Dear colleagues, The forward is review of the book "Marketing Library and Information Services: International Perspectives" by Prof. Weingand, an expert and famous author on this area. This review will be published in the forthcoming issue of the Newsletter of IFLA Management and Marketing Section. The book will be reviewed in about 80 (eighty) international journals/ newsletters in many languages. It has already been reviewed in Annals of Library and Information Studies (March 2006) and in Srels Journal of of Information Management (June 2006). Best regards, Dinesh K. Gupta Assoiate Prof. of Lib. & Inf. Sc. V M open University, Kota Rajasthan ----- Original Message ----- From: <weingand@lava.net> To: Dinesh K. Gupta <dineshkg@sancharnet.in> Cc: <steffen.wawra@uni-passau.de>; <amassisimo@ub.edu> Sent: Friday, June 30, 2006 11:26 PM Subject: Re: Bookreview in the Newsletter Below is the review that you requested. I applaud you on bringing this text to fruition. Marketing Library and Information Services: International Perspectives. Edited on behalf of IFLA by Dinesh K. Gupta, Christie Koontz, Angels Massisimo and Rejean Savard. Munchen, Germany: K. G. Saur, 2006. The literature related to library marketing is growing, which is a sign of increasing interest as well as scholarship. This volume is an important addition to that body of knowledge and reflects the views of more than forty library professionals around the globe. These international perspectives bring depth and clarity to the marketing of libraries discussion. This volume is divided into six sections: Marketing Concept, a Changing Perspective; Marketing in Libraries Around the World; the Role of Library Associations; Education, Training and Research; Excellence in Marketing; and Databases and Other Marketing Literature. These broad categories are further subdivided into papers that are flanked by abstracts and extensive bibliographical references. Section I contains two papers focusing on the theoretical frame of marketing and how it has evolved and expanded over time. This is an excellent approach to helping the reader understand the numerous papers which follow. The novice reader will become informed and the experienced library marketer will develop an enhanced awareness of the scope of marketing in the library context. Section II considers how marketing is utilized as a management tool in libraries around the world. Geographical areas addressed include Denmark, Norway, Spain, Finland, China, France, Africa, Kenya, Pakistan, Australia, Romania, Croatia, and South Africa. While not country-specific, the final paper considers marketing from the perspective of knowledge management within the financial services sector. In Section III, the role of library associations is considered as an important factor in marketing libraries. The history of IFLA's Management and Marketing Section is reviewed and a specific look at public libraries through the IFLA/UNESCO Guidelines for Development is presented. Subsequent papers examine the American Library Association, libraries in the UK and National Library Week in Lithuania. Education, training and research become the focus in Section IV. Papers in this section take a close look at curricula in library education institutions in the United States, Canada, India and Estonia; and training for the LIS community in the UK and India. Two papers focusing on specific applications conclude this section. Excellence is addressed in Section V. This is an eclectic section, looking at quality from a variety of viewpoints. Beginning with a listing of awards, followed by a paper discussing awards in detail, the section moves on to discuss specific applications of marketing in the UK, the Houston [Texas/USA] Public Library, and Barcelona [Spain]. Finally, in Section VI, databases and reviews of the literature are featured, ending with an overview of the Marketing Library Services Newsletter. This reviewer would have preferred to see the literature review included in Section I, but that is a small point in the light of the overall wealth of material presented in this book. As a contributor to marketing literature over the years, I am pleased to see that this very important aspect of management is alive and well and moving forward internationally. It is very heartening and I certainly recommend this book to the profession. Darlene E. Weingand, PhD Professor Emerita University of Wisconsin-Madison [USA]