Libraries Beyond

In idle moments, a few friends are considering launching a new journal called JOR (The Journal of Obvious Results). Several of the pieces in this volume would merit republishing there: the finding that co-operatives can help with staff training as well as service delivery is an excellent example.

The fourteen pieces generally display what appears to be the increasing parochialism of US librarianship literature. Some of this relates to language and culture. A statement such as “Dona Maria, the Latino version of Ann Landers” is completely incomprehensible, while only the lovers of the most esoteric will know what Nerf ball and plus delta exercises are. Some of it relates to an inability to look beyond the boundaries from sea to shining sea. After 15 years of convergence in UK higher education and multiple examples of convergence in Australasia and Europe, a phenomenon much discussed and written about, never mind all the UK work on information strategies covering this topic, we can still be told that “a recent literature search yielded little information about collaboration between separate library and IT units”. Either a bad or a purely local search.

The jewel in the crown is undoubtedly the first (?) example of bodice-ripping professional literature: “Later we met for dinner and informal entertainment by the fire” … “His brown eyes were wide and his eyebrows were arched with anticipation” … “We shared touching (sic) moments” … “One group gave a formal presentation with a candle”. All of this in a piece on the sensible topic of the role of play in learning leadership and collaboration. The chapters include the incredibly bad. One piece manages 185 bullet points in 19 pages. Its principal cited reference is the dictionary (ten times). It reads like a Google search result and offers an A-Z of co-operation with 43 examples of such co-operation in apparently random order.

It covers the very worthy and useful, with descriptive accounts, such as the hitherto unremarked co-operation between US Patent and Trademark Depository Libraries, which have done good work for over a century or the ARL's Statistics and Measurement Program or the management of grey literature in Agricultural Economics. And it has one wonderful piece by Nancy Kranich, a past president of ALA. It is an inspiring rant on the role of the library in re-creating civil society in the USA. Easily transferable from the US context it reeks of commitment, sincerity, passionate conviction and fire in the belly. As such it is totally out of place in this collection.

But most of all we come back to the relentless parochialism of much American writing. Arlitsch has an interesting piece on the development of international links between the University of Utah and less favoured countries, beginning with Cyprus. This work is nobly envisaged and in part aimed at encouraging a better opinion of the USA. It seems churlish to criticise a well written piece about selfless work to help others, but it does yet again appear at best unworldly to be able to develop programmes with Cyprus and the Balkans without noticing the international groupings and programmes active there. No mention (even to suggest they are inappropriate) of partnership and membership programmes: IFLA; EAHIL; EUMEDIS; eIFL are ignored – or worse not known of? – in preference to unilateral action. No knowledge is shown of the work on libraries in the Eastern Mediterranean funded by the EU for 20 years now.

In sum then, this is a very poor work. The quality of the pieces varies from the bad and incomprehensible (to a non-American) to the bland and meretricious. It has been well proof-read but not in any meaningful sense edited (or if it has goodness knows what was rejected). There are at best two very good articles. The blurb for this book claims that it is unique. Long may it remain so.