and Information Skills in Social Justice Movements and Beyond


Melissa Morrone - 2014
    People who work in libraries and are sympathetic to, or directly involved in, social justice struggles have long embodied this idea, as they make use of their skills in the service of those causes. From movement archives to zine collections, international solidarity to public library programming, oral histories to email lists, prisons to protests —and beyond —this book is a look into the projects and pursuits of activist librarianship in the early 21st century.The target audience of this book consists of: - People interested in going into librarianship who want an idea of nontraditional and activist areas in which librarians operate. - Practicing library workers seeking inspiration for ways to combine their expertise with their political interests outside the library. - Practicing library workers who want articulations of how their work fits into a broader context of power structures, politics, and social justice. - Activists interested in collaborations with library workers and/or projects related to literature, information, education, and documentation in social movements. - People in other fields who want to draw connections between their own work and social justice goals, and are looking for supportive literature.

Re-Collection: Art, New Media, and Social Memory


Richard Rinehart - 2014
    In Re-collection, Richard Rinehart and Jon Ippolito argue that the vulnerability of new media art illustrates a larger crisis for social memory. They describe a variable media approach to rescuing new media, distributed across producers and consumers who can choose appropriate strategies for each endangered work.New media art poses novel preservation and conservation dilemmas. Given the ephemerality of their mediums, software art, installation art, and interactive games may be heading to obsolescence and oblivion. Rinehart and Ippolito, both museum professionals, examine the preservation of new media art from both practical and theoretical perspectives, offering concrete examples that range from Nam June Paik to Danger Mouse. They investigate three threats to twenty-first-century creativity: technology, because much new media art depends on rapidly changing software or hardware; institutions, which may rely on preservation methods developed for older mediums; and law, which complicates access with intellectual property constraints such as copyright and licensing. Technology, institutions, and law, however, can be enlisted as allies rather than enemies of ephemeral artifacts and their preservation. The variable media approach that Rinehart and Ippolito propose asks to what extent works to be preserved might be medium-independent, translatable into new mediums when their original formats are obsolete.

Baby Storytime Magic: Active Early Literacy Through Bounces, Rhymes, Tickles and More


Kathy MacMillan - 2014
    Many public libraries have instituted baby and toddler programs, but finding exciting materials for baby storytime that go beyond nursery rhymes can be a challenge. Baby Storytime Magic is a treasure trove of new and exciting ideas for programs, all of which revolve around themes from a baby's world. Inside this resource you'll find * Fingerplays, bounces, flannelboards, activities with props, songs, American Sign Language activities, and more, with items arranged by type of material *Tips for planning storytimes, with advice on logistical issues such as age grouping, scheduling, formats, and physical setup *Guidance on involving caregivers in baby storytimes, including suggested scripts for explaining the benefits of each activity and how to use it at home * Age-appropriate book recommendations *Information on early childhood development, plus an appendix of recommended additional resources

The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services


Heather Booth - 2014
    Sections focusing on practice, theory, and the philosophical underpinnings of the profession are supported by current research and historical perspectives. Both instructive and reflective in scope, this essential handbookProvides a comprehensive introduction to the background and day-to-day realities of teen librarianship for LIS students and those new to the fieldOffers expert tips and wisdom invaluable to those already working with teensHighlights trends, challenges, and opportunities in the changing world of how teens interact with libraries, and what they expectEmphasizes advocacy across all spectrums, including in local communities and among fellow staff who may be anxious about teens in the libraryGuides staff in providing readers' advisory to teensIncludes ready-to-use marketing resources, templates, and sample teen services and teen volunteer plansAnyone who works with young adults will benefit from the thorough coverage provided by this volume's expert contributors.

Programming for Children and Teens with Autism Spectrum Disorder


Barbara Klipper - 2014
    Klipper has presented at conferences and trained librarians from around the country in autism awareness, and the grant-funded Sensory Storytime programming she developed at The Ferguson Library in Stamford, Connecticut is a model for reaching children and teens with autism spectrum disorder. Her complete programming guide, ideal for audiences ranging from preschool through school-age children, teens, and families, Provides background information on the disorder to help librarians understand how to program for this special audience Features step-by-step programs from librarians across the country, adaptable for both public and school library settings Suggests methods for securing funding and establishing partnerships with community organizations Includes a glossary and list of additional resources that will prove valuable to librarians and parents/caregivers alike

Digital Preservation for Libraries, Archives, and Museums


Edward M. Corrado - 2014
    For administrators and practitioners alike, the information in this book is presented readably, focusing on management issues and best practices. Although this book addresses technology, it is not solely focused on technology. After all, technology changes and digital preservation is aimed for the long term. This is not a how-to book giving step-by-step processes for certain materials in a given kind of system. Instead, it addresses a broad group of resources that could be housed in any number of digital preservation systems. Finally, this book is about "things (not technology; not how-to; not theory) I wish I knew before I got started." Digital preservation is concerned with the life cycle of the digital object in a robust and all-inclusive way. Many Europeans and some North Americans may refer to digital curation to mean the same thing, taking digital preservation to be the very limited steps and processes needed to insure access over the long term. The authors take digital preservation in the broadest sense of the term: looking at all aspects of curating and preserving digital content for long term access. The book is divided into four parts based on the Digital Preservation Triad: 1.Situating Digital Preservation, 2.Management Aspects, 3.Technology Aspects, and 4.Content-Related Aspects. The book includes a foreword by Michael Lesk, eminent scholar and forerunner in digital librarianship and preservation. The book features an appendix providing additional information and resources for digital preservationists. Finally, there is a glossary to support a clear understanding of the terms presented in the book. Digital Preservation will answer questions that you might not have even known you had, leading to more successful digital preservation initiatives.

The Power of Play: Designing Early Learning Spaces


Dorothy Stoltz - 2014
    With a strong focus on making play spaces welcoming for parents, caregivers, and children while reducing stress for library staff, the authors - Use current research to explain the importance of play in regard to early literacy and learning - Show how underutilized spaces of any size can be transformed into play spaces, with planning secrets for small, mid-size, and large play environments - Offer tips for reinventing reading nooks as playscapes that encourage fun and play - Present models of successful early learning spaces from across the country, with illustrations and floor plans - Suggest ways to motivate adults to help young children develop a sense of discovery, energizing adults and children alike to pursue the lifelong enjoyment of learning - Include sample guidelines, surveys, and plans to help you adapt your play spaces to the needs of your community - Present a vendor list, tips for cleaning toys, worksheets, and other tools for pulling it all together, from engaging library staff and community partners to hiring architects and contractorsWith the help of this book, you can transform neglected spaces into joyful places that help parents inspire their children to learn.

Young Adult Resources Today: Connecting Teens with Books, Music, Games, Movies, and More


Don Latham - 2014
    The authors integrate a research-focused information behavior approach with a literature-focused resources approach, and bring together in one volume key issues related to research, theory, and practice in the provision of information services to young adults. Currently, no single book addresses both YA information behaviors and information resources in any detail; instead, books tend to focus on one and give only cursory attention to the other. Key features of this revolutionary book include its success in: -Integrating theory, research, and practice -Integrating implications for practice throughout the book -Integrating knowledge of resources with professional practice as informed by research -Integrating both print and electronic formats throughout-within the resource chapters (including websites and social media) Latham and Gross accomplish all this while, paying particular attention to the socially constructed nature of young adulthood, diversity, YA development, and multiple literacies. Their coverage of information landscapes covers literature (with detailed coverage of both genres and subgrenres), movies, magazines, web sites, social media, and gaming. The final chapter cover navigating information landscapes, focusing on real and virtual YA spaces, readers' advisory, programming, and collaboration. Special attention is paid to program planning and evaluation.

Rare Books and Special Collections


Sidney E. Berger - 2014
    Entrusted with the responsibility of preserving the records of history and culture, these institutions enable access to millions of source materials.Sidney E. Berger, a veteran of rare book and special collections, offers a landmark examination of this field, aimed at practitioners in the library field, instructors teaching courses on the subject, booksellers, private collectors, historians, bibliophiles, and others involved in rare and unique materials.

Step Into Storytime: Using Storytime Effective Practice to Strengthen the Development of Newborns to Five-Year-Olds


Saroj Nadkarni Ghoting - 2014
    This important resource shows how presenters can use STEP to craft a storytime that is effective for mixed-age groups and adheres to best practices for emotional, social, physical, and cognitive support. In this book, early literacy experts Ghoting and Klatt offer more than 30 complete ready-to-use storytimes appropriate for newborns to children age 5, along with extension activities. They include preparation, planning, and performance tips, plus guidance for interacting with parents and caregivers.

Buster Keaton's Crew: The Team Behind His Silent Films


Lisle Foote - 2014
    They knew what they were talking about. Drawn from film trade magazines, newspapers, interviews and public records, this book tells the previously unpublished stories of the behind-the-scenes crew who worked on Keaton's silent films--like Elgin Lessley, who went from department store clerk to chief cameraman, and Fred Gabourie, who served as an army private in the Spanish American War before he became Keaton's technical director. I'd ask, 'Did that work the way I wanted it to?' and they'd say yes or no, Keaton said of his crew. He couldn't have made his films without them.

Indexing It All: The Subject in the Age of Documentation, Information, and Data


Ronald E. Day - 2014
    Focusing on the documentary index (understood as a mode of social positioning), and drawing on the work of the French documentalist Suzanne Briet, Day explores the understanding and uses of indexicality. He examines the transition as indexes went from being explicit professional structures that mediated users and documents to being implicit infrastructural devices used in everyday information and communication acts. Doing so, he also traces three epistemic eras in the representation of individuals and groups, first in the forms of documents, then information, then data.Day investigates five cases from the modern tradition of documentation. He considers the socio-technical instrumentalism of Paul Otlet, “the father of European documentation” (contrasting it to the hermeneutic perspective of Martin Heidegger); the shift from documentation to information science and the accompanying transformation of persons and texts into users and information; social media's use of algorithms, further subsuming persons and texts; attempts to build android robots—to embody human agency within an information system that resembles a human being; and social “big data” as a technique of neoliberal governance that employs indexing and analytics for purposes of surveillance. Finally, Day considers the status of critique and judgment at a time when people and their rights of judgment are increasingly mediated, displaced, and replaced by modern documentary techniques.

It Happens: A Guide to Contemporary Realistic Fiction for the YA Reader


Kelly Jensen - 2014
    Part I provides tools to understand YA literature, genres, how to find books, and awards. Part II explores titles in ten subgenres of realistic fiction, complete with plot description, list of appeal factors, and suggested read alikes for each title. Part III provides conversation starters on tough real topics that will challenge readers.

Resource Sharing Today: A Practical Guide to Interlibrary Loan, Consortial Circulation, and Global Cooperation


Corinne Nyquist - 2014
    Collection development has increasingly become a cooperative effort among libraries in geographic proximity. When their own library doesn't have certain books or journals, users turn to interlibrary loan to obtain the resources they need. However, many library science degree programs don't cover interlibrary loan. Resource Sharing Today is a practical guide to resource sharing starting with the library across town and ending with libraries on the other side of the globe. Chapters cover everything from the ALA's interlibrary loan form to successful innovations such as Virginia Tech's ILLiad to New York's IDS (Information Delivery Service). Appendices include regional, state, national, and international ILL codes, ALA and IFLA forms, open access agreements, and purchase on demand plans.

Responsive Web Design for Libraries: A LITA Guide


Matthew Reidsma - 2014
    Library websites need to work on all of them, but maintaining separate sites or content management systems is resource intensive and still unlikely to address all the variations. Experienced responsive web developer Reidsma, named ""a web librarian to watch"" by ACRL's TechConnect blog, shares proven methods for delivering the same content to all users using HTML and CSS. His practical guidance will enable web developers to save valuable time and resources by working with a library's existing design to add responsive web design features. Firmly addressing the expectations of library website users, he shows how libraries can build one site for all devices--now and in the future--with just HTML and CSS.

The ALA Book of Library Grant Money


Nancy Kalikow Maxwell - 2014
    Using this guide, librarians, fundraisers, and researchers will find quick convenient access to information on the most likely funding sources for libraries, including private foundations, corporate foundations, corporate direct givers, government agencies, and library and nonprofit organizations. Edited by nancy Kalikow Maxwell, a grant writer with 35 years of experience, this edition includes more than 200 new entries, as well as * A detailed introduction explaining the concept of "grant readiness" and walking readers through the steps of preparing their institution for a grant project, including stragegic planning, conducting a needs assessment, and identifying potential partners * Guidance on the most effective ways to use the directory, with an explanation of inclusion criteria and data elements * Multiple indexes for finding the right information fast * A new section covering grant-related organizations and sources, to aid readers looking for grant writers or grant development assistance The challenge of "finding the money" will be made easier with this guide's clar and comprehensive information.

A Brief History of the Bodleian Library


Mary Clapinson - 2014
               A Brief History of the Bodleian Library takes readers through the Library’s history, from its founding in 1602 by Sir Thomas Bodley to the present day. Along the way, the book traces the development of the Library’s incomparable collection, complete with details that reveal the eccentricities of those who have helped shape it, including Bodley himself, who conceived of the Library as a “republic of the learned,” and King George VI, who inadvertently delayed the opening of the New Bodleian in 1946 when he broke the key in the lock. Covering the major moments in the Library’s history and with a great many fun facts—How did the Library come to own not one of Shakespeare’s First Folios but two?—the book also apprises readers of its present concerns, including the building of individual subject libraries across Oxford, the use of underground passages, and the perennial search for more space.

Radical Information Literacy: Reclaiming the Political Heart of the IL Movement


Andrew Whitworth - 2014
    This title is based on original analysis of how decisions are made about the relevance of information and the other resources used in learning, showing how society has privileged objective approaches (used in rule-based decision making) to the detriment of subjective and intersubjective perspectives which promote individual and community contexts. The book goes on to analyse the academic and popular DMIL literature, showing how the field may have been, consciously or unwittingly, complicit in the 'objectification' of learning and the disempowerment of individuals and communities. Alternative ways of conceiving the subject are then presented, towards a reversal of these trends. Synthesises key theorists of digital, media and information literacy and information behaviourIncludes the field of 'community informatics'Conducts a bibliometric analysis of a broad spectrum of writings on digital, media and information literacy, analysing the connections between them and the frames of DMIL within which they are located

Network Reshapes the Library: Lorcan Dempsey on Libraries, Services, and Networks


Lorcan Dempsey - 2014
    In a compendium that library planners, administrators, and technology staff will find endlessly stimulating, Varnum offers an expertly curated selection of entries that show where libraries have been in the last decade and also where they're heading now.

Crash Course in Readers' Advisory


Cynthia Orr - 2014
    Often, uncertainty arises because, although librarians are called on to perform such services daily, readers' advisory is a skill set in which most have no formal training. This guide will remedy that. It is built around understanding books, reading, and readers and will quickly show you how to identify reading preferences and advise patrons effectively. You'll learn about multiple RA approaches, such as genre, appeal features, and reading interests and about essential tools that can help with RA. Plus, you'll discover tips to help you keep up with this ever-changing field.There is no other professional book that covers the full spectrum of skills needed to perform the RA service that is in such great demand in libraries of all kinds. Helping readers find what they want is a sure way to serve patrons and build your library's brand. You will come away from this easy-to-understand crash course with the solid background you need to do both.

Historical Dictionary of Librarianship


Mary Ellen Quinn - 2014
    This book traces librarianship from its origins in ancient times through its development in response to the need to control the flood of information in the modern world to the profound transformations brought about by the new technologies of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. The Historical Dictionary of Librarianship focuses on librarianship as a modern, organized profession, emphasizing the period beginning in the mid-nineteenth century. Author Mary Ellen Quinn relates the history of this profession through a chronology, an introductory essay, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 300 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, libraries around the world, and notable organizations and associations. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about librarianship.

Health Librarianship: An Introduction


Jeffrey T. Huber - 2014
    Health Librarianship: An Introduction places health librarianship within the health care context, covering librarianship within this specific environment as well as other perspectives relevant to health librarianship.The book addresses the basic functions of librarianship--for example, management and administration, public services, and technical services--within the health care context as well as issues unique to health librarianship like health literacy, consumer health, and biomedical informatics. This book is an outstanding textbook for library and information sciences classes and will also be of interest to those considering a career change to health librarianship.

The Reference Guide to Data Sources


Julia Bauder - 2014
    Much of the most frequently used data can be found free online, and this book shows readers how to look for it with the assistance of user-friendly tools.

Making the Move to RDA: A Self-Primer for Catalogers


Chamya Pompey Kincy - 2014
    Since both RDA's structure and content differ from AACR2 in many respects, this primer details the development and rationale for RDA as well as its intended goals, principles, and objectives. It then explains RDA's theoretical underpinnings-collectively known as the FRBR Family of Models. Framing the text along these lines provides readers the context for understanding the similarities and differences between AACR2 and RDA, both in terms of content and structure. With this foundation in place, the book takes the reader on a survey of RDA elements used to describe bibliographic and authority records and demonstrates how the MARC code has been expanded to accommodate new elements. Finally, it leads the reader field-by-field through MARC bibliographic records for book and non-book resources as well as through authority records for works, expressions, persons, families, and corporate bodies, describing the similarities and differences between AACR2 and RDA for each field. Examples are provided throughout the text to help the reader visualize the concepts presented.

Building a Core Print Collection for Preschoolers


Alan R. Bailey - 2014
    Early exposure to books heavily influences vocabulary knowledge, which in turn improves later reading skills and helps foster lifelong literacy. HIghlighting more than 300 birth-kindergarten titles, Bailey offers a hand-picked selection of quality books adeptly chosen to help develop crucial literacy skills such as expressive and receptive language, expanded vocabularies, narrative skills, print awareness, the ability to understand written language, awareness of story structure, alphabetic knowledge, and phonological sensitivity.

The Academic Library Administrator's Field Guide


Bryce Nelson - 2014
    Nelson, an experienced administrator wrtiting from first-hand knowledge, delivers such advice in 30 topical chapters. Each chapter begins with an "Assertion," a one-sentence summary allowing you to rapidly scan the book and find what you need. When you're on the job you can dip into this guide for ready-to-use guidance on the full range of administrator responsibilities, such as * How to think and act politically * Preparing staff for safety and security procedures * Influencing student and faculty's perception of the library as a basic component of education * Fostering librarian's professional identity as teachers * Communicating effectively, from email messages to meetings * Assessment and systematic collection of data Commentary sections in each chapter offer observations and interpretation, with abundant examples of useful advice. If you want to dig further into a topic, a Readings section points you to resources. Nelson's guide will be invaluable to new and experienced administrators alike.

Regina Anderson Andrews, Harlem Renaissance Librarian


Ethelene Whitmire - 2014
    Allied with W. E. B. Du Bois, Andrews fought for promotion and equal pay against entrenched sexism and racism and battled institutional restrictions confining African American librarians to only a few neighborhoods within New York City. Andrews also played a key role in the Harlem Renaissance, supporting writers and intellectuals with dedicated workspace at her 135th Street Branch Library. After hours she cohosted a legendary salon that drew the likes of Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston. Her work as an actress and playwright helped establish the Harlem Experimental Theater, where she wrote plays about lynching, passing, and the Underground Railroad.Ethelene Whitmire's new biography offers the first full-length study of Andrews's activism and pioneering work with the NYPL. Whitmire's portrait of her sustained efforts to break down barriers reveals Andrews's legacy and places her within the NYPL's larger history.