American trade publication for librarians
Library Journal
is an American trade publication for
librarians
. It was founded in 1876 by
Melvil Dewey
. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing
public libraries
, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional practice. It also reviews library-related materials and equipment. Each year since 2008, the Journal has assessed public libraries and awarded stars in their Star Libraries program.
Its "Library Journal Book Review" does pre-publication reviews of several hundred popular and academic books each month.
With a circulation of approximately 100,000,
Library Journal
has the highest circulation of any librarianship journal, according to
Ulrich's
.
[1]
Library Journal's
original publisher was
Frederick Leypoldt
, whose company became
R. R. Bowker
. Reed International later merged into
Reed Elsevier
and purchased Bowker in 1985; they published
Library Journal
until 2010, when it was sold to
Media Source Inc.
, owner of the
Junior Library Guild
and
The Horn Book Magazine
.
[2]
Early history
[
edit
]
The cover of Volume 3, No. 2 of
Library Journal
, published in 1878
Founded in 1876 by
Melvil Dewey
,
Library Journal
originally declared itself to be the "official organ of the library associations of America and of the United Kingdom", according to the journal's self-description in 1878.
[3]
Indeed, the journal's original title was
American Library Journal
, though "American" was removed from the title after the first year.
[4]
Its early issues focused on the growth and development of libraries, with feature articles by such prominent authors as
R. R. Bowker
,
Charles Cutter
, and Melvil Dewey, and focusing on cataloging, indexing, and lending schemes. In its early issues, Bowker discussed cataloging principles; Cutter, creator of the
Cutter Expansive Classification
system, developed his ideas; and managing editor Dewey made recommendations for early library circulation systems. Initially,
Library Journal
did not review books unless they related to librarians' professional interests, but then, like now, the journal ran articles on collection development and ads from publishers recommending their forthcoming books for libraries to purchase.
Early issues of
Library Journal
were a forum for librarians throughout Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States to share news, discussions of their libraries' ideas and practices, and reports of professional activities such as meetings and conferences. In an 1878 prospectus, the journal stressed its importance by noting that small libraries, in particular, could gain the "costly experience and practical advice" of the largest libraries. Regular reading of
Library Journal
, the prospectus declared, would make "the librarian worth more to the library, and the library worth more to the people."
[5]
In the Notes and Queries section, librarians shared reports of how their library managed common problems, and they maintained a constant exchange of questions and answers about authorship and reader's advisory. Two prominent sections, the Bibliography (compiled by Cutter) and Pseudonyms and Antonyms (compiled by James L. Whitney), served as reference resources for librarians.
Current features
[
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]
The print edition of
Library Journal
contains the following sections:
- Commentary
- Blatant Berry:
John N. Berry
III, Editor at Large
- Editorial: Rebecca T. Miller, Editor in Chief
- Departments
- Classified
- Feedback
- People
- Features
- InfoTech
- LJNewsDesk
- Media
- Audio Reviews
- Games, Gamers, & Gaming
- Video Reviews
- Reviews
- Arts & Humanities
- Fiction
- Graphic Novels
- LJ
Best Sellers
- Magazine Rack
- Mystery
- Prepub Alert
- Reference
- Science & Technology
- Social Sciences
- Spiritual Living
- The Reader's Shelf
Annual awards
[
edit
]
January
February
- Best Small Library in America
: 2010's Best Small Library in America was Glen Carbon Centennial Library in
Glen Carbon, Illinois
,
[12]
2011's winner was Naturita Community Library in
Naturita, Colorado
,
[13]
2012's winner was The
Independence Public Library
in
Independence, Kansas
,
[14]
2013's winner was Southern Area Public Library in
Lost Creek, West Virginia
,
[15]
and 2014's winner was Pine River Library in
Bayfield, Colorado
.
[16]
2015's winner was the Belgrade Community Library in
Belgrade, Montana
.
[17]
March
- Paraprofessional of the Year
: 2010's Paraprofessional of the Year was Allison Sloan, Senior Library Associate at Reading Public Library in
Reading, Massachusetts
,
[18]
2011's winner was Gilda Ramos from Patchogue-Medford Library in New York,
[19]
2012's winner was Linda Dahlquist from
Volusia County
Public Library in Florida,
[20]
2013's winner was Laura Poe from Athens-Limestone Public Library in
Athens, Alabama
,
[21]
and 2014's winner was Clancy Pool from St. John Branch of Washington State's Whitman County Rural Library District.
[22]
In 2015, Tamara Faulkner Kraus
[23]
was named the Paralibrarian of the Year (the name of the award was changed in 2011).
[24]
- Movers & Shakers
recognizes numerous influential and innovative North American library and information professionals.
June
- Library of the Year
: 2010's Library of the Year was
Columbus Metropolitan Library
in
Columbus, Ohio
,
[25]
2011's winner was
King County Library System
in King County, Washington,
[26]
2012's winner was
San Diego County Library
in San Diego, California,
[27]
2013's winner was
Howard County Library
in Howard County, Maryland,
[28]
and 2014's winner was
Edmonton Public Library
, the first Canadian Library to win this award.
[29]
2015's award went to Ferguson Municipal Public Library,
[30]
Ferguson, Missouri
, 2018's award went to the
San Francisco Public Library
.
[31]
November
- LJ Teaching Award
: 2010's LJ Teaching Award winner was Steven L. MacCall of the School of Library and Information Studies at the
University of Alabama
, Tuscaloosa,
[32]
2011's winner was Martin B. Wolske from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign,
[33]
2012's winner was Lilia Pavlovsky from Rutgers University, New Jersey,
[34]
2013's winner was Suzie Allard from University of Tennessee, Knoxville,
[35]
and 2014's winner was Paul T. Jaeger
[36]
from
University of Maryland
,.
[37]
Patricia K. Galloway of the
University of Texas at Austin
was named the 2015 winner.
[38]
Star libraries
[
edit
]
In 2008 the journal started awarding public libraries with a star system, grouping libraries into categories by expenditure level.
[39]
In 2018, the journal award five stars in the over-US$30 million expenditures category to five libraries:
Cuyahoga County Public Library
,
Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County
,
Seattle Public Library
,
Cleveland Public Library
, and
King County Library System
.
[40]
A total of 257 libraries nationwide were awarded stars, ranging from 3 stars to 5, in the nine different expenditure level categories.
[40]
Website
[
edit
]
LibraryJournal.com, the
Library Journal
website, provides both subscribers and non-subscribers full access to all print content as well as recent archives. Visitors can sign up for email newsletters such as "BookSmack", "Library Hotline", "LJ Academic Newswire", "LJ Review Alert", and "LJXpress". Web articles in the site's "Libraries & Librarians" category are listed by topic, with each topic assigned its own
RSS feed
so that users can receive articles relevant to their interests. Past and present reviews are archived and organized by type (book, DVD, gaming, magazine, video, etc.); they are also available via RSS feeds. Another feature is "InfoDocket" (edited by Gary Price and Shirl Kennedy, originally founded, and still accessible, as an separate website at InfoDocket.com).
[41]
Additionally,
Library Journal
maintains an up-to-date list of library jobs in the website's "JobZone" feature.
[42]
See also
[
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]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Library Journal
. Ulrichsweb.com.
- ^
"Media Source Acquires
School Library Journal
and
Library Journal
"
(PDF)
.
MediaSourceInc.net
.
Media Source Inc.
March 1, 2010.
- ^
"Title page".
Library Journal
.
3
(1). 1878.
- ^
Wiegand, Wayne A.
(January 29, 2016).
"Present at the Creation"
.
American Libraries
. Chicago:
American Library Association
. Retrieved
February 1,
2016
.
- ^
"Library Journal 3.2 (1878): Title Page"
.
- ^
Berry III, John N (January 1, 2011).
"Awards: Nancy Pearl, Librarian of the Year"
.
Library Journal
. Archived from
the original
on January 10, 2011
. Retrieved
April 3,
2022
.
- ^
"Awards: Luis Herrera, Librarian of the Year"
.
Library Journal
. January 1, 2012.
- ^
"Awards: Jo Budler, Librarian of the Year"
.
Library Journal
. January 1, 2013.
- ^
"Awards: Corinne Hill, Librarian of the Year"
.
Library Journal
. January 1, 2014.
- ^
"Siobhan A. Reardon: LJ's 2015 Librarian of the Year"
.
Library Journal
. Retrieved
January 15,
2016
.
- ^
"Brooklyn, Queens Librarian Named Best In The Country"
.
Brooklyn, NY Patch
. December 24, 2019
. Retrieved
December 25,
2019
.
- ^
"Best Small Library in America: Glen Carbon Centennial Library"
.
Library Journal
. February 2010.
- ^
"Best Small Library in America: Glen Carbon Centennial Library"
.
Library Journal
. February 2011.
- ^
"Best Small Library in America: The Independence Public Library"
.
Library Journal
. February 2012.
- ^
"Best Small Library in America: Southern Area Public Library"
.
Library Journal
. February 2013.
- ^
"Best Small Library in America: Pine River Library"
.
Library Journal
. February 2014.
- ^
"The Loaves and Fishes Library | Best Small Library in America 2015"
.
Library Journal
. Retrieved
January 15,
2016
.
- ^
"Paraprofessional of the Year: Allison Sloan, Senior Library Associate at Reading Public Library in Massachusetts"
.
Library Journal
. March 2010.
- ^
"Paraprofessional of the Year: Gilda Ramos from Patchogue-Medford Library in New York"
.
Library Journal
. March 2011.
- ^
"Paraprofessional of the Year: Linda Dahlquist from Volusia County Public Library in Florida"
.
Library Journal
. March 2012.
- ^
"Paraprofessional of the Year: Laura Poe from Athens-Limestone Public Library in Athens, Alabama"
.
Library Journal
. March 2013.
- ^
"Paraprofessional of the Year: Clancy Pool from St. John Branch of Washington State's Whitman County Rural Library District"
.
Library Journal
. March 2014.
- ^
"Paralibrarian of the Year 2015: Tamara Faulkner Kraus"
.
Library Journal
. Retrieved
January 15,
2016
.
- ^
"Past Winners"
.
lj.libraryjournal.com
. Retrieved
January 15,
2016
.
- ^
"Library of the Year: Columbus Metropolitan Library in Columbus, Ohio"
.
Library Journal
. May 2010.
- ^
"Library of the Year: King County Library System in King County, Washington"
.
Library Journal
. May 2011.
- ^
"San Diego County Library in San Diego, California"
.
Library Journal
. June 2012.
- ^
"Howard County Library in Howard County, Maryland"
.
Library Journal
. June 2013.
- ^
"Library of the Year: Edmonton Public Library, the first Canadian Library to win this award"
. June 2014.
- ^
"2015 Gale/LJ Library of the Year: Ferguson Municipal Public Library, MO, Courage in Crisis"
.
Library Journal
. Retrieved
January 15,
2016
.
- ^
McMurtrie, John (June 6, 2018).
"S.F. Public Library wins Library of the Year award"
.
San Francisco Chronicle
.
Archived
from the original on June 5, 2018
. Retrieved
March 17,
2018
.
- ^
"LJ Teaching Award winner: Steven L. MacCall of the School of Library and Information Studies at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa"
.
Library Journal
. November 2010.
- ^
"LJ Teaching Award winner: Martin B. Wolske from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"
.
Library Journal
. November 2011.
- ^
"LJ Teaching Award winner: Lilia Pavlovsky from Rutgers University, New Jersey"
.
Library Journal
. November 2012.
- ^
"LJ Teaching Award winner: Suzie Allard from University of Tennessee, Knoxville"
.
Library Journal
. November 2013.
- ^
"Paul T. Jaeger"
.
University of Maryland
.
- ^
"LJ Teaching Award winner: Paul T. Jaeger from University of Maryland"
.
Library Journal
. November 2014.
- ^
"Patricia K. Galloway | LJ/ALISE Excellence in Teaching Award Winner 2015"
.
Library Journal
. Retrieved
January 15,
2016
.
- ^
Lance, Keith Curry.
"The 2018 Stars | LJ Index 2018"
.
Library Journal
. Retrieved
November 7,
2019
.
- ^
a
b
Lance, Keith Curry.
"2018 Star Libraries By the Numbers | LJ Index 2018"
.
Library Journal
. Retrieved
November 7,
2019
.
- ^
"About"
.
InfoDocket
. Library Journal
. Retrieved
May 25,
2014
.
- ^
"JobZone"
.
Library Journal
.
External links
[
edit
]
Wikiquote has quotations related to
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.
Look up
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