Am. Library Association
ALA guide to medical & health sciences reference.
The intended audience for this reference includes biomedical researchers, allied health professionals, and the general public. The book contains annotated entries on print and online medical reference resources in many categories, which will help users find relevant research, clinical, and consumer health information. The sources listed are for various audiences, from middle grade students to medical students, researchers, and clinicians. Focus is on US publications, with some examples from other countries. Most of the resources listed have been published between 1995 and 2007. Although print indexing and abstracting services have largely been replaced with online services, the guide includes entries on several high-profile print indexes. The annotated entries give bibliographic information and summaries of content, audience, and special features. Sources annotated include books, dictionaries, directories, encyclopedias, handbooks, indexes, abstract journals, databases, Internet resources, and sources of statistics. The chapter on medicine also lists library catalogs, sources of medical illustrations and images, sources of quotations, style manuals, and thesauruses. This edition includes more electronic resources, many of them electronic-only. This edition adds three new chapters: consumer health, health care, and international and global health. (Annotation ©2011 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Cost control for nonprofits in crisis.
Smith (accounting, Southeastern Oklahoma State U.) helps library, cultural, religious, foundation, health and welfare, and other nonprofit organization managers and directors learn decision-making techniques for determining the most cost-effective methods for providing services as they face funding reductions in today's economic climate. He covers issues in the purchase or replacement of assets, budget cutting, and performance evaluation, as well as strategic organizational problems such as identifying value creation activities and the role of the mission statement in identifying value-added activities. Other topics include fraud deterrence and methods to plan for the future. (Annotation ©2011 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Going mobile; developing apps for your library using basic HTML programming.
La Counte, a librarian, author, and online writing teacher who has created a mobile application, describes how librarians can develop mobile applications while keeping costs low. He shows them what an app is, how to build one, and how to market it to library patrons. He reviews system requirements and fees for various smartphones; HTML, CSS, and JavaScript programming; how to use PhoneGap to turn a website into a mobile app; how to build a native app to run on the iPhone; how to incorporate widgets; and other tools, like app editors and Google App Inventor. (Annotation ©2011 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Guide to security considerations and practices for rare book, manuscript, and special collection libraries.
The ACRL (Association of College and Research Libraries) has long updated its guidelines for security and response to theft in special library collections. This volume, edited by Wilkie, Jr. (former chair of the RBMS Security Committee), provides a more comprehensive text than just the guidelines. Contributions include practical security concerns, such as burglar alarm systems and security guards, as well as procedures like conducting audit trails and marking rare book and manuscript materials. Four chapters on dealing with theft close out the book. It includes three lengthy appendixes, one of which presents a history of the Blumberg case and survey, where 21,000 books were recovered following an FBI raid. (Annotation ©2011 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Kindergarten magic; theme-based lessons for building literacy and library skills.
MacMillan, a freelance writer, and Kirker, a children's librarian, offer theme-based lessons for librarians and classroom teachers to use to build literacy and library skills in kindergarten students. Activities are meant to be fun, interactive, age-appropriate, and based on standard benchmarks. They introduce the guiding principles for lesson planning and the inclusion of special needs students and nonnative English speakers, then activities that connect to 36 common kindergarten topics, such as sea animals, dinosaurs, and seasons. Each unit has tips on introducing content; recommended books; fingerplays, rhymes, movement activities, or songs; flannelboard or prop stories, with patterns; writing readiness, math, and takeaway activities; a library skill-building game; and American Sign Language and Spanish activities. Indexes by names and titles, and topics, themes, and skills are provided. (Annotation ©2011 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Library management tips that work.
Smallwood, a librarian and editor and writer on librarianship and other topics, provides a guide for public, academic, special, and school librarians on the daily management aspects of the job. Written by different types of librarians across the US, 48 case studies address such topics as creating manuals for job duties, managing emergencies, protecting the library from employment discrimination claims, time management, creating a staff accountability system, communication and staff awareness, collections, community partnerships, mentorship and leadership, grant project management, and the use of technology such as blogs, Google Apps, SharePoint, session control software, Facebook, and wikis. Other chapters cover managing staff and public relations, including board meetings and cooperating with other nonprofits. (Annotation ©2011 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Small business and the public library; strategies for a successful partnership.
At a time when many job seekers, college applicants, and small businesses are using the library to find resources, Weiss et al., former and current reference and adult programming librarians, show public libraries how to incorporate small business services into their resources and market them to the business community for greater use, quality, and visibility. They describe ideas for collection development, programming, marketing, and coalition and partnership building. They discuss the role of technology, the importance of outreach, print and electronic resources valuable for business and career questions, issues involved in creating programs, networking, and acquiring funding. (Annotation ©2011 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Working in the virtual stacks; the new library & information science.
For those considering a career in librarianship or a mid-career change, Kane (information services, U. of South Carolina School of Medicine Library) provides a follow-up that illustrates how changes in technology have affected the work of librarians since publication of her Straight from the Stacks: A Firsthand Guide to Careers in Library and Information Services (2003). She presents interviews with 34 librarians from around the country who describe their emerging roles as subject specialists, technology specialists and social networkers, teachers and community liaisons, entrepreneurs, and administrators. She gives information on their environments, responsibilities, skills, education and training, and professional associations, then spotlights several librarians in each specialty. (Annotation ©2011 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
