Am. Library Association

Booktalking bonanza; ten ready-to-use multimedia sessions for the busy librarian.

Diamant-Cohen and Levi, both specialists in children's library programming, present ten ready-to-use multimedia book talks for children's librarians. The authors incorporate technologies such as YouTube, PowerPoint, and Internet resources along with audio and video, food, games, puppets, "magic," and science to engage young audiences. Most activities run 30 minutes, and the book includes complete scripts as well as variations and additional activities for a variety of age groups. An appendix of sources is included with listing by chapter for easy use. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Creating the customer-driven academic library.

Consultant Woodward, (who is also a former library director for a county system) notes that more scholarly content is now available online than any brick and mortar library could hold. She urges academic librarians to integrate technology to meet the needs of both students and faculty, to reevaluate the role and function of library service desks, to implement staffing strategies to match customer expectations, and to create new and effective promotional materials. She gives advice based on experience on how to build leadership skills and a professional staff, consider staffing in terms of the future as well as the present, transform spaces on tight budgets, make a transition to a twenty-first century library and keep innovation at the forefront, share visions for marketing, evaluate progress, and make it all come together with customer service. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

The desk and beyond; next generation reference services.

Both from Georgia State U., Steiner, a librarian, and Madden, instruction coordinator for the University Library, assemble 13 chapters that discuss reference delivery methods used in academic libraries that take the place of traditional reference desks. Current and former librarians at universities in the US describe research consultations, field and counselor librarians, embedding library services in online course management systems, using chat and social networking sites, preemptive approaches to reference help, wikis and collaborative services, applying principles from the gaming world, creating online support structures, using marketing, and new training models. Each chapter includes an annotated bibliography. There is no index. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Fundamentals of collection development and management, 2d ed.

The second edition of this manual for developing a library collection has been revised to explain how new technologies in electronic media are both logical and important in order to remain a competitive resource for information in the 21st century. Johnson (library science, U. of Minnesota) uses each chapter to explain a particular theory or responsibility behind collection management such as budgeting, policymaking, activity planning and standards for selection. Additional tips for librarians are offered on the subject of theft and damage, serial cancellations, storage, weeding out unproductive titles and developing ties with the community. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Guide to developing a library music collection.

For librarians who are not musicians, this guide explains how to select sources for a music collection. Fling gives brief overviews of the history of music libraries and scholarship, and discusses types of printed music editions and representative publishers and sources, resources for selecting recordings, including annotated guides, and guides to books and periodicals. He also outlines selection strategies, including collection development policies, music approval plans, and how associations and awards and prizes can be helpful. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Guide to the ANSI/NISO/LBI library binding standard.

The Guide to the Library Binding Institute Standard for Library Binding was published in 1990 preserving controversies and compromises of the day. In 2006, it was decided to harmonize its numbering system with the new battery of standards. It turned out that nearly all the concerns raised then have since been resolved. So a substantial revision was undertaken, and the new guide reflects current best practice for librarians and collection managers. There is no index. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

The hipster librarian's guide to teen craft projects.

This guide for librarians outlines crafting projects that can be done with teenagers. It focuses on using repurposed or recycled, low or no-cost materials and presents 12 projects like jewelry, melted crayon bookmarks, blank books, fabric collages, vinyl totes, and book pillows. Projects include instructions for preparation and completing the project, room requirements, materials needed, spin-offs, and ideas for adaptation with different age groups. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Informed learning.

Bruce (information technology, Queensland U., Australia) presents faculty and policy makers in higher education this text examining research into the experience of using information to learn in academic, workplace, and community settings, with an aim toward influencing curriculum design. A series of vignettes make up the chapter introductions. Chapters advance a curriculum model favored by the author in practice and discuss informed learning as it relates to: students' experiences, specific disciplines and professions, the community and the workplace, the research community, research higher-degree students, and entire organizations. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

More family storytimes; twenty-four creative programs for all ages.

Reid, a veteran children's librarian (he also teaches courses on children's and young adult literature, and librarianship at the U. of Wisconsin Eau-Claire) outlines 24 half-hour programs using stories, fingerplays, singalongs, and movement activities. Intended for use in libraries, for audiences of all ages, the programs encourage participation, reading readiness, and reading skills, and address such themes as traditional tales, animals, sound effects, families, clothes, the ocean, and seasons. Lists of books and websites are included. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Public libraries and internet service roles; measuring and maximizing Internet services.

Information scholars McClure (Florida State U.) and Jaeger (U. of Maryland) distill into a slender volume what they have learned over many years about the relationships, questions, benefits, and challenges created by the intersection of public libraries and the Internet. Writing for both professionals and students, they consider issues that affect policy and design, rather than daily practice in libraries. Among them are Internet access in social roles of public libraries, implications of Internet-enabled roles, and challenges from professional resistance and public policy. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Reading is funny!; motivating kids to read with riddles.

Anderson, a primary school librarian, is plenty of fun but has a very firm grasp on what kids like to read, what motivates them to read, and how they will apply literacy to their entire curriculum. She offers an amazing set of ideas to use humor everywhere in the classroom and school library from bulletin board to games, sharing exercises, and puppets, and also shows how riddles and other types of humor can give a boost to public relations efforts and even relationships with school families. She shows how to start and maintain a riddle file, how to create a "loony library," and how to apply riddles about animals, sports, holidays, creepy creatures, and popular children's entertainment and interests. She includes resource lists and reproducible samples. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Virtual reference best practices; tailoring services to your library.

Kern (digital services coordinator, Central Reference Services, U. of Illinois at Urbana) writes on tools and decision-making processes that can help a library evaluate and launch virtual reference services. The logic follows from the recently published Virtual Reference Service Guidelines from the Reference and User Services Association; this guideline is also published in an appendix. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Writing RFPs for acquisitions; a guide to the request for proposal.

This text for library collections professionals walks readers through the steps for planning and writing requests for proposals (RFPs), intended to minimize the effect of personal preference in the procurement of library materials. Chapters also discuss how to evaluate vendor proposals, award contracts, and follow-up on that contract. Sample materials are provided. (Annotation ©2009 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)