Re: core list

Kristine R. Brancolini (brancoli@indiana.edu)
Fri, 7 Jan 2000 10:17:56 -0800 (PST)

Because I brought it up, I guess I should respond to this thread. I don't
see how a collection of 200 titles can be anything other than the
classics. A good example would be _Eyes on the Prize_. It will be one of
my nominees. I would probably nominate it even if no one were using it
anymore, but faculty and students continue to use it, which is important.
I don't see this as People's Choice vs. Idealized List in the Sky. They
should not be mutually exclusive. Many of the titles that are most heavily
used in my collection *are* the best we have to offer. That's why faculty
use them! I don't propose taking our circulation statistics and using
them to create the list -- top circulating titles do not automatically
make the list -- but use will be a factor in my nominations. A good
example of a heavily used title that I won't be nominating would be
_Dreamworlds 2_. It's useful in an academic setting but it's no
exceptional work of art. This raises another interesting point: What
titles do libraries absolutely need, regardless of their quality? But
that's another topic for another day... :-) -- Kris

On Fri, 7 Jan 2000, Gary Handman wrote:

> This does raise an interesting point: are we aiming at The People's Choice
> or some Idealized List in the Sky.
>
> At the risk of forsaking my populist roots (aw hell, I forsook em' about
> the time bell bottoms went out of style, I'm afraid) I'd say I'm more
> interested in the latter than the former. A core list is not a popularity
> contest: it's an attempt to define a kind of bibliographic or videographic
> canon...a carefully circumscribed list of essentials based on commonly
> agreed upon set of criteria (in this case, it's the implicit or explicit
> values of seasoned video librarians). I realize that this is a tough order
> for video, and that the popular and the canonical are not mutually
> exclusive (and that building collections in a void is a real danger).
> Nonetheless, let's aim for the ideal in a not-so-ideal world...
>
> Gary
>
>
> t 07:57 AM 01/06/2000 -0800, you wrote:
> >Glad to see that Gary will welcome vendor-contaminated nominations as long
> >as the vendor-afflicted don't nominate their own product. I would not
> >nominate a title we carry [insert QBI joke here], so this seems to me a
> >good caveat. As to Kris' point about the difference between excellent
> >titles and titles that are winners with users, I would take mild exception.
> > The list should not, I think, be limited to crowd pleasers, else why make
> >the list. Again, this is only a mild disagreement; after Gary et al. have
> >done the serious work, a wacky but wonderful list would seem like an
> >excellent collection development tool for larger collections.
> >
> >Mike Tribby
> >Quality Books Inc.
> >
> >
>

Kristine R. Brancolini, Media and Film Studies
Main Library E170, 1320 E. Tenth Street
Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405
Phone: 812.855.6281 | Fax: 812.855.1649 | Email: brancoli@indiana.edu