Telling the Technical Services Story: Communicating Value

example, chapters three “(Fund Management”), four (“Ordering”), and seven (“Continuing Resources”) would be excellent primers for a new library professional learning the jargon of collection management. Other chapters offer accessible explanations of a liaison’s potential role in accreditation reviews, collection weeding, and library consortia. In all, this slim volume is a comprehensive overview of a liaison’s role in the life cycle of library collections. Chapters two (“Collection Development”) and five (“Collection Development Committee”) demystify two areas of collection development that new librarians may imagine they will spend a lot of time on. As the authors point out, the reality of liaison responsibilities is much more complex than simply choosing books. Nonetheless, these two chapters offer the reader a succinct overview of current collection development practices, as well as a common model for doing the work. Each chapter includes case study examples, templates, and lessons learned, giving the reader reassurance that the authors write from experience. Chapters six (“Building Relationships”) and nine (“Collection Assessment and Weeding”) introduce two aspects of liaison responsibilities that can be fraught, depending on local institutional culture. Armstrong and Dinkle provide sound advice about building relationships with faculty in campus departments, clearly drawing on years of experience. They are also realistic and accepting of departments and faculty that are unresponsive to library outreach of any kind. The authors articulate reasonable parameters for weeding, outlining hypothetical weeding projects that most libraries could undertake. Armstrong and Dinkle offer libraries an ideal model for engaging liaison librarians in management of the collection. However, they are realistic about local practices. Among the most valuable tools in this book is each chapter’s “Local Practices Questionnaire.” These questionnaires are not only a useful framework for new liaisons, they may also help collection managers organize training materials or anticipate common questions. The Library Liaison’s Training Guide to Collection Management is an accessible and practical manual for any librarian who is taking on new liaison and collection development responsibilities.