Finding the Answers to Legal Questions: A How-To-Do-It Manual

Tucker Virginia and Marc Lampson. Finding the Answers to Legal Questions: A How-To-Do-It Manual. New York: Neal-Schuman, 2011. 340.072073 Tucke. ISBN 978-1555707187

Finding the Answers to Legal Questions: A How-To-Do-It is a comprehensive guide to help public librarians confidently assist users in finding the legal information they need whether for self-representation, to be an informed consumer of legal service, or to learn the U.S. legal system, the workings of the courts, and common questions likely to arise. Authors Virginia Tucker and Marc Lampson provide a clearly organized, easy-to-use resource packed with guidance to help librarians answer questions that span the gamut of the law. There is an overview of fundamental legal information, including the basic structure of the U.S. legal system and primary law, and how-to instructions for finding primary law in print sources, free websites, and pay-for-view databases. The authors share tips for conducting a legal reference interview and describe common legal questions across a number of different areas, including lawsuits, family law, landlord-tenant disputes, wills and estate planning, debt, bankruptcy, employment, and criminal law. The authors also explain how to build a basic legal reference collection, including a how-to guide for creating a basic website of legal links and for building a small, low-cost collection of print resources. Finding the Answers to Legal Questions: A How-To-Do-It Manual is an ideal book for practicing librarians looking to better serve users' legal needs.

Organization of Information, 3rd ed.

Taylor, Arlene G. and Daniel N. Joudrey. The Organization of Information, 3rd ed. Westport, CN: Libraries Unlimited, 2009. 025 Taylo ISBN978-1-59158-700-2

This third edition of Taylor's modern classic continues to articulate the theory, principles, standards, and tools behind information organization. As with previous editions, it begins with strong justification for the continued importance of organizing principles and practice. Following a broad overview of the concept and its role in human endeavors, Taylor and Joudrey provide a detailed and insightful discussion of such basic retrieval tools as inventories, bibliographies, catalogs, indexes, finding aids, registers, databases, major bibliographic utilities, and other organizing entities; and subsequently trace the development of the organization of recorded information in Western civilization from 2000 B.C.E. to the present. Standards of codification (MARC, SGML, and various DTDs), controlled vocabularies and ontologies, and Web 2.0 technologies are but a sample of its extensive topical coverage.

Digital Librarian’s Legal Handbook

Gathegi, John N. The Digital Librarian’s Legal Handbook. New York: Neal-Schuman, 2012. 346.730482 Gathe ISBN 978-1555706494

Here are authoritative answers to the critical legal questions that make digital collection development and management so challenging and complex for librarians, educators, technology leaders, information science educators and anyone involved with digitized content. This new work examines the intersection of digital library technology, and digital content, and the law. From an opening discussion of general intellectual property issues to the application of copyright law to digital collections, the Handbook covers all the key topics in the field of intellectual property including several new issues, such as the problems of non-permanence, the complexity of multimedia content, issues surrounding open and closed access, evaluating data providers, proprietary search engines, derivative works, annotations and metadata, privacy, and more. Practitioners will also appreciate the book's practical checklists and compliance tools.

Reader’s Advisory Guide to Street Literature

Morris, Vanessa Irvin. The Reader’s Advisory Guide to Street Literature. Chicago: ALA, 2012. 016.813 Morri ISBN 978-0-8389-1110-5.

Street lit, also known as urban fiction, addresses with unflinching grit the concerns and problems of city living. Controversial in some quarters, it is also wildly popular, and this readers advisory by street lit expert Morris

· Sketches out the rich history of the genre, showing why it appeals so strongly to readers and providing a quick way for street lit novices to get up to speed

· Covers a variety of subgenres in terms of scope, popularity, style, major authors and works, and suggestions for readers advisory

· Helps improve library customer service by strengthening the relationship between staff and any street lit fans who are new to the library

Emphasizing an appreciation for street lit as a way to promote reading and library use, Morris's book helps library staff provide knowledgeable guidance.