Book Review: Collection Development in the Digital Age

Abstract

Collection Development in Digital Age. Edited by Maggie Fieldhouse and Audrey Marshall. London: Facet; distributed in United States by Neal-Schuman, 2012. 233 p. $99.95 paperback (ISBN: 978-1-85604-746-3). Collection Development in Digital Age sets out to describe from UK perspective profound changes in practice and theory of collection development as digital has progressively replaced print. This review will give my comments as US collection development professor and selector. two editors, Maggie Fieldhouse and Audrey Marshall, obviously planned volume and assigned topics of fifteen chapters to form coherent whole. contributions are grouped into four parts: The Concept and Practice of Collection Development, Trends in Developments of E-Resources, Trends in Library Supply, and Making and Keeping Your Collection Effective. To quote editors, The book consists of mix of chapters and case (xvi). Chapters, which examine issues in general and discursive ways (xvi), predominate with only three case studies included. As in United States, digital revolution appears to have affected academic libraries more than public libraries because ten chapters focus on this library type. Only two chapters recount changes in public libraries, with remaining three chapters focusing on general topics of interest to both library types. contributors are a mix of academics, practitioners, and 'insider' experts (xvi). content is mostly what could be expected. opening chapter, The Concept of Collection Development in Digital World by Sheila Corrall, with its somewhat theoretical treatment, was my favorite for its analysis of larger issues. Stewardship and Curation in Digital World by Bradley Daigle, one of three US contributors to book, took second place for presenting fresh perspective on longevity of digital resources. Other chapters deal with e-resources in general, online journals, e-books, open access, and institutional repositories. Three chapters treat traditional topics from print era: managing suppliers, outsourcing collection development, and collection development policies. one surprise was seeing information literacy and user outreach as collection development topics because however comprehensive library collection is, unless it works for your users it is an increasingly unaffordable luxury (xix). As in all edited works, some chapters are better than others, but general quality is high. American librarians will not have much, if any, difficulty in profiting from this book. British library terms are at times slightly different from American, but easily translate. Two library-related factors in United Kingdom, however, have led to major differences compared with US collection development practices. First, more centralized government has encouraged broader initiatives and more cooperation in dealing with changes brought about by increasing importance of digital resources. For example, the UK is fortunate in having [a] co-ordinated project for withdrawal of print journals (62). Second, fixed prices for library materials were enforced until UK's Net Book Agreement was declared illegal in 1997. …