Inter-Library Loan Practice

InterLibrary Loan Practices Handbook

Edited by Cherie L. Weible and Karen L. Janke, American Library Association, 2011, 3^rd ed., 131 pp., 978-0-8389-1081-8, $85.00 (paper).

This is the author's version of a work that was submitted/accepted for publication in the following source:

Catholic Library World, June 2012, Vol. 82 Issue 4 pp. 308-309.

Interlibrary Loan Practices Handbook edited by Cherie L. Weible and Karen L. Janke will meet an important need for new librarians working in Interlibrary Loan departments. This handbook “covers the basics of ILL and is aimed at the new practitioner as well as those who have suddenly found themselves responsible for an ILL unit” (ix). The editors and contributors have a wealth of experience and knowledge about ILL services that will make this handbook an excellent tool for library staff working in an ILL department. Even experienced ILL staff will find something beneficial here.

Chapter one narrates the history of ILL services and the last chapter is a good companion because it describes the opportunities and possible changes in the future. The authors emphasize that despite the constant changes brought about by technology, the mission of ILL remains the same. That mission is to provide the best services and resources to the library user.

Chapters two and three cover the basics of managing an ILL department. These two chapters cover information about “borrowing policies,” different types of borrowing, discovery tools, and the workflow process. The new librarian or librarian new to ILL will find these two chapters, especially beneficial. There are also chapters on copyright and technology.  The chapter on copyright is helpful because of the growing questions about digitization and copyright. The chapter on technology describes the many new ILL technologies. Some of these are WorldCat Resource Sharing, scanning technologies, Open URL, and other web technologies.