Foundations of Library and Information Science

by Richard E. Rubin

Other authorsRachel G. Rubin (Author)

Paperback, 2020

Status

Available

Call number

020.0973

Description

Language Arts. Nonfiction. HTML: Richard E. Rubin's book has served as the authoritative introductory text for generations of library and information science practitioners, with each new edition taking in its stride the myriad societal, technological, political, and economic changes affecting our users and institutions and transforming our discipline. Rubin teams up with his daughter, Rachel G. Rubin, a rising star in the library field in her own right, for the fifth edition. Spanning all types of libraries, from public to academic, school, and special, it illuminates the major facets of LIS for students as well as current professionals. Continuing its tradition of excellence, this text addresses the history and mission of libraries from past to present, including the history of service to African Americans; critical contemporary social issues such as services to marginalized communities, tribal libraries, and immigrants; the rise of e-government and the crucial role of political advocacy; digital devices, social networking, digital publishing, e-books, virtual reality, and other technology; forces shaping the future of libraries, including Future Ready libraries, and sustainability as a core value of librarianship; the values and ethics of the profession, with new coverage of civic engagement, combatting fake news, the importance of social justice, and the role of critical librarianship; knowledge infrastructure and organization, including Resource Description and Access (RDA), linked data, and the Library Research Model; the significance of the digital divide and policy issues related to broadband access and net neutrality; intellectual freedom, legal issues, and copyright-related topics; contemporary issues in LIS education such as the ongoing tensions between information science and library science; and the changing character of collections and services including the role of digital libraries, preservation, and the digital humanities. In its newest edition, Foundations of Library and Information Science remains the field's essential resource..… (more)

Genres

General Nonfiction

Publication

ALA Neal-Schuman (2020), Edition: Fifth, 648 pages

User reviews

LibraryThing member btipling

Kind of wordy and unnecessarily redundant. Could've used some more editing. Very informative though.

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LibraryThing member NielsenGW

First of all, yes, this is a textbook, so it already loses points for excitement and story-telling. But, aside from that, if you want to learn the complete basics of library science, then Richard Rubin’s Foundations of Library and Information Science is a great start. I had the opportunity to

study under Dr. Rubin at Kent State, so this book reminded me of that time a great deal. Reading it straight through in less than a week is not advised, however. It’s meant to be sampled and discussed over the course of three or four months. It gives a comprehensive history of all kinds of libraries (public, special, school, etc.) and their service to the public as well as new avenues (at least new in 2004) of growth, research, and technology. FRBR and massive online databases had finally matured somewhat, so an interesting amount of the material covers those. It’s a little dry, and the author tries to break up the monotony with a few jokes here and there, but it’s the passion of the author that stands out. Passages on the ethics and morals of libraries and librarians speak volume about where we are as a society and how information should be handled. If this is the textbook for your class, then you will have all the information you need about the field. A thick, educational book.

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LibraryThing member su_library_student

I was required to purchase this book for my first class in my LIS graduate studies. The book is easy to read and provides a great introduction to what goes into being a librarian.

LibraryThing member tundra

I had to read this for class. There were a few interesting chapters, but I had a hard time paying attention to much of it. It was certainly well researched though.

LibraryThing member bozburn

A good reading for the MLIS professional. Rubin was easy to follow in studying the issues facing librarians today.

LibraryThing member scote23

hahah reading this ALL SEMESTER LONG.

I mean, it's a textbook. It was fine, but nothing extraordinary.

LibraryThing member etborg

A bit dry, but what do you expect from a textbook! I found some of the material outdated, but it provided a decent foundation and prompted a lot of class discussion.

LibraryThing member Auntie-Nanuuq

There are no stars...what's to like (or not) about a standard text?

This is a standard SLIS/MLIS text. Sure I read it (NOT), but I used it for most of my classes when I was writing papers and in need of citations to support my rantings on my specific type of Library dogma.

Good? I think not.... It

had several editorial mistakes in it...so for $75 for a paperback, it's best to go to your local library and see if they have or can order you a copy. I say I did get mine on Amazon for $35...and I donated it back to the library for all those others who are going to SLIS...save them some money... Arrrg!

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LibraryThing member Noeshia

This is a nice introductory textbook. In the history chapter I learned about a librarian of history whose name I am sure that I want to use for game characters in the future. Oh, and the information is good.

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