College and Research Libraries portunity" (p. 64). He believes his library not only survived the lean years of the early 1970s but actually prospered. Determining the accuracy of that claim has a special interest and importance for the profession at this particular time. Thanks to the now in- famous Proposition 13, or one of its many offspring presently in utero, academic librar- ians at a number of publicly supported in- stitutions now face the prospect of having to cope with the same dismal conditions that earlier challenged Daniel Gore. A dispassionate analysis of the annual re- ports argues convincingly that the Macal- ester Library did indeed survive some ex- tremely rough years, perhaps in even better condition than might have been anticipated. For this, no small achievement, Daniel Gore can rightfully claim credit. However, Gore's confident assertion that his is "a li- brary that has prospered through years of heavy weather" remains very much a matter of opinion. This reviewer remains uncon- vinced of the superiority of Gore's innova- tions or their usefulness as a model for other libraries.-Robert L. Burr, Gonzaga University, Spokane , Washington. Collection Building: Studies in the De- velopment & Effective Use of Library Resources. Syracuse, N.Y.: Gaylord Professional Publications, in association with Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc. 1978- . $55 per vol. Issued three times a year. ISSN 0160-4953. Collection Management: A Quarterly Jour- nal Devoted to the Management of Li- brary Collections. New York: Haworth Pr., 1976- . $25 per vol. Issued quar- terly. (V.1, nos.1 and 2, published under the title De-Acquisitions Librarian.) ISSN 0146-2679. Library Acquisitions: Practice and Theory. Elmsford, N.Y.: Pergamon, 1977- $25 per vol. Issued quarterly. ISSN 0364-6408. The Serials Librarian. New York: Haworth Pr., 1976- . $25 per vol. Issued quar- terly. ISSN 0361-526X. In these days of tight money and wildly escalating serial costs, new periodicals in any field must justify their existence by providing more and better information on key topics than the existing journals. Enter- Recent Publications I 505 pnsmg editors must offer potential sub- scribers fresh insights and objective, evalua- tive studies that will attract and hold their interest. These four new, or relatively recent, journals cover various aspects of the plan- ning, development, and management of re- sources in large and small libraries of all types. Their aim is to acquaint library per- sonnel from paraprofessionals to specialist bibliographers with the latest trends, issues, and policies in this relatively neglected field. In relation to the existing periodical literature each of them attempts to fill a perceived long-standing need for more analytical and practical information on the complexity of acquisitions work. The audience for which these four spe- cialized journals are primarily intended ap- pears to be library workers who are already heavily involved in collection building. As one might expect, the journals differ con- siderably in their aims, policy, content, and even in their definition of the field they cover. Predictably, the articles range from tech- nical papers and research reports to inter- pretive essays and how-to-do-it pieces. A few reading lists on special topics are also included. The varying quality of these jour- nals can to some extent be attributed to each editor's ability, or lack of it, to recruit contributors ranging from well-known names in library literature writing on famil- iar topics to neophyte scholars just out of graduate school. As its title indicates, Collection Building deals with this important range of profes- sional activities "in libraries of every cate- gory and size." Its editors and publishers point out that relatively little attention has been given in the past to collection de- velopment in small and medium-size librar- ies. They further charge that "only in the large university-research library is excel- lence in resources development [regarded as] a necessary or realizable goal." In his in- troductory editorial Walter Curley, associate director of the Detroit Public Library, promises not only to publish regularly bib- liographic essays and developmental profiles of noteworthy collections but also to sponsor "specific studies on diverse aspects of collec- tion development." An editorial board com- 506 I College & Research Libraries • November 1978 posed of both library educators and practic- ing librarians assists Curley in assembling and screening a group of contributors whose youthful enthusiasm is tempered with ex- perience . Many useful and relevant topics are cov- ered in the first issue, ranging from infor- mative articles on building a community re- sources file to commentaries on the pr ob- lems of collection development in college libraries and in school library media cen- ters. There are also three bibliographic es- says for selectors on preparing for retire- ment, urban mass transportation , and free and inexpensive materials. The contributors are all knowledgeable and experienced li- brarians, apparently well qualified for their assignments. Individually most of the arti- cles are worth reading but none would qual- ify as a rigorous research study. Perhaps the most interesting article in the first issue is Dan Duran's piece, "Informational Status and the Mass Media: The Case of the Urban Poor, " which will undoubtedly provoke more philosophical discussion and debate among outreach librarians than book selec- tors. In his introductory editorial in Collection Management , Ralph Trueswell, professor of industrial engineering and operations re- search at the University of Massachusetts, argues that there has long been a need for a periodical which focuses on the "theories, practices, and research findings involved with the modern management of collec- tions ." The audience for which this particu- lar journal is intended includes a mixed bag of practitioners, theorists , researchers, and educators who, the editors hope , will inter- act to help solve existing problems. Among the timely and eminently practical topics to be studied here are weeding, no-growth col- lections, secondary storage, and budget al- locations. Potential contributors are re- minded that all articles accepted for publica- tion in Collection Management must have "a pragmatic thrust either implicit or explicit in their subject matter." How successfully is this editorial policy implemented? Most of the articles I exam- ined are readable and sensible enough, al- though they vary greatly in their conceptual and methodological approaches to meas- urement and· evaluation. Some articles are based on a rigorous statistical analysis while others reflect personal and professional ex- perience in a particular library. Still others are bibliographic essays written in tradition- al style. Perhaps the strongest papers meth- odologically are William McGrath's formula- tion of regression models to study the pre- dictability of book selection and Philip Morse's long exercise in probability analysis, though readers not versed in mathematical analysis and model building may find them tough going. In sharp contrast is Peter Durey' s brief commentary on his experience in weeding serials subscriptions in a univer- sity library in New Zealand. Another trou- bling note is the editorial decision to reprint a "classic article" in each issue , thus con- suming valuable space that might have been better used for more timely informati.on not available elsewhere. Scott R. Bullard (Acquisitions Depart- ment , Duke University Library), the editor-in-chief of Library Acquisitions: Prac- tice and Theory (LAPT), proudly points out in his introductory remarks that the broad field of acquisitions work now has a profes- sional "vehicle specifically designed to bring all the disparate subfields and persons to- gether." LAPT' s modest aim is to provide a forum for the exchange of knowledge, ideas, and experience among library professionals and nonprofessionals in education, research, and practice. Bullard's editorial approach is based on the broad assumption that every truly scien- tific regimen must be solidly grounded in both theory and practice. In maturing, each discipline must assemble its own base of re- search studies as well as develop an increas- ingly refined methodology. Yet the emphasis in the early issues of LAPT is heavily balanced in favor of prac- tice. The range of articles presented here includes a commentary on new or forthcom- ing library hardware (apparently to be a continuing feature) , a bibliography of recent acquisitions literature, a piece on mailroom sorting, and even the proceedings of a workshop ·on acquisitions from the Third World that was held in Washington in 1977. As might be expected, there is considerable unevenness in both style and content; many papers show little restraint in the use of jar- ~---------------------------------------------------------------------------------, I ! gon, to the point of confusing even experi- enced librarians. As its title indicates, The Serials Librar- ian focuses on "all the major aspects of se- rials librarianship" in academic, public, and special libraries. Edited by Peter Gellatly with the assistance of a distinguished edito- rial board, it features full-length research and review articles as well as brief notes on such topics as automation , bibliographical control, and collection development. The contributors to the initial issues include such well-known names in library literature as Bill Katz , David Kronick, Joe Morehead , and Herbert Goldhor as well as other equally talented writers from outside of librarianship. There is much solid information here , and even some original insights, notably Elizabeth Snowden's essay on " Collecting Women ' s Serials " and Tom Montag 's sprightly piece on " Stalking the Little Magazines," which are presented in a clear, readable style. To the editor's credit there is something for everyone, a mix of histori- cal and bibliographical articles along with more practical pieces for the working and overworked serials librarian. Beginning with volume two a regular feature , " New Se- rials ," provides in advance of publication an annotated listing of new titles with prices, frequency , and ordering information . The almost simultaneous appearance of these four journals leads one to wonder when (or if) a saturation point will be reached-if it has not been reached already. The overlapping scope of these particular journals will inevitably result in needless duplication of effort and content. Moreover, one suspects that there are not enough tal- ented and willing librarian/writers or editors to fill the pages of the existing literature well, not to mention four new periodicals. Ironically, as the budgetary noose tight- ens , painful choices must be made aud these four very specialized publications (at a combined cost of $130) will be prime candi- dates for the very procedures they advo- cate-careful evaluation and weeding. View- ing them in the light of the widespread cur- rent fiscal stringencies, we must sadly con- clude that the unbridled free enterprise in periodical publishing that was characteristic of the 1960s and ' 70s must come to an Recent Publications I 507 encl .-jack A . Clarke , University of Wisconsin-Madison. California Postsecondary Education Com- mission. Librarians' Compensation at the University of California and the Califor- nia State University and Colleges: The Search for Equity. Commission Report 78-2. Revised May 8, 1978. Sacramento: California Postsecondary Education Commission, 1978. 1v. (various pagings) Though many librarians nationwide are envious of the salaries paid to California li- brarians in institutions of higher education, we could not agree with the findings of this extremely uninformed report that they are paid an equitable wage for the services that they provide. The charge to the California Postsecon- dary Education Commission (CPEC) was to "analyze the comparable wages and parity of CSUC [California State University and Col- leges] and the UC [University of Oilifornia] librarians with librarians in other institu- tions of higher education, both nationally and in California." The objective was to de- termine whether CSUC and UC libraries are able to compete effectively for the best-qualified librarians. The study that was done was obviously prepared by people with little to no knowl- edge of academic librarianship, as the de- scriptions offered regarding the nature of li- brarianship were either pathetically histori- cal or written by some of the profession's more irresponsible critics . Worse yet, many of the conclusions in the report are based on these misconceptions; and the CPEC pa- tronizingly states that librarianship is un- dergoing some changes, and as soon as li- brarians really become active disseminators of information we will qualify for higher salaries . Inasmuch as they focused on pro- viding information , the preparers of this re- port might have realized the complexity of the task had they spent even an hour at a reference desk. Providing access to informa- tion requires not only an extensive formal education but also a great deal of experi- ence. The data-gathering techniques were ques- tionable. A hasty, imcomplete survey was made, and no examination was made of the many salary surveys that have already been