As Char Booth states in the foreword (xix), “library mobility is no longer a question: rather it is firmly a reality”. The “lightning rise of mobile technology” (xix) brings a plethora of both challenges and opportunities for libraries. This volume is a compilation of contributions from experts, practitioners and researchers in the field, with the aim of “showcasing successful implementation and best practice to inform and inspire others” (Mohamed Ally, xxi). It is the outcome of the Fourth International M-Libraries Conference held in 2012. A brief biography of each of the contributors helps to provide contextual knowledge of their background and experience.
I found it difficult to consider reviewing the text as a whole, with 26 chapters by different authors, on a startlingly broad range of topics. From the outset, however, it was clear that this broad coverage of different technologies and issues means that any practitioner who picks up the text is almost certain of finding something relevant to their own situation. The framing of the text helps it to remain coherent – it is organised under topics of discussion including imagination, transformation, inspiration, implementation and collaboration.
I was quickly able to find a number of chapters with direct relevance to issues currently being considered by my own organisation, such as implementing a cost-effective SMS alert system (Sridevi Jetty, Maneesh Kumar Bajpai and John Paul Anbu K), QR codes as teaching tools (Keiso Katsuro) and responsive web design for a library website (Matthew Borg). In other chapters I was introduced to new (to me) and thought provoking ideas; searching the library catalogue through Twitter (Bianca Kramer) and a text reference service (Lili Luo), for example. Evidence, practical examples and advice are provided throughout the text, with some authors also providing detailed technical information and comprehensive overviews of processes completed throughout their projects. Lessons learned and common challenges are also covered.
One of the aspects of the text that I most appreciated was that it is a hugely collaborative effort. It gives the heartwarming impression of a profession which is working together to embrace a challenging and exciting development in technology, sharing their successes and pitfalls in an effort to improve the user experience, and to continue to do what libraries have always done – celebrate a plurality of information sources and access methods (Booth, xix).