Customer Reviews

Library and Information Center Management (Library and Information Science Text Series)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This edition contains an inexcusable number of typographical errors. Management of Information Services is already a tedious class, but having to read this dredge was embarrassing and insulting. My professor couldn't even read the questions aloud in class without having to correct for missing or incorrect words. I would rather read a well-edited text geared more toward business management, honestly. Aren't Information Professionals known for being detail-oriented?

This book contains a lot of information that is fairly useful for someone in need of a basic grounding in fundamental management theory. However, it is often quite poorly written. It is often redundant, and will expand detail upon (repetitive) detail on basic concepts long after you've understood the point, while at the same time flinging out references to more complex topics without explaining them. For example, one chapter goes on and on about concepts to consider when restructuring an organization, but never actually talks about the logistics of how you would go through the process of restructuring.

It is pretty clear to me, actually, that the authors split up who was going to write what chapter, and that one of them can write at least moderately reasonably, while one of them has extremely poor written communication skills. The chapters written by this latter author are often missing transitions between ideas, are poorly organized, have grammar mistakes, and are full of awkward wordings that unnecessarily obfuscate his/her meaning.

This book could be four stars if a) the author who cannot write well is relegated to planning and/or editorial duties, while the other author actually takes care of all of the writing and makes revisions; b) the book is cut down to 1/3 of its length by removing all the redundancies and needless over-explanations of simple topics; and c) the book is then expanded again to something approximating its current length by adding in discussion of all of the complex topics that are currently just throwaway references.

While the text is adequate for any Library management course, the referrals to the accompanying web site are quite annoying. The case studies included in the book are definite food for thought, but to tell the reader to see "the rest of this case study" at the web site is completely misleading. Once the reader attempts to read more at the web site, either the case study is not there, or it is the exact duplicate of the brief description in the textbook. Ugh!

Otherwise, the theory and text is fine.

This book clearly never made it into the hands of a copy editor. Typographical errors, run-on sentences, and passages rendered almost incomprehensible by the use of passive voice lurk in every chapter. The text manages to be both repetitive and vague, over-explaining basic concepts and making oblique references to more complex ones. The worst part of this book, though, is its utter inattention to organization (a capital offense in the land of librarianship). For example, the sub-section "Factors in Planning" in Chapter Four tells readers "Factors, for purposes of discussion here, are arbitrarily divided into five elements." Yet, the authors only identify two of the promised elements before moving on to an entirely different sub-section. I don't expect text books to be riveting entertainment, but they should convey ideas in a clear, concise, and well-organized way. Library and Information Center Management, 7th ed., does not.

This was for a class and I was surprised at how much I actually liked in this book. The chapters are part of larger sections that deal with library management in general. The text makes logical progressions and the reading wasn't nearly as dry as most texts. Plus there are lots of examples and scenarios which were interesting to think about and to help get discussions going.

Not so bad if you have an interest in this area or if it is required.

The book itself was clearly written & includes several helpful illustrations. It arrived promptly & in pretty good shape for a used book. My only complaint is that an area near the bottom of the spine looks as though it has been sliced through with a razor blade, so that several pages are missing their inner bottom corners. It did not impact the readability of the book, though, so no biggie.

You're probably buying this for the same reason I did - your professor assigned it. Its okay, gets the point across. Not terribly exciting but well written and thorough.

I purchased this book as it was required as the textbook for a library science course. I'm still in the class, (in other words, I haven't finished the book yet). But so far I find this book very readable and more current than some of the other textbooks we've used. I like the fact that we can access the accompanying website that goes with this book. It includes some more practical examples of management issues, which are interesting to consider and discuss.

I used this text for my introduction to management course in library school this summer. It was easy to read and very informative. The case studies were very helpful too. I checked out a copy from my library to use for the class, but also purchased a copy for my home library collection.

This book was required for one of my Master's degree classes in Information Science. If you are interested in a career as an Information Professional, I would recommend reading this book.