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Public Library Core Collection Nonfiction: A Guide to the Essential Works in Every Genre



"By putting it on that list, then I could say, 'OK, what kind of budget do I have? What kind of coverage do I have?' So I could take the list of what the experts have said 'This is something you should have in your HS collection or nonfiction for public libraries.' And then I would take that piece of it and align it with some other data and see how I could make sure I either had coverage in particular areas or make sure that because of pandemic buy restrictions I wasn't missing some of the more important works."


One of the crucial uses of Core Collections at FCPL is its incorporation in the weeding and evaluation cycle. "We primarily do centralized selection and decentralized weeding with guidance," said Dianne. This "guidance" involves considering factors such as recommendation level in Core Collections, number of items in the library system/respective coverage in the subject area, circulation data, and physical condition. Dianne and her team use the levels in Core Collections to key into what their next step should be. They have also developed a form through the FCPL intranet to communicate various new title and replacement requests, notifications, and recommendations throughout the process, as a centralized way for all branches to communicate needs with collection development.




Public Library Core Collection Nonfiction A Selection Guide




Core Collections are impartial, authoritative guides that help librarians build and maintain well-rounded collections of the most highly recommended reference, nonfiction, and fiction books. Beloved in print for years, the collections are available in a more comprehensive and more regularly updated online version. Core Collections makes it easy to connect the information to your local collection and compare what your library owns to what our experts recommend.


All titles in Core Collections are chosen with guidance from review sources by librarians with expertise in their fields. The experts highlight materials that build a well-rounded collection, which includes many viewpoints and opinions, to help librarians fulfill the core mission of the library.


The collection of the San José Public Library is a single collection shared between all locations. Each location has its own core collection of nonfiction and informational materials supporting education for all ages. The library organizes its collection to highlight new and popular materials so that they are readily accessible.


NB: The library director is ultimately in charge of what gets ordered for the library and they delegate the responsibility to others [librarians] who are deemed to be properly trained or have the knowledge to order materials. The public are the driving force behind why public library collections exist, as selectors attempt to have a diverse, balanced collection of titles that appeal to the entire community. However, the public does not do the actual selecting, beyond making suggestions.


Wilson's Public Library Core Collection: Nonfiction (19th Edition, 2023) is designed for acquisitions librarians, reference librarians and cataloguers. Public Library Core Collection: Nonfiction is a reliable guide to building and maintaining a well-rounded collection of the most highly recommended reference and nonfiction books for adults.The Core Collection is intended to serve the needs of public and undergraduate libraries and stand as a basic or "opening day" collection. The newer titles help in identifying areas that can be updated or strengthened. Retention of useful material from the previous edition enables the librarian to make informed decisions about weeding a collection.This edition continues to emphasize equity, diversity, and inclusion, representing and reflecting a varied community in which many voices can be heard. Significant weeding is undertaken to ensure that older, outdated books are removed in favour of more relevant recommendations.With more than 14,000 nonfiction titles appropriate to general adult readers as well as reference books and a selection of professional materials of use to librarians and library administrators, this 18th edition contains both new titles that reflect new topics of interest or new interpretations of traditional knowledge as well as older titles - sometimes in updated versions - that remain the best in their field.


Library media specialists must determine which of the many selection guides are useful for their particular library's collection. YA collections do not consist solely of "young adult literature." In fact, it is likely that the majority of resources used in a collection have nothing to do with YA literature.


A Core Collection for Young Adults (Neal-Schuman, 2003), by Patrick Jones, Patricia Taylor and Kirsten Edwards; points out that a collection geared towards young adults is not a core collection of YA literature. School library media centers must include each of the four areas above and quality literature that supports the school's curriculum, encourages young people to read, and presents stories and characters that library users can relate to.


The twenty branch libraries serve specific neighborhoods in the City. The interests and needs of the actual and potential users of the branch are continually evaluated so that each library has a collection reflecting the community that it serves. While each branch serves basic reference needs of its neighborhood with a core of reference materials, it does not duplicate the in-depth sources or special collections of the Main and other area libraries. Branch collections are designed to serve the current, high interest needs of library patrons.


The authority and responsibility for the selection of library materials rests ultimately with the Library Director. Under his/her direction, selection is delegated to professional collection development library staff. All staff members and the general public are encouraged to recommend materials for consideration.


Navigating what at she calls the " extravagantly rich world of nonfiction," renowned readers' advisor (RA) Wyatt builds readers' advisory bridges from fiction to compelling and increasingly popular nonfiction to encompass the library's entire collection. She focuses on eight popular categories: history, true crime, true adventure, science, memoir, food/cooking, travel, and sports. Within each, she explains the scope, popularity, style, major authors and works, and the subject's position in readers' advisory interviews.


Emphasis for the periodical and newspaper collection is placed on popular titles and a representative sampling of other topics. The collection is also used by the staff for selection and professional development. Gift subscriptions may be accepted for magazines if they meet general selection guidelines. The Library subscribes to a number of local, Ohio, regional and national newspapers. The subscription lists are reviewed annually by staff.


The Library maintains a collection of print and electronic reference sources, covering a wide variety of topics intended to meet the informational needs of the general public. Standard resources make up the core of this collection, consisting of books updated on a continuing basis and electronic products such as databases to provide convenient, relevant access to information.


The Library maintains several special collections to serve the needs of the community. These collections follow the same guidelines for selection and deselection outlined in this policy. Examples of these are as follows:


The Library participates in a national material sharing program, commonly known as Interlibrary Loan. The Library requests materials from and loans materials to other participating libraries across the country. ILL is a service that supports the mission of the Library by providing enhanced access to information. The purpose of ILL is to obtain materials which would not ordinarily be purchased by the Library and to provide material from the collection to other libraries. Staff may consider purchasing an item, in lieu of requesting it through ILL, if the material is requested frequently and deemed appropriate for selection within the guidelines described in this collection development policy


Used for collection development, readers' advisory, curriculum support, and selection and purchasing, Children's Core Collection includes fiction and nonfiction works, story collections, picture books, magazines, websites, and online subscription resources for readers from preschool through sixth grade. 2ff7e9595c


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