Even the best degree program for any career only points your attention in the right direction. Any step along the way may turn corners no curriculum could anticipate. Why stop with what you already know?
Besides, I've always joked that my real profession is being a student. My morale and my performance decline when I'm not learning new stuff.
Hence, once I graduated from the University of South Carolina's School of Library and Information Science (August, 2000) and joined Jacksonville (FL) Public Library, I jumped at the chance to review books for Public Libraries Magazine.
If nothing else, I thought, I could fill in the gaps in my MLIS preparation—I was horrified during my last term when I suddenly realized (Duh!) that I could only take twelve courses and had to skip all those electives I'd been looking forward to.
Plus, I would get all these free books!
The result has been a long series of reviews, published over the years in the "By the Book" column of that magazine. Some of these reviews I'm content with, others, perhaps not, yet the books—with one or two exceptions—were well worth reading.
Librarianship is a lifestyle, a way of looking at and interacting with the world. Our tools are our brains, our imaginations and our love of learning. Books and buildings and the Web are just the infrastructure for what we do with the people we meet.
Keep reading.
Most of the reviews listed below have links to PDFs of the relevant Public Libraries issues from the past issues online archive. You will need to search the PDFs for the specific pages cited.
[Note: Depending on available bandwidth, the PDFs may be slow to load because of their size].
Public Libraries Magazine Reviews
2012
- Do You Web 2.0? Public libraries and social networking, by Linda Berube. Oxford, UK: Chandos Publishing, 2011.
Mar/Apr 12, v 51, n 2, p 45-46 - Working in the Virtual Stacks: The New Library & Information Science, by Laura Townsend Kane. Chicago, Ill.: American Library Association, 2011.
Mar/Apr 12, v 51, n 2, p 46-47
- Librarian's Guide to Online Searching, by Suzanne S. Bell. Westport, Conn.: Libraries Unlimited, 2006.
Jul/Aug 08, v 47, n 4, p 60
- Redefining Literacy for the 21st Century, by David F. Warlick. Worthington, , Oh.: Linworth Publishing, Inc., 2004.
Jul/Aug 06, v 45, n 4, p 67-68
- Information Ethics in the Electronic Age: Current Issues in Africa and the World, edited by Tom Mendina and Johannes J. Britz. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co., Inc., 2004.
Nov/Dec 05, v 44, n 6, p 361 - Measuring for Results: The Dimensions of Public Library Effectiveness, by Joseph R. Matthews. Westport, Conn.: Libraries Unlimited, 2004.
Jul/Aug 05, v 44, n 4, p 245-46 - Performance Management and Appraisal: A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians, by G. Edward Evans. New York, N.Y.: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2004.
May/Jun 05, v 44, n 3, 180-81
- Introduction to Reference Work in the Digital Age, by Joseph Janes. New York, N.Y.: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2003.
Sept/Oct 04, v 43, n 5, p 300-01 - Attracting, Educating, and Serving Remote Users Through the Web: A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians, edited by Donnelyn Curtis. New York, N.Y.: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2002.
May/Jun 04, v 43, n 3, p 186 - The Accidental Webmaster, by Julie M. Still. Medford, N.J.: Information Today, Inc., 2003.
May/Jun 04, v 43, n 3, p 188-89 - The Virtual Reference Librarian’s Handbook. By Anne Grodzins Lipow. New York, N.Y.: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2003.
Mar/Apr 04, v 43, n 2, p 128 - The Accidental Systems Librarian, by Rachel Singer Gordon. Medford, N.J.: Information Today, Inc., 2003.
Jan/Feb 04, v 43, n 1, p 60-61
- Internet Power Searching: The Advanced Manual (2nd ed.), by Phil Bradley. New York, N.Y.: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2002.
Sep/Oct 03, v 42, n 5, p 324 - Neal-Schuman Library Technology Companion: A Basic Guide for Library Staff, by John J. Burke. New York, N.Y.: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2001.
Jul/Aug 03, v 42, n 4, p 263, 266 - Helping the Difficult Library Patron: New Approaches to Examining and
Resolving a Long-Standing and Ongoing Problem. Edited by Kwasi Sarkodie-Mensah. New York, N.Y.: The Hawthorn Press, Inc., 2002.
May/Jun 03, v 42, n 3, p 196 - Library Services to the Sandwich Generation and Serial Caregivers, compiled by Linda Lucas Walling. Chicago, Ill.: Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies, American Library Association, 2001.
Mar/Apr 03, v 42, n 2, p 126 - New Directions for Library Service to Young Adults, by Young Adult Library Services Association, with Patrick Jones. Chicago, Ill.: American Library Association, 2002.
Mar/Apr 03, v 42, n 2, p 127 - Digital Futures: Strategies for the Information Age, by Marilyn Deegan and Simon Tanner. New York, N.Y.: Neal-Schuman Publisher, Inc., 2002.
Jan/Feb 03, v 42, n 1, p 57
- Web-Based Instruction: A Guide for Libraries, by Susan Sharpless Smith. Chicago, Ill.: American Library Association, 2001.
Sep/Oct 02, v 41, n 5
[3rd edition published in 2010]
- Basic Library Skills (Fourth Edition), by Carolyn Wolf. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 1999.
Jul/Aug 01, v 40, n 4
[5th edition published in 2006] - Identifying and Analyzing User Needs: A Complete Handbook and Ready-to-use Assessment Workbook with Disk, by Lynn Westbrook. New York, N.Y.: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2001
and
Library Evaluation: A Casebook and Can-Do Guide , edited by Danny P. Wallace and Connie Van Fleet. Englewood, Col.: Libraries Unlimited, Inc., 2001.
Mar/Apr 01, v 41, n 2
