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Handbook of business information: A guide for librarians, students and researchers
Library Acquisitions: Practice & Theory, Vol. 15, pp. 139-142, 1991 Printed in the USA. All rights reserved.
0364-6408/91 $3.00 + .00 Copyright © 1991 Pergamon Press plc
THE REVIEW SECTION
Handbook of Business Information: A Guide for Librarians, Students, and Researchers. By Diane Wheeler Strauss. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1988. xxii + 537 pp. $42.00. ISBN 0-87287-607-1. The subtitle of this valuable addition to business source books is very apropos. The book gives very basic information for students, can serve as a refresher for the experienced librarian, and is well-organized and relevant for the researcher. The Handbook is not intended to be inclusive but it focuses on providing thorough coverage of a limited number of fields rather than a broad coverage of every facet of business. Business topics that are widely covered in other sources such as management and small business are not included. International business practices and information sources are also omitted. The Handbook is organized into two parts. The first eight chapters describe formats of business information including: basic business reference sources, directories, periodicals and newspapers, looseleaf services, government information and services, statistics, vertical file collections, and electronic business information. Chapters nine through 18 detail fields of business information covering marketing; accounting and taxation; money, credit, and banking; investments; stocks; bonds and other fixed-income securities; mutual funds and investment companies; futures and options; insurance; and real estate. Twelve appendices also provide useful business information such as business acronyms and abbreviations, relevant government agencies and their publications, sources of key economic indicators, free vertical file materials, and information on various censuses. An extensive index facilitates use of the volume. Electronic business information appropriately receives special attention with its own chapter. Due to the nature of the online industry and rapidly changing technology, this chapter may be outdated more quickly than others in this volume. The author also stresses the value of vertical file collections, an area that is neglected in most other books on business reference sources. Not only does she devote an entire chapter to the topic, she also includes sections on vertical file materials in several other chapters. Appendix I includes specific titles of appropriate pamphlets and their sources. Each of the ten "Fields of Business" chapters begins with fundamentals, describing basic concepts that will enable the user to better understand the information needed by business researchers and how to find it. For example, in chapter 11, "Money, Credit, and Banking," the author describes the monetary system and foreign exchange and then proceeds on to credit reports, interest, and the various types of banks and other financial institutions. The Federal Reserve system is outlined before various publications are described. Publications are grouped by formats and each is annotated. Chapters end with "Notes" on sources used. The addition of explanations and examples makes this an extremely valuable work because answers to many basic business questions can be readily found without referring to additional sources. The volume contains more than 150 illustrations including sample pages from common business tools and explains what the information means and how it is organized. The extensive illustrations make interpretation of the source easier when consulted and they greatly enhance clarity of the explanations provided. 139
140
The ReviewSection
Sources are mentioned in more than one chapter if that information is relevant to more than one area of business. For example, the Statistical Reference Index is described in chapter six, "Statistics," but it is referred to in chapters on marketing, accounting and taxation, money, futures and options, and insurance as well. The extensive index makes it possible to identify where specific sources are included. Since business areas are very interrelated, it is valuable to have sources listed in all relevant areas. Each chapter begins with an appropriate quote which adds little to the content of the chapter but increases the enjoyment o f using the volume. The first chapter, "Basic Business Reference Sources," begins with a statement by Mark Twain, "Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please." The chapter on "Government Information and Services" quotes Will Rogers, "I don't make jokes, I just watch the government and report the facts." The quotes are an entertaining way to begin a topic. The Handbook should be used in conjunction with Lorna Daniells' Business Information Sources, Michael Lavin's Business Information: How to Find It, How to Use It, and the Encyclopedia o f Business Information Sources, edited by James Woy. The Handbook of Business Information is recommended for any library that contains business information. Library school business information classes will also find this to be an appropriate textbook.
Janice S. Boyer Assistant Director for Administrative Services University Library University of Nebraska at Omaha 60th & Dodge Omaha, NE 68182-0237
Understanding the Business of Library Acquisitions. Edited by Karen A. Schmidt, Chicago: American Library Association, 1990. xiv + 322 pp. $45.00 pbk. ISBN 0-8389-0536-6. If one were to read this book cover to cover, an exercise I heartily recommend, one will have a good overall understanding of library acquisitions as a business. For those who need or want more detail, that is available in this volume, too, along with citations and lists of further reading. As I neared the end o f this book I felt a growing sense o f pride in my colleagues who took the trouble to share their knowledge and experience with the reader. This is a well-conceived and well-edited work. There is not a bad chapter in the book. Schmidt has done what an editor should do, she has organized the chapters into a logical sequence and has provided a smooth flow from chapter to chapter. Even the prose is uniform without denying individual styles. Editors responsible for such works in the future should take note and follow suit. The book is organized in five sections. Part One, "The Publishing Industry, Domestic and Foreign," contains five chapters, the first of which, "The Business o f Publishing," by Kathy Flanagan, provides an excellent overview of the basic elements of the publishing process, making clear the truth of the C.B. Grannis quote that she uses: "Just to get a manuscript printed is not to publish it." The value o f her chapter is that it gives readers an idea of the complexities and costs of publishing and why buying and selling books is unlike other wholesale and resale exchanges. Audrey Melkin's chapter is entitled "Publishers, Vendors, Libraries: Troublesome Issues in the Triangle." There is probably no one better qualified to write such a chapter. Even at con-
0364-6408/91 $3.00 + .00 Copyright © 1991 Pergamon Press plc
THE REVIEW SECTION
Handbook of Business Information: A Guide for Librarians, Students, and Researchers. By Diane Wheeler Strauss. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1988. xxii + 537 pp. $42.00. ISBN 0-87287-607-1. The subtitle of this valuable addition to business source books is very apropos. The book gives very basic information for students, can serve as a refresher for the experienced librarian, and is well-organized and relevant for the researcher. The Handbook is not intended to be inclusive but it focuses on providing thorough coverage of a limited number of fields rather than a broad coverage of every facet of business. Business topics that are widely covered in other sources such as management and small business are not included. International business practices and information sources are also omitted. The Handbook is organized into two parts. The first eight chapters describe formats of business information including: basic business reference sources, directories, periodicals and newspapers, looseleaf services, government information and services, statistics, vertical file collections, and electronic business information. Chapters nine through 18 detail fields of business information covering marketing; accounting and taxation; money, credit, and banking; investments; stocks; bonds and other fixed-income securities; mutual funds and investment companies; futures and options; insurance; and real estate. Twelve appendices also provide useful business information such as business acronyms and abbreviations, relevant government agencies and their publications, sources of key economic indicators, free vertical file materials, and information on various censuses. An extensive index facilitates use of the volume. Electronic business information appropriately receives special attention with its own chapter. Due to the nature of the online industry and rapidly changing technology, this chapter may be outdated more quickly than others in this volume. The author also stresses the value of vertical file collections, an area that is neglected in most other books on business reference sources. Not only does she devote an entire chapter to the topic, she also includes sections on vertical file materials in several other chapters. Appendix I includes specific titles of appropriate pamphlets and their sources. Each of the ten "Fields of Business" chapters begins with fundamentals, describing basic concepts that will enable the user to better understand the information needed by business researchers and how to find it. For example, in chapter 11, "Money, Credit, and Banking," the author describes the monetary system and foreign exchange and then proceeds on to credit reports, interest, and the various types of banks and other financial institutions. The Federal Reserve system is outlined before various publications are described. Publications are grouped by formats and each is annotated. Chapters end with "Notes" on sources used. The addition of explanations and examples makes this an extremely valuable work because answers to many basic business questions can be readily found without referring to additional sources. The volume contains more than 150 illustrations including sample pages from common business tools and explains what the information means and how it is organized. The extensive illustrations make interpretation of the source easier when consulted and they greatly enhance clarity of the explanations provided. 139
140
The ReviewSection
Sources are mentioned in more than one chapter if that information is relevant to more than one area of business. For example, the Statistical Reference Index is described in chapter six, "Statistics," but it is referred to in chapters on marketing, accounting and taxation, money, futures and options, and insurance as well. The extensive index makes it possible to identify where specific sources are included. Since business areas are very interrelated, it is valuable to have sources listed in all relevant areas. Each chapter begins with an appropriate quote which adds little to the content of the chapter but increases the enjoyment o f using the volume. The first chapter, "Basic Business Reference Sources," begins with a statement by Mark Twain, "Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please." The chapter on "Government Information and Services" quotes Will Rogers, "I don't make jokes, I just watch the government and report the facts." The quotes are an entertaining way to begin a topic. The Handbook should be used in conjunction with Lorna Daniells' Business Information Sources, Michael Lavin's Business Information: How to Find It, How to Use It, and the Encyclopedia o f Business Information Sources, edited by James Woy. The Handbook of Business Information is recommended for any library that contains business information. Library school business information classes will also find this to be an appropriate textbook.
Janice S. Boyer Assistant Director for Administrative Services University Library University of Nebraska at Omaha 60th & Dodge Omaha, NE 68182-0237
Understanding the Business of Library Acquisitions. Edited by Karen A. Schmidt, Chicago: American Library Association, 1990. xiv + 322 pp. $45.00 pbk. ISBN 0-8389-0536-6. If one were to read this book cover to cover, an exercise I heartily recommend, one will have a good overall understanding of library acquisitions as a business. For those who need or want more detail, that is available in this volume, too, along with citations and lists of further reading. As I neared the end o f this book I felt a growing sense o f pride in my colleagues who took the trouble to share their knowledge and experience with the reader. This is a well-conceived and well-edited work. There is not a bad chapter in the book. Schmidt has done what an editor should do, she has organized the chapters into a logical sequence and has provided a smooth flow from chapter to chapter. Even the prose is uniform without denying individual styles. Editors responsible for such works in the future should take note and follow suit. The book is organized in five sections. Part One, "The Publishing Industry, Domestic and Foreign," contains five chapters, the first of which, "The Business o f Publishing," by Kathy Flanagan, provides an excellent overview of the basic elements of the publishing process, making clear the truth of the C.B. Grannis quote that she uses: "Just to get a manuscript printed is not to publish it." The value o f her chapter is that it gives readers an idea of the complexities and costs of publishing and why buying and selling books is unlike other wholesale and resale exchanges. Audrey Melkin's chapter is entitled "Publishers, Vendors, Libraries: Troublesome Issues in the Triangle." There is probably no one better qualified to write such a chapter. Even at con-