The Small Library Manager’s Handbook is aimed at those entering library manager positions for the first time. The book is broken into five sections, which cover administration of libraries; finance and budgeting; cataloguing and managing collections; marketing and outreach; and the use of technologies.
The authors come from a variety of small libraries and share their opinions in what I would class as an informal way. This book feels like a conversation with a friend about what happened in their library and how they managed different aspects. Some chapters are more formal with annotated bibliographies, checklists, flowcharts and tips, whilst other chapters fail to include any information that will help readers pursue a topic further.
Small library managers do many different things and wear many different hats and this is evident at times in the book, which tries to cram in too much information without really going into depth about anything. Small libraries are diverse and solo libraries, special libraries, small academic libraries and small public libraries are noted in the book’s chapters. Most of these concepts are interrelated across libraries but sometimes they are not. At times, the book felt disjointed and was often repetitive.
There were some excellent sections within the book, however, and the chapter regarding managing electronic resources was a highlight for me. It gave enough information for an understanding of the topic and left out any unnecessary information. Checklists that can be duplicated and reused in a practical way are also provided, so that a new library manager does not need to reinvent templates.
Most chapters had ‘tips’ listed throughout, which were great little take-home notes or points of interest to remember from each section. Many were commonsense tips that help to reinforce concepts and ideas in a succinct way. Also contained throughout are snippets of information and insights into other small libraries. I now know a little more about libraries in art museums and about virtual information centres about which I previously knew considerably less.
For me, this book tried to be everything, but somehow missed the mark. It may suit new managers who prefer to read books that have a conversational tone and those who like to dip in and out of particular sections. It does give an overview of the enormous workload that managers of small libraries face and the different tasks that they are required to perform, but I think it is too general in nature to be practical on an ongoing basis.
Ballarat Health Services
© 2015, Gemma Siemensma
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00049670.2015.1100293