INLS 111: INFORMATION RESOURCES AND SERVICES I
School of Information and Library Science
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
I. GENERAL
GUIDES.
Balay, Robert, ed. Guide to
Reference Books. 11th ed. Chicago: American Library Association, 1996.
[SILS Ref. Z1035.1.S43 1996]
While earlier editions of
the publication have served as study aids for library school students, the
present edition strives to provide “usefulness” to the “practicing librarian
and research worker” who seek aid in the review of reference works for
scholarly research as well as those for the general reader. With over 14,000 entries which include
universal bibliographies, encyclopedias, periodicals, handbooks, atlases, and
much more, the work provides complete bibliographic data, LC classification,
and an entry number for location in the work.
Annotations are written by librarians in academic settings and compiled
by the editor into five broad subject classifications and then divided further
into smaller areas and then divided by form.
An excellent title, author, and subject index complete the one volume
work that can be faulted only for its lack of currency.
Walford, A.J., ed. Guide to
Reference Material. 7th ed. 2 vols. London: Library Association, 1999.
[Davis Ref., SILS Ref. Z1035.1.W33 1999]
This British work is
similar to Balay’s Guide to Reference
Books although its scope is international with an emphasis on British
works. Entries, arranged in broad
subject areas, use the Universal Dewey Classification numbers and include
complete bibliographic data, annotations, and limited citations. Designed for use by librarians building and
revising reference collections, the work is more current than its American
counterpart. An excellent author,
title, and subject index completes the work that is revised volume by volume at
two year intervals.
Wynar, Bohdan S., ed. American
Reference Books Annual. Littleton, CO: Libraries Unlimited. 1st- 1970-. (Annual; cumulated indexes available
in separate volumes) [SILS Ref. Z1035.1.A55]
Reviews of all reference
books published in the U.S. and Canada within a given year are provided in American Reference Books Annual. This comprehensive work provides critical,
evaluative discussions of the strengths and weaknesses of included reference
works. The signed reviews, covering
works of all types including dictionaries, encyclopedias, indexes, and ready
reference materials, are provided by scholars, practitioners, and library
educators. The reviews, which include
bibliographical data and citations to other works within an evaluation, are
arranged in four major subject areas while an index for author-title and one
for subject allow for quick entry into the work.
II. SELECTIVE
LISTS.
Dority, G. Kim, ed. A Guide
to Reference Books for Small and Medium-Sized Libraries, 1984-1994.
Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1995. [SILS
Ref. Z1035.1.D665 1995]
This guide reviews the most appropriate and highly recommended
reference books in English. The first
chapter covers general reference and the following 42 chapters are arranged by
subject. In addition to the standard
bibliographical information, the distributor, the standard book number, a
descriptive annotation, strengths and weaknesses, and review sources are
included for each entry. An
author/title index and a separate subject index refer to the individually
numbered items. The sturdy binding and
clear format make this a source that can stand up to heavy use over a period of
time.
Government Reference
Books: A Biennial Guide to U.S. Government Publications. 1968/69- .
Littleton, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1970- . (Biennial)
[SILS Ref. Z1223.Z7G68]
This biennial guide
provides librarians and patrons with bibliographic access to the most important
U.S. government published reference tools for the years 1980-1981. Entry into the publication is possible
through indexes using issuing government agency, title, personal author, series
title or subject keyword. The
bibliographic data is complete enough so that the title may be easily located
and/or purchased and includes series notation, LC card number, ISBN, ISSN,
Superintendent of Documents classification, stock number, and price. Organization is by four broad subject areas
including general library reference, social sciences, science and technology,
and humanities.
Kister, Kenneth. Best
Encyclopedias: A Guide to General and Specialized Encyclopedias. 2nd ed. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Pr., 1994. [Davis Ref., SILS Ref. AE1.K57 1994]
Written by a nationally
know authority on reference materials, Best
Encyclopedias provides critical comparisons using citations and examples to
evaluate fifty English language general encyclopedias and over five hundred
subject encyclopedias in two separate sections. Most helpful to consumer and librarian, a guide with questions
concerning evaluation and purchase is included in the first chapter. Arranged alphabetically by title within the
two main sections, entries are also compared in the “In Comparison”
section. Criteria evaluated in the
entries include history, authority, purpose, reliability, recency, objectivity,
and other factors used to evaluate encyclopedias. An index is included in this very current work.
Reference Books
Bulletin, 1968/70- . Chicago: American Library Association, 1970- . [SILS Ref.
Z1035.1.S922]
A biennial cumulation of
reviews from the “Reference and Subscription Books” section of Booklist, and since 1983 known as
“Reference Books Bulletin” also contains omnibus articles and other evaluations
that did not receive publication earlier due to space restrictions. The unsigned reviews for use mainly by small to medium sized libraries are
descriptive and evaluative in nature and provide complete bibliographical data
as well as subject headings and price when available. The committee of reviewers, comprised of librarians and teachers,
is identified in each bulletin.
III. INDEX TO
REVIEWS.
Book Review Digest. New York: H.W. Wilson,
1905- . [Remote Access: Davis Ref. Electronic Resource: http://eresources.lib.unc.edu/eid/,
select sources starting with “B,” then select Book Review Digest]
An excellent selection aid
for all libraries, Book Review Digest
is published ten times a year with three cumulations and a bound annual. At least two excerpts from and citations to
reviews from 110 periodicals are made for each book of fiction or non-fiction
including adult and juvenile literature.
Entries are arranged alphabetically by author and include
bibliographical, physical, purchasing and cataloging information. A subject and title index provides
additional access. The Directory of
Publishers and Distributors at the back of the annual edition is an added
convenience for acquisitions.
Book Review Index. Detroit: Gale Research,
1965- . [Davis. Ref. Z1035.A1 B6] Ref.
Row 2.
The index, a bimonthly
publication which is cumulated annually, provides access to reviews of books
and periodicals by indexing more than 500 reviewing publications across a wide
range of interests; from popular to academic and professional. Designed to be used by those seeking reviews
or titles or by acquisitions librarians researching new titles, looking for new
works, or tracing critical reception of a work, the index can be accessed by
title, author, and keyword. Each entry
provides abbreviated citations to reviews, including name, title, abbreviation
for reviewing source, date, volume, and page number. Searchable as file 137 in DIALOG.
Children’s Book Review
Index. Detroit: Gale, 1974- . [SILS Ref. Z1037.A1C475]
Whitaker, Cathy S. Alternative
Publications: A Guide to Directories, Indexes, Bibliographies, and Other
Sources. Jefferson: N.C. McFarland Co., 1990. [Davis,
SILS Ref. Z1033
.L73A45 1990]
Provides a listing of
bibliographies, indexes, review journals, directories an other sources about
the alternative or small press world.
It is a publication of the ALA’s Social Responsibilities Round Table
Task Force on Alternatives in Print.
IV. GUIDES
TO DATABASES.
Gale Directory of Databases. Detroit: Gale Research Co., 1993- . [Davis
Ref., SILS Ref. QA76.9.D32 D576]
Also available
electronically through the online services: Dialog, the ORBIT Search Service,
and Questel. Issued in 2 volumes:
Online databases, v. 1; and: CD-ROM, diskette, magnetic tape, handheld, and
batch access database products, v. 2. Numbered entries for database profiles,
producers, and vendors contain full address, phone number and contact
information along with subject coverage, data elements, and user aids. Extensive listing of CD-ROM products. Several complete indexes and a very clear
format make this is an easy tool to use.
Unfortunately, paperback binding is insufficient for the size of the
book and the use it should receive.
V. CHILDREN
AND SCHOOL COLLECTIONS.
Nichols, Margaret Irby. Guide to Reference Books for School Media
Centers. 4th ed. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1992. [SILS Z1037.1 .W95 1992]
Safford, Barbara Ripp. Guide to
Reference Materials for School Library Media Centers. Revised 4th ed.
Englewood, CO : Libraries unlimited, 1998. [Ref Z1037.1W95 1998]
This is a comprehensive
guide for school media specialists and educators. The introduction is complete and useful. Included in the 2,011 recommended sources
are tools for the school librarian and educators as well as for their
students. Provides full bibliographical
information with annotations from at least one of six professional reference
reviewing sources. References materials
included are books, journals, microforms, databases and computer software. Following the basic chapters of Media
Sources and General Reference, the 54 subject divisions are arranged
alphabetically from anthropology to zoology.
Each entry is numbered and indexed.
Appropriate grade or age level is indicated for each entry. While all selections are recommended,
exceptional entries are noted with a “recommended” or “highly recommended”
final note.
Peterson, Carolyn S. and Ann D. Fenton. Reference Books for Children. 4th ed. Metuchen, N.J.:
Scarecrow Press, 1992. [SILS Z1037.1 .P4 1992]
VI. CURRENT GUIDES.
A. Semi-Annual or Annual
Reviews.
“Outstanding Reference Sources 2001.” American Libraries 32/5 (May 2001): 48-52.
“Outstanding Reference
Soruces: A 2001 Selection of Recent Titles.” Booklist 97/18 (May 15,
2001): 1782.
“Outstanding Reference
Sources: The 2001 Selection of Recent Titles.” Reference & User Services
Quarterly 40/3 (Spring 2001): 253-255.
“Reference Books of ______”
(year). Library Quarterly, April 15 issue. 1958- . (Annual).
“Selected Reference Books
of _____” (year). College and Research
Libraries, January and June, 1952-
. (Semi-annual).
This
semi-annual publication created by the reference department of Columbia
University is the official journal of the Association of College and Research
Libraries. Neither designed to be
comprehensive nor extremely well-balanced, the “Selected Reference Books”
offers reviews of recent scholarly and general works for use by university
librarians. The work tries to provide a
means of comparison to other similar titles with corresponding Balay code
numbers and offerings of comparative or unique features for a new publication
or edition along with all bibliographic data. Reviews are approximately 150-200
words in length, are divided by subject and will contain negative comments as
well as positive recommendations.
The Booklist. 1905- . “Reference Books Bulletin.”
(Semi-monthly).
The American Library
Association’s publishing committee provides the Reference Books Bulletin as a
feature within the reviewing journal Booklist
twice a month to review reference works of general interest in all types of
subject areas. The unsigned reviews
cite weaknesses or strengths in the descriptive and somewhat evaluative
comments while making some qualified or negative recommendations. Editors selectively decide on the works to
be reviewed, thus eliminating the negative ones from inclusion. Directed to the small to medium-sized public
library and school media centers, Booklists’s
reviews include all bibliographical data as well as comparisons to past
editions or similar works in print.
Choice. 1964- . (Monthly).
Choice, a reviewing journal of the American Library Association
published monthly, provides information through its reviews that allow
librarians, faculty, students, scholars, and the public to place new and
significant publications into the proper perspective in regards to works already
in a subject field. Helping to guide in
the development of the undergraduate library, reviews are analytical, critical
and frequently comparative in nature. Editors selectively eliminate negative
works before review so that the approximately 200 word articles often identify
unique features of the reviewed title.
Subject areas covered by reviews include reference, general humanities,
science and technology, and the social and behavioral sciences with both print
and non-print materials reviewed.
Library Journal. 1876- . Special section for reference books. (semi-monthly).
The reference reviewing
section of the Library Journal
reviews about 450 current, adult references materials each year. The reviewed sources range from practical
and popular, to specialized and scholarly and are intended for public and
academic library reference collections.
The brief reviews (about 100 words each) are written by librarians and
teachers, however most of the reference reviews are written by academic
librarians. While the style of the reviews vary, they all describe and
criticize the works and some comparisons are include. These reviews are available on 3x5 cards.
Reference & User Services Quarterly. 1960- . “In Review.” Covers books and data
bases. Also separate column on
government documents which often reviews documents of a reference nature.
This
quarterly journal for librarians selects about 150 references sources to review
each year. The reviews are generally
written by librarians for librarians in all types of libraries in all subjects,
though less that 5% of the titles are for juveniles. The reviews contain about
200 words covering background information on the author, arrangement of the
work, intended use, physical aspects and the worth of the reference
source. In addition to books, databases
are reviewed.