A school librarian and book reviewer argues that buyers, reviewers, editors, and publishers need to look more carefully at series books. Discusses series and reviewing tools and ways reviewers can help colleagues make the best choices for students. Recommends two social studies series, and suggests questions to ask when buying series books. (PEN)

Presents a 1992 study which discovered and investigated collection development bias in academic and public libraries in California. The investigation was carried out in five stages: (1) selected a controversial topic; (2) identified representative works; (3) ranked works by qualified judges; (4) measured holdings via library online computer…

Discusses the evolution of multicultural literature for young adults; the role of publishers and others in making more multicultural materials available; and issues involved in authoring books with such themes. A bibliography of 8 selection tools and an annotated bibliography of 88 works for young adults are appended. (KRN)

Discusses themes and characteristics of multicultural children's literature that promote understanding of cultural groups and other forms of diversity. The bibliography, which is organized by subject area, lists 58 works for children and young adults and 47 professional books and articles. Publishers of multicultural children's books and of…

Discusses selecting for a reference collection, creative budgeting, cutting a deal, collection awareness (strengths/needs), Web site reviews, R-Net (reviews from diverse areas and institutions), and print vs. electronic reference products. Reference librarian adhere to high standards for reference book and Web sites, teach assessment techniques,…