New Directions in Reference

Citation

Frenger, C. (2007), "New Directions in Reference", Library Review, Vol. 56 No. 6, pp. 505-506. https://doi.org/10.1108/00242530710760409

Collections of articles such as those in New Directions in Reference can be a challenge to review. What is the articles’ collective contributions to the global library community? The book's mixture of topics ranging from general to specific types of reference services in a variety of libraries can pigeonhole the intended audience and diminish the book's marketability. However, as the book's editors write in their introduction, “Reading about the experiences of librarians in types of libraries different from the one you’re working in, can be informative.” This observation encapsulates the overall relevance of this collection. Even though every article might not have a direct applicability to all readers, they can serve as an excellent tutorial on how other librarians operate.

The book's format organizes its ten essays into three main categories: New Roles for Librarians, Impact of Technology, and Issues in Library Service. Topics include discussions about virtual reference librarianship, the evolution of traditional reference services in a merged academic–public library, changes in music and medical reference, services, the impact of new technology and government regulations on reference, and how a variety of long‐standing information environments like rural libraries and the US Government Printing Office are adapting to the rapid changes occurring in all aspects of librarianship, especially in how to best provide access to information for its customers. Editors Byron Anderson and Paul T. Webb note in the book's introduction, “the onus of change is clearly on reference librarians who must broaden their scope of knowledge in providing their services.” This collection delivers many opportunities for readers to do just that increase their awareness of what new avenues reference departments and librarians are pursuing and the challenges these avenues can present.

One new direction that reference departments are following is virtual reference service. In their article, “Virtual reference: a reference question is a reference question . . . or is virtual reference a new reality? New career opportunities for librarians,” authors Mary‐Carol Lindbloom et al. investigate what virtual reference service is, its benefits and limitations, and how traditional reference librarians may have found a new extension of an already well‐developed job duty. Readers learn that this new method of providing reference service to patrons is seen by many as a revelation, a logical progression in the kinds of assistance reference librarians can provide to patrons, enabling them to “(reach) an audience that does not readily think of libraries as a source of information.”

However, the authors add a significant dose of reality to this seemingly ideal method of service, noting the differences between being an in‐person reference librarian and a virtual one, including the alternate work environment, the new reference interview and computer technology skills needed, and the increased opportunities for patrons in cyberspace “to be rude and abusive to librarians.” This article's balanced look at a new adaptation of traditional reference services contributes to the fulfillment of the book's main objective of expanding readers’ current sphere of knowledge about where reference currently stands and where it is headed.

The only drawbacks I found with this collection were the one‐sidedness of Chad E. Buckley's “Golden Rule” article and the collection's geographically homogeneous contents. In his article, “Golden rule reference: face‐to‐face and virtual,” Buckley reminds his readers about the value of applying the “Golden Rule” (do unto others as you would have them do unto you) while providing reference services, whether in person or in a virtual setting. Buckley's piece, while being useful for new or newer reference librarians, fails, in its one‐sided message of how librarians ought to behave, to acknowledge that patrons’ treatment of a librarian, especially in a virtual environment, can impact the ease with which the “Golden Rule” can be readily maintained. If the inclusion of Buckley's article in this collection was meant to demonstrate a new direction in reference, it needed to reflect the continued two‐way street that reference service was and continues to be.

The other concern I had with this publication was an almost entirely Illinois librarian authorship, save one article by San Jose, CA librarian Harry Meserve. When all the experiences and practices come from one region of the USA, it can make the reading experience less universally applicable. Having these articles come from a larger cross‐section of the American library community would give the book more universal relevancy. Overall, I would recommend this collection to all kinds of libraries and librarians. It offers a glimpse into the new directions reference services are headed and reminds us that “no library is exempt from . . . changes .”