Bertha Bartlett Library bookshelf

Have you ever wondered how a book (or other library materials) gets added to the library? Today's column will try to explain the process for you.

The library board of trustees oversees the operations of the library. To do so they have in place policies and procedures as guidelines for the staff. One of these policies is a "Collection Development Policy." A portion of the policy reads as follows:

"The primary objective in selecting materials for purchase is to collect items of contemporary significance and/or permanent value. Suggestions and comments by patrons are encouraged as an aid in deciding upon purchase selections.

"Materials must meet the following criteria: authority and competency of the author; accomplishment of its purpose; fundamental objectivity; clarity; honesty and accuracy of its presentation; relation to the existing collection; relative importance in comparison with other books on the subject; timeliness of subject matter; literary quality; cultural value; and evaluation in the established and widely-accepted reviewing sources."

The staff uses a variety of sources as selection tools when choosing the materials to be added. The American Library Association publishes a magazine, Booklist, which consists of brief reviews of current books and audiovisual materials worthy of consideration for purchase. Reviews from The New York Times Book Review and The Des Moines Register are taken into consideration. Other sources of recommendation come from library workshops and special catalogs. Once the materials have been selected, an order is placed with a book distributor.
As boxes of books arrive, the invoices are checked, the books are examined and evaluated for addition to the collection. Each book receives an accession number (a computerized bar code label) and the information regarding it is entered into the computer. Previously cards were typed for the card catalog, but with the computerized circulation system the card catalog is no longer up-to-date. Materials are classified so that they are placed in the proper areas of the library; children's books are in the easy, easy reader, or juvenile fiction and nonfiction areas; there is a young adult section; adult books are defined as fiction, nonfiction, biography, westerns, science fiction, and mystery fiction.

After the book has been entered into the computer with all of the proper subject listings noted, it gets a spine label, a check-out slip, a clear plastic cover if it has a dust jacket, and is stamped with the library name. The spine label includes the call number which identifies the location where the book will be shelved. For example, if the spine labels says "598.2 and the first three letters of the author's last name" the book will be shelved with the rest of the books about bird, and in alphabetical order by the author's last name.

Now the book is ready for circulation. New books are placed on a special new book shelf and generally are displayed there for six months before moving in with the rest of the regular collection."