Know it All, Find it Fast: An A‐Z Source Guide for the Enquiry Desk (3rd edition)

Citation

Reid, C.D. (2009), "Know it All, Find it Fast: An A‐Z Source Guide for the Enquiry Desk (3rd edition)", Library Review, Vol. 58 No. 5, pp. 388-389. https://doi.org/10.1108/00242530910961819

My early days of staffing the enquiry desk would frequently see me reaching for a ringing telephone with great fear and trepidation – would I be able to assist the enquirer? Would I even understand their question? Library school did not really prepare me for the myriad of questions that came my way and I expect I am not alone here. Hence, the publication of a completely updated third edition of Know it All, Find it Fast: An A‐Z Source Guide for the Enquiry Desk. The focus of the volume continues to remain the same – to assist frontline enquiry desk staff working with the general public.

This edition retains the same format as earlier editions. Topics are arranged alphabetically across approximately 150 subject areas from Abbreviations and Acronyms through to Writers and Writing. In between are subjects which the authors consider to be the most frequently asked of enquiry desk staff. These include such topics as Actors and Actresses, Customs, Festivals and Folklore, Kings and Queens and Weights and Measures. Each topic is dealt with in a standard format – typical questions, considerations, where to look and tips and pitfalls.

The “typical questions”, at a glance, give an indication of the variety of enquiries posed at a reference desk. The “considerations” section provides a brief snapshot of key information of importance for that subject e.g. that parish registers show dates of baptism and burials and not births and deaths. Other helpful advice is provided including the most important of all – “try and find out what the enquirer actually wants! The “where to look” section signposts both hard copy and electronic sources which you would expect to find in a public library. The growth of electronic resources is reflected in the number of websites signposted in this new edition, including subscription sites such as Know UK and Credo reference which are now freely available in libraries. Useful contacts are also listed for referral purposes. Most, but not all, of the entries end with a “tips and pitfalls” section offering good sound advice including not passing comment on the value or otherwise of an antique item; that there are various editions of a newspaper printed during a day; that statistics do not exist for everything and to have some “rescue strategies in place to escape from garrulous family tree‐ers”. See references are used where appropriate to bring related subjects together and a six page index is also included.

This edition sees the addition of several new subjects e.g. Astronomy and Space Travel, Canals and Waterways, Police and Security and Wine. Other subjects have been subsumed into broader categories e.g. Olympic Games into Sports while nursery rhymes are now with Fairy Tales. The emphasis across the various subjects is very much on UK sources. It would have been good particularly in the History section to see reference to a Scottish or Welsh source, and in both the Health and Law sections to include a resource that recognizes that services in Scotland are organized completely different to those elsewhere in the UK. I spotted several typos throughout the volume particularly in web addresses – the result I presume of poor proof reading.

With a volume such as this it is difficult to ensure that sources signposted are always the most current. However I would question the usefulness in 2009 of listing the Gale Guide to internet databases published in 1995 or the Penguin Price Guide for Records and CD Collectors published in 1997. It is the case today that many enquiries can be quickly and more usefully answered from a web source rather than printed guides especially when it comes to railway timetables, airline schedules or opening hours of castles or museums. Web sources should perhaps be more usefully listed before printed sources to recognize this more fully.

Most hard copy sources state the year of publication. For others, however, we are told they are annual and for some titles, no publication date is given and we are left to guess as to a title's frequency and currency. More consistency in approach here would greatly assist the newcomer on the enquiry desk.

Despite these comments, this volume does represent excellent value for money and should be close at hand on every enquiry desk. The wise reference librarian knows, like Samuel Johnson that “Knowledge is of two kinds. We know a subject ourselves, or we know where we can find information on it”. This volume will go a long way in pinpointing sources where answers might be found.