Magic Search: Getting the Best Results from Your Catalog and Beyond [Paperback]

Rebecca S. Kornegay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2009 | ISBN-10: 0838909906 | ISBN-13: 978-0838909904

Subdivide and conquer! "Magic Search: Getting the Best Results from Your Catalog and Beyond" showcases how to increase the power of Library of Congress Subject Heading (LCSH) subdivisions to produce astonishing results from your searches. Rebecca S. Kornegay and Heidi E. Buchanan, experienced reference librarians, and Hildegard B. Morgan, an expert cataloger, explain how, when used wisely, LCSH subdivisions can save time and provide a new level of precision in information retrieval for patrons of the library. "Magic Search" presents the 467 best-performing LCSH subdivisions that speak to the kinds of research questions librarians handle every day. This quick reference format, along with a handy index, offers a useful tool to keep for quick reference rather than a cumbersome tome to be read from cover to cover. In addition, this book provides: a thematic arrangement of LC subdivisions that yield the most successful search; chapters on discipline-specific subdivisions to hone effective search terms; and, precise, professional vocabulary useful in searches and explained in easy-to-understand language. Grasping the importance and having command of LC subdivisions, now appearing in unexpected places beyond the library catalog, is key in this rapidly evolving, 21st-century information environment. No other work explores the LCSH subdivisions is such detail or with such commitment, making this book vital to every Reference Desk.

Editorial Reviews

Review

In this short and illuminating reference book, the authors a veteran reference librarian, a newer reference librarian, and an experienced cataloger present an approach to subject searching that combines the power of LCSH s controlled vocabulary with the flexible keyword searching style we ve become accustomed to ... Highly recommended for all reference librarians. --The Idaho Librarian

This is a valuable book for anyone working a reference desk dealing with a wide range of questions that require specialized knowledge. This could also be an interesting additional reading for a cataloging, classification, or taxonomy course in which the usage of words might be of interest. --Public Services Quarterly

This little gem of a book packs a heap of practical advice into its 160 pages … a valuable tool for anyone who spends time at a reference desk (physical or virtual). Not only will it help you mine your catalog more efficiently and effectively, it will also give you a renewed respect for the value of professional cataloging. --The Journal of Academic Librarianship

This is a valuable book for anyone working a reference desk dealing with a wide range of questions that require specialized knowledge. This could also be an interesting additional reading for a cataloging, classification, or taxonomy course in which the usage of words might be of interest. --Public Services Quarterly

This little gem of a book packs a heap of practical advice into its 160 pages … a valuable tool for anyone who spends time at a reference desk (physical or virtual). Not only will it help you mine your catalog more efficiently and effectively, it will also give you a renewed respect for the value of professional cataloging. --The Journal of Academic Librarianship

About the Author

Rebecca Kornegay is head of reference at Western Carolina University s Hunter Library, in Cullowhee, North Carolina. She received her MSLS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1977.

Heidi Buchanan is a reference librarian at Hunter Library. Her MSLS is from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (2000).

Hildegard Morgan is assistant head of cataloging at Hunter Library. Morgan has thirty years of cataloging experience and also serves at Hunter s reference desk. Kornegay, Buchanan, and Morgan are the coauthors of Amazing magic searches! Subdivisions combine the precision of the cataloger with the freewheeling style of a Googler, published in Library Journal, November 2005.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Amer Library Assn Editions (April 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0838909906
• ISBN-13: 978-0838909904
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,646,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Secrets from the Library of Congress, September 8, 2010

By 

CatalogLibrarian (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Magic Search: Getting the Best Results from Your Catalog and Beyond (Paperback)

I recommend this book for librarians; librarians who are doing adult reference service particularly. As a catalog librarian, it was terrific to read such a smart book about cataloging written by librarians who are not catalogers. Serious library researchers could also benefit from their search tips.

The authors explain the Library of Congress Subject Heading system, and particularly, the subdivisions and how they can be used to improve keyword search results. They have very smart tips for searching and great suggestions for improvement in how the subdivisions are used.

5.0 out of 5 stars Aimed at the reference/research desk librarian, February 4, 2010

By 

John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Magic Search: Getting the Best Results from Your Catalog and Beyond (Paperback)

The Library of Congress Classification System is a system that presents an alternative to the more commonly used Dewey Decimal system. The authors of this book have presented an approach to use the system to provide the librarian and their visitors with an approach to using the system to provide the most search technique.

The authors show how this approach is growing in popularity with the orientation of modern computer search engines. They further make some suggestions as to some future additions/changes to the system that will make it even more effective.

This is a book aimed at the research desk librarian.