Election Season

2012 is an election year, and currently the Republican Party is scrambling to get a strong candidate to run against Obama in November. So with all the buzz around political candidates, I decided to browse the reference stacks today for anything useful about past presidential elections. I was looking for something I could give to a high school student composing a paper for a political science or American History or AP Government class—and I came across a thin paperback volume published by CQ Press, called Presidential Elections: 1789-2004.

The first thing I noticed was the pictures. Though black and white, they are crisp and clean. We had many other books on the subject in our reference collection but nothing as visually stimulating as this book. The other thing that made me pull it from the shelf was the variety of clear, simple maps of the United States, showing how each state voted in every single election from 1789 to 2004. I like that because maps and charts like that work well for student research.

I also love that this book is elegantly well-written and thoroughly well-cited. From the little bit that I read, I learned a lot. There’s an introduction describing the process of nominating candidates and the kinds of candidates that have been successful, followed by a Chronology of Presidential Elections which describes how the electoral process has evolved over the years, and gives a detailed description of each presidential election beginning with Washington’s first. Then there are maps, charts showing voter turnout in each state and where the popular vote went, a section on the minor candidates, and the last few sections are about the electoral college (including the maps I described above). All in all, a great book for students and researchers on political science or American history.

Dewey Decimal Number: 324.973

Rating: 5Q, 4P

Your One-Stop Directory to the "Good Book"

(This post is primarily intended to showcase reference sources related to the study of the Hebrew or Christian Bible. This post is not intended to endorse or promote any religion or scriptural tradition; it is merely intended as a resource to people who take an interest in such things.)

Have you ever remembered part of a Bible quote and wondered about its context?  Did you flip through page after page of your Bible in vain, struggling to track it down?  Well then, you probably didn't know about an amazing resource that you can find in just about any public library reference or religion section: a Bible Concordance.

The New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible by James Strong, LL.D., S.T.D. is an oldie but a goodie, first published in 1890 (with this revised edition published exactly 100 years later).  It is essentially a thorough index of just about every verse of the King James Bible, with headings for the main words that appear in the verse.  You can look up all the verses that mention David by name.  You can  look up "Babylon" to find the number of that beautiful and sad historical psalm, "By the Rivers of Babylon" (Ps. 137).  (Or, if you happen to find the end of that psalm regarding the murder of infants not...so...beautiful... you will discover a very similar curse uttered in Hosea that you might never have heard before--I hadn't.  Look it up in the concordance under the heading "Infants"--it's Hosea 13:16, and bears a striking resemblance to Psalm 137.) 

And actually, it's not just the main words of each verse that get their own headings.  Words like "on" and "against" get pages and pages of references.  But words like "a," "an," and "the" are not forgotten!  They are actually given their own appendix in the book with the notation for all of the verses they appear in under subheadings for each book of the Bible!  Okay, talk about "exhaustive"! 

I haven't even gotten to the best part yet... Most entries include a four-digit number at the end of the row (far right).  This is a reference to the Greek and Hebrew dictionaries in the back of the book, so that you can look up the word, the way it is written, and its meaning!  Following this is a subject index in which you can find verses listed for each subject talked about in the Bible (in case the word you're using to define that subject isn't mentioned directly in the quote). 

There is a miscellaneous appendix with some more interesting facts and figures, including a list of prophecies in the Old Testament that are claimed to be fulfilled by the Jesus of the New Testament.  For any Bible scholar, believing or nonbelieving, or really for any scholar of Western literature, culture and philosophy, this is an essential guide to everything you could want to know about the text of the Bible.  And although I'm not sure how necessary it was to list every single instance of the word "a," nevertheless, I'm giving this my highest rating for quality.

Dewey Decimal Number: 220.5

Rating: 5Q, 3P

The Doctor is In

The Oxford Dictionary of Psychology, Second Edition, by Andrew M. Colman is a great resource to consult for patrons needing to look up specific terms related to psychology, psychiatry, neurology, psychobiology, etc. One of the main benefits of this dictionary (over the other ones we have at my library) is its inclusion of various large black-and-white illustrations and diagrams. For example, in addition to the definition or description of the lipid bilayer an image is given resembling what you'd see in a biology textbook. Above the entries for both the Hering illusion and the Hermann grid the optical illusions are clearly pictured. (There's even a particularly grotesque image of a somatosensory homunculus, somthing that looks kind-of disturbing but enables you to see how the neural activity in the brain is distributed among different body parts and senses.)

One problem that I have with the way the "see" references are shown within each entry is that they are indicated with an asterisk (*) in front of the first word in the term or phrase. This is confusing because you don't know if you're looking for the word "significance" or "significance test"--you just see the asterisk in front of "significance." It bothered me, but it might not be an annoyance to someone else.

But one of the pluses about it is that very difficult theories and concepts are explained in easy terms for the layperson. Overall, I think it a very good reference for whatever you need to know about psychology.

Dewey Decimal Number: 150.3

Rating: 4Q, 3P

Vampires, Werewolves and Monsters -- Oh, My!

Rosemary Ellen Guiley's Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves and Other Monsters came out at a strange time in publishing. Released in August 2005, a mere two months prior to the release of perhaps the highest-sold vampire book in all publishing history (Twilight by Stephenie Meyer), one looks at this book with a feeling that it loses something by being just on the precipice of a world-shaking event. It is certainly a well-made encyclopedia, with an eye-catching cover and style, as well as lots of photos. HOWEVER, the photos are black-and-white, and most of them are taken from old movies. Not that there's anything wrong with that--indeed, there weren't many good vampire movies being made recently until Twilight came out. But it does have an odd effect of making this encyclopedia seem "old."

I did learn interesting things though about vampires in many different cultures, from Armenian to Filipino to Russian to Gypsy to Mexican. They come in different names--al, tlahuelpuchi, kalagkalag, kathakano, etc. At the end of most entries are citations for further reading and at the end of the book is a full Bibliography and Index, both of which are nice and detailed (which is what I like to see). I was glad to see this encyclopedia treat at least a few instances of Native American lore about vampires and werewolves--Twilight fans will still find something good here! All in all, I'll give Guiley's book a break for being written at the "wrong" time, and give her a thumbs up for still executing a decent encyclopedia on the subject.

Dewey Decimal Number: 133.423

Rating: 4Q, 4P

Double double, toil and trouble...

Today I am reviewing two encyclopedias of the Occult: The New Encyclopedia of the Occult by John Michael Greer (2003), and the Enclyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology, Fourth Edition, Edited by J. Gordon Melton (1996). First I will discuss the latter, older book and then look at what (if any) improvements are offered in the newer title.

Melton's encyclopedia is very well written, with numerous primary sources quoted in depth. For example, the entry on Seances includes many excerpts from magazines, letters and journals written during the nineteenth century. This provides an interesting and satisfying reading experience, but my only complaint is that some of these wonderful excerpts are not cited clearly enough. The list of sources is given at the end of the full entry, with no clue anywhere as to which source contained which quote. There are no pictures or diagrams, which is one major lack, but the index is fantastic, as are the bolded terms sprinkled throughout the entries that alert you to related entries. I learned a lot about occult phenomena and groups from this encyclopedia.

How useful is it? Well I've never had to use it yet, but once in a while we get a patron looking for a good book on the subject. I would recommend this encyclopedia with the one caveat that sources could have been cited better. Despite its age, it doesn't suffer from being too dated, so I think it remains pretty useful.

Greer's encyclopedia does have occasional pictures, symbols and diagrams, which is an important plus over Melton's. Greer provides a detailed bibliography at the end but no index, and very few direct quotes or primary sources. There are fewer total entries in this encyclopedia but they are still thorough and well-written. Greer neutrally presents historical information and assesses any unproven claims or controversies. At the end of each article you find notes about related words or topics to see and additional sources. About as useful as Melton's, but this is the one I would give to a high school student doing a project, because of the important addition of a little visual content.

One of my colleagues noted, though, that it could have used a LOT more images. I agree! Ultimately, the question of which encyclopedia is better is kind-of a push. Although I'm not over the moon for Greer's encyclopedia, it is a bit more updated and pictures are important!

Dewey Decimal Number: 133.03

Rating: 3Q, 2P

Dewey Decimal Number: 133.03

Rating: 3Q, 3P

Hoaxsters and Jokesters

I grabbed this book off the shelf, expecting it to be a delightfully informative reference work about hoaxes throughout history, but after reading it in some depth, I have to say I was disappointed with Gordon Stein's Encyclopedia of Hoaxes. When I gave it to a colleague last night for her estimation of it, she said that she would prefer to see this book in the circulating collection--and I would agree: it does NOT belong in reference. This book is not consistently well-written, and its definitions and scope are about as mixed as my feelings about it. While it has a lot of historical information on a subject which ranks fairly high in popular interest, and while I could see the book going home with a few wide-eyed middle school or high school students, its quality as an encyclopedia is vastly overrated.

First, the book does not apply a consistent definition of the word "hoax" as it is most commonly used, and tends to include pranks, jokes, myths, and debunked theories. For example, I felt the page on "Hugh Troy's hoaxes" probably didn't belong in the PR hoaxes section. In my opinion these were practical jokes committed by one person which never really affected a multitude of people. When I see things like this, I have to wonder at the editorial decisions.

There is a lengthy discussion of the plausibility of Noah's Ark being real, with short shrift given to the numerous Noah's Ark archaeological hoaxes made during the middle of the 20th Century. While this is a good article for critical analysis of Bible mythology, I'm not sure an "Encyclopedia of Hoaxes" is the proper format.

It's not a bad book though--as I said, I could see this book being checked out by students and people with any interest in hoaxes or fabrications. It has sections on literary, political, medical, photographic and religious hoaxes. The section called "Hoaxes That Were Not Hoaxes" includes some important events like the broadcast of the dramatization of War of the Worlds. But it's important to note that, for most people, a hoax is an event, not a misguided theory accepted by generations throughout history. So the book's discussion of Cannibalism as hoax-that-wasn't-a-hoax here never fully gets off the ground for me, partly because it is very confusingly written, and partly because the only part of his argument that even includes a hoax (a knowing attempt to deceive someone) is the argument that tribes used to falsely accuse each other of cannibalism. The rest of Stein's argument rests on validating or refuting one scientist or anthropologist after another. Stein simply goes too far, and loses sight of the thing most people would look for in this book: a simple breakdown of events that were fraudulent and their eventual outcomes. If Stein intended on merely debunking commonly-held myths, he probably could have written a very different book.

What's worse is that some of the discussions are very poorly-written. Several times I've puzzled over a passage that describes events way out of order, such as in the convoluted description of the many trips Arthur Vectis Freeman made to get the coffin he claimed was Lord Kitchener's (p. 214). It jumps around chronologically and makes no sense. I read that paragraph three times and am still thoroughly baffled. I was also confused by other articles when illogical references are made to people and organizations ("the company"--which company? "the man with him" --what man? we have not been introduced!).

I won't be recommending this book anytime soon. I'm giving it poor ratings for quality. But I believe that, in the circulating collection, this could still be a very popular book.

Dewey Decimal Number: 001.9

Rating: 2Q, 4P

A Vocabulary Feast for Your Eyes

Let me catch my breath here--I am literally amazed by the breadth and scope and minutiae of details available in this incredible book. What's What: A Visual Glossary of the Physical World by Reginald Bragonier Jr. and David Fisher is a true diamond in the rough of the library's reference collection, a hidden gem of easily-digested and wide-ranging knowledge. Every page you turn, you see a large image of something you might use every day without paying much attention to it--and lo and behold, every miniscule part of that object is broken down into its components, giving the proper names of everything! I learned words I had never heard in my life, like the "vamp" of a shoe, the "modesty panel" of a desk, the "lyre" of a piano--and I grew up playing piano!! The book is full of valuable vocabulary for identifying objects in a wide range of subject areas, including planetary science, human anatomy and biology, structures, transportation, communication, personal items, the home, recreation, etc. I love the index, the way it continues the book's ambition to maintain the proper technical vocabulary to the smallest detail. I love everything about this book, and will recommend it to anyone wishing to improve their vocabulary.

The only problem with this book is that, like Henry Dreyfuss's Symbols Sourcebook, I have never once used it with a patron and don't anticipate using it anytime soon. Well, perhaps now that I know how AMAZING it is, I will try to work it in, but it isn't very likely. I can only think of a few people who would benefit from consulting a book like this: novelists and game show contestants. For everyone else, it is unlikely that most people possess the curiosity to wonder what the spiney things covering the top of cathedrals are called ("crockets") or what you call the raised edges along the sides of the upholstery on your comfy recliner ("welting"). For these people, they are quite content to go through life not knowing these terms. Some people might find the index useful to look up the images for words they read or heard somewhere, but they are not likely to use the book for its original intended purpose.

Finally, the book is dated. One has only to glance at page 162, the "Personal Computer," for evidence of this. To borrow my colleague's comment again, a revised edition today would have pages and pages on just computers. There are many other pages that are outdated, ignorant or politically incorrect, such as page 490 showing the costume of an American Indian (focusing on the stereotypical image of the Plains Indian, to the exclusion of hundreds of other tribes). The category this page is found in is "Native Attire" although it probably should have been called "Costumes."

Another thing to note is that the book's editors have a playful sense of humor! Check out the picture of a House Exterior on page 62:

It's the Addams Family getting ready to dump a large vat of hot oil on the heads of Christmas carolers!

End analysis: very interesting and will teach you a lot, but alas, unlikely to be used by many patrons.

Dewey Decimal Number: 031.02

Rating: 4Q, 1P

Signs of the Times

For my first review, I picked up an interesting-looking, if old, book on international symbols: Henry Dreyfuss's Symbol Sourcebook, published by McGraw-Hill Book Company in 1972. Dreyfuss attempted here to do something that perhaps no one else had done before or has done since--to create a visual dictionary of the symbols people use in our signage around the world. Symbols are first organized by category or subject, for example: Astronomy, Travel and Accommodations, Engineering, etc. The table of contents is written out in eighteen languages. An index will help you if you need to identify the symbol for "refrigeration of cadavers" (the igloo with a lying human figure inside on page 118). Overall this index is a bit more general than I would have liked--I'm thinking of the patron who might be looking for a very specific message that is not conveyed simply by one or two words. But there are other neat little things in the book, like interesting stories about symbology. (There's a story of illiterate South African mine workers unable to read a three-part sign because they didn't know to read it from left to right. Interesting from a cultural anthropology standpoint.)

Perhaps the best part of the book is the Graphic Form Section where symbols are arranged by their dominant shapes. This is where you'd look if you saw a strange sign that had a circle and lines and you wondered what it was. You'd see all the shapes on one page that have circles and/or lines, each image directing you to where its name or message can be found in the topical section of the book.

My analysis of this book: interesting, but not ultimately as useful as I would have thought.

Don't get me wrong--there is no reference source or Internet source that compares with Dreyfuss's effort to arrange symbols from all over the world in a visual way. Where else could you find this? Still, as a colleague suggested, "If a book like this came out today it would have a whole section just on images for 'Please turn off your cell phone.'"

And that's the problem. This book is a relic, from an era when there was no Internet, when sexism and racism were more commonplace and people were less sensitive to the possible interpretations of an image, when the closest thing to animation in a sign was neon lights set to a timer, and when the kinds of messages being transmitted were different from the messages of today. That's why my final conclusion about this book is that it is valuable for historical purposes as well as some genuine reference purposes, but I have never yet and probably never will use it to answer a real patron's question.

Dewey Decimal Number: 001.56

Rating: 3Q, 0P

First Post

Over the past three years working as a librarian assistant, I have noticed a considerable decrease in the number of questions I get at the reference desk that require me to consult a physical reference book. This may be a sign of the times--ebook publishing and Google Books have taken over a large share of the reference librarian's sphere of influence--but whenever I am over in the reference section, I am struck by how many wonderful books we have that one would think would cover a wide range of people's information needs. Maybe people just aren't aware of them. I have to admit, I am becoming increasingly out of touch with these books myself.

At the same time, many of the books in our reference section may need updating, or they may belong in the circulating nonfiction collection, and I will try to be fair in my assessment of these as well.

So I'm going to review a different set of books each week, just pulling them at random from my library's reference collection. I will focus on books that appear to be of some practical or popular interest, and will evaluate them the way they would be likely to be used by the average person. No librarian-speak here.

I will also rate the books, borrowing from the format I love in VOYA--rating by quality and popularity. Here "popularity" will mean something more along the lines of how likely I am to encounter a reference question that would be best answered by the book.

This week, I will review books in the "000s" of the Dewey Decimal System.