College and Research Libraries


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Reference Work and Its Tools. By A. K. 
Mukherjee. Calcutta: World Press Private 
Ltd., 1964. 335p. Rs 20.00; 30s. 6d. 

The chief librarian of Jadavpur Univer-
sity has endorsed the liberal or maximum 
theory of reference work in an introduction 
which combines a discussion of its philoso-
phy, concepts and principles, nature and 
techniques, and organization, with a guide 
to a selected list of useful reference tools. 
!his t~eory, according to Mr. Mukherjee, 

takes Its stand on the delectable doctrine 
of direct provision of information and un-
a;oidable obligation of the library, and ob-
VIOusly develops as a corollary of the orig-
inal concept." 

The proliferation of the literature of sci-
ence, social sciences, and the humanities, 
and the increased amount of research re-
quires more extensive reference service 
made more difficult because of the inade~ 
quacy of abstracting journals, indexes and 
bibliographies, the varied forms of publica-
tion, and the increase in interdisciplinary 
approaches in modern research. Within this 
setting the author outlines fourteen cata-
gories of work which include not only an-
sw~ri~g inquiries, preparing bibliographies, 
assist.mg r~aders in the use of the library 
and .mte.rhbra.ry loan, but also maintaining 
special mdexmg and abstracting services 
.providin? a translation service, collecting 
mformahon regarding library resources, and 
cooperating with bibliographical centers 
and union catalogs. Documentation work 
and documentation service are further dis-
cus~ed and their processes briefly outlined. 
The nature of reference service in different 
types of libraries-public, college, univer-
sity, school and special-is summarized. 

One chapter on library organization gives 
instruction on building the reference collec-
tion, evaluation of reference tools, qualifi-
cations of the reference librarian inter-
library loan, and organization of ~aterial. 
The latter visualizes a centralized reference 
department, "which is in a more favorable 
position to offer reference service than a 
decentralized and scattered network of sec-
tional or departmental ones." Mr. Mukher-
jee recommends that the reference books be 
shelved according to the categories under 

Book Reviews 
which he has treated them in his chapter on 
reference tools: "Dictionary, Encyclopedia, 
Geographical Reference, Year Book & Alma-
nacs, Biographical Dictionary, Educational 
Reference, Directory, Handbook and Man-
ual, Bibliography, Serials' Reference, and 
Government Documents." With this ar-
rangement there may be some disagree-
ment, especially among American librarians 
whose reference collections are classified 
according to the scheme used for the rest of 
their collections. 

Nor will American librarians find the 
chapter on 643 reference tools particularly 
~seful,. since it is unfortunately marred by 
mcons.Istencies in bibliographic form, typo-
graphiCal errors in names of authors and 
publishers, failure to note the most recent 
editions, and in a few cases, questionable 
assignment of a title to a particular form. 
General characteristics and uses are given 
for each category, but descriptions of indi-
vidual titles must be sought in a separate 
chapter which gives descriptive annotations 
of 265 titles, most but not all of which are 
included in the classified section. 
. It is difficult to defend the alphabetical 

title arrangement of the annotated list of 
Western reference books, and equally diffi-
cult to defend the two alphabetically ar-
ranged appended lists, one entitled Indian 
Reference Tools (Conventional), the other, 
Indological Source Materials. All three 
would be more useful if prefaced by a clear 
statement of the criteria for their selection 
which are not readily apparent- from a~ 
examination of the lists. 

A short bibliography lists twenty stan-
dard guides to reference materials and ref-
erence work, which may be used by the stu-
dent to augment the highly condensed text. 
The author is to be commended for cover-
ing such a wide range of topics in such 
a small volume.-Frances Neel Cheney, 
George Peabody College. 

Libraries and Universities; Addresses and 
Reports. By Paul Buck. Edited by Edwin 
E. Williams. Cambridge, Massachusetts: 
Harvard University Press, 1964. 172p. 
$3.95. 

Paul Buck has had a distinguished career 

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