College and Research Libraries


~--~--------------------~---------------- ~ ---

BOOK REVIEWS 
Social Issues and Library Problems; Case 

Studies in the Social Sciences. By Ken-
neth F. Kister. New York: R. R. Bowker 
Co. , 1968. xxv, 190p. $7.95 (68-27447). 

The purpose of this book, Professor Kis-
ter informs us in his preface, is "to train li-
brarians for professional work with the lit-
erature of the social sciences" by means of 
the case study method. On the whole, it is 
a useful book and goes some distance to-
ward achieving this objective. The thirty 
cases pose signiRcant library problems in 
the social sciences as well as related fi elds 
~uch as history and education. The settings 
mcl~de academic, public, and special li-
branes of various sizes; but most of the 
problems are pertinent to social science li-
brarianship generally. The questions em-
phasize bibliographical matters , reflecting 
the author's very sensible view that " th e 
first requirement for professional [sic] li-
brarians is an understanding of the formal 
bibliographic system which provides access 
to the literature and its contents." Kister 
goes on to argue that bibliographical ex-
pertness "becomes the basis for professional 
j'!dgments regarding the selection, acquisi-
tion, organization, and retrieval of the lit-
erature." This contention is well d emon-
strate.d in the cases, which are complex 
and mvolve problems in collection devel-
opment, reference techniques, public rela-
tions , professional and ethical judgments , 
an.d that bete noire of librarianship, censor-
ship . The introduction provides a brief but 
useful appraisal of the nature and develop-
ment of the social sciences, their literature 
and its bibliography. ' 

Much of the book's strength derives from 
the case study method. By using cases to 
pose his problems , Kister is able to dem-
onstrate the complexity of library problems , 
the ~napplicability of simple answers, and 
the Importance of evaluation and judgment 
based on expert knowledge. The situation 
presented in "Science of Man," for exam-
ple, requires not simply the development 
of a basic reading list, but also the evalua-

446 I 

Recent Publications 

tion of bibliographical sources, judgments 
regarding reference practice, and a consid-
eration of the "scientific" nature of the so-
cial sciences. "The Balancing Act" calls for 
an appraisal of reviewing media, a discus-
sion of the merits and possibility of an ide-
ologically balanced collection, and a con-
sideration of the role of the public library. 
Such an approach is commendable and 
should help to produce librarians with the 
breadth and flexibility that today's infor-
mation problems require. The sample anal-
yses appended to the last case provide a 
welcome added dimension: a guide to the 
book's use for both the student and the in-
structor as well as a demonstration of the 
amount and variety of thought and effort 
that the case study method can provoke. 

Unfortunately, this method has serious 
pitfalls as well as advantages, and Kister is 
not able to overcome them all. Much of 
the material in this book is characterization 
or background which has no relevance to 
the problems posed. At best, it is unneces-
sary weight or poor amateur fiction; at 
worst, it conveys "information" which 
seems most inappropriate-stereotypes of 
old maid librarians, bumbling scholars, cal-
low young librarians, and ludicrous inter-
personal situations which present a vision 
of libraries and librarians that is trivial, em-
barrassing, and quite at odds with the seri-
ous and sophisticated approach that per-
vades the book's problems and introduc-
tion. Anyone assigning this book to library 
school students should recognize these 
shortcomings and their implications. How-
ever, if used as its author suggests, to com-
plement other materials and teaching 
methods, Social Issues and Library Prob-
lems should prove an asset to courses in 
social science bibliography.-EZdred Smith, 
University of California at Berkeley. 

The Management of Libraries and In-
formation Centers. By Mildred Hawks-
worth Lowell. Metuchen, N.J .: The 
Scarecrow Press, 1968. 3 vols; $17.50 
( 68-12642) . 

Perhaps the most refreshing thing about