Thematic Atlases for Public, Academic, and High School Libraries

by Diane K. Podell

Overview

Cultural, historical, and economic atlases are only some of the thematic atlases that are being published in record numbers. This book alerts librarians to the value of this increasingly-popular genre, and is a guide to their use in collection development. Among the one hundred titles evaluated in this book are Great Caves of the World, Art Atlas of Britain and Ireland, Atlas of American Sport, Atlas of Human Anatomy, Great Battlefields of the World, Historical Atlas of the Outlaw West, Instant National Locator Guide, Map Guide to the U.S. Federal Census, Women's Atlas of the United States, and Zones of Conflict. The comprehensive evaluations include bibliographic data, physical descriptions (with height and width in inches), topics and coverage, noteworthy qualities, and citations to reviews in library and subject journals. The introductory section offers recommendations for evaluating, accessing, organizing, and managing thematic atlases for public, academic, and high school libraries.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780810828667
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	05/01/1994
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.60(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Diane K. Podell (BS, CCNY; MLS, CUNY; CAS, LIU) is Professor and Periodicals Reference Librarian at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University, and an adjunct reference librarian at Queensborough Community College. She began her career as public librarian, and has also taught at the graduate library schools of Queens College, CUNY and Long Island University. She was a major contributor to Volume I of The United States (Facts on File, 1992), one of the Handbooks to the Modern World series.

Editorial Reviews

A highly useful collection-development tool for public, academic, and high school libraries.

Booklist

...Public and undergraduate libraries.

Choice Reviews

...zeroes in on the areas of evaluation most important for library consideration, and at the same time provides a wealth of data that would be very difficult to collect independently...Podell's prose is clear, precise, and infused with frankness and not a little humor. This takes what could well have been pretty deadly reading and makes it entertaining as well as informative...

VOYA

...an excellent guide for the non-specialist and not only provides reviews of a number of thematic atlases but also gives some pertinent advice on how to evaluate atlases for yourself.

Reference Reviews

This book is a reviewer's delight. Writing the review is as much fun as the author clearly had in writing the book. The literature of librarianship would be vastly improved if all authors would throw themselves into their work with the enthusiasm and zest Diane Podell has done with this work. Highly recommended for purchase for reference collections and general readers alike. Collection development officers will find this work a model of information and annotation.

Collection Management

...unexpectedly interesting and useful.

St Vincent's College

...Public and undergraduate libraries.

Choice

...Public and undergraduate libraries.

CHOICE

A highly useful collection-development tool for public, academic, and high school libraries.

Booklist

...an excellent guide for the non-specialist and not only provides reviews of a number of thematic atlases but also gives some pertinent advice on how to evaluate atlases for yourself.

s

...an excellent guide for the non-specialist and not only provides reviews of a number of thematic atlases but also gives some pertinent advice on how to evaluate atlases for yourself.

"American Reference Books Annual"