Reseñas proporcionadas por Syndetics
CHOICE Review
These volumes offer concise annotated guides to the major primary and secondary sources of information on Congress and the presidency. Internet, CD-ROM, and database resources are included as well as printed books and periodicals. The authors also explain the basic searching procedures and related government publications together with a step-by-step research strategy designed to include all pertinent information. A glossary and a bibliography of additional secondary nonreference books round out both volumes (although the addition to the glossary of the congressional terms "engrossed" and "enrolled" would have been useful). The authors have done a fine job of updating their Congress and Law-Making: Researching the Legislative Process (CH, Jan'80; 2nd ed., 1988) and The Presidency: A Research Guide (CH, Jun'85), although the newer works are more concise. All major research works are included, grouped with similar sources, on every aspect of each topic. For example, How to Research Congress includes sources issued by organizations that rate the votes of members of Congress, campaign finance data sources, archives, television, and Internet sources in addition to the standard bills, reports, debates, etc., and How to Research the Presidency describes where to find platforms, oral histories, and public opinion polls as well as the more usual biographies, speeches, papers, and vetoes. There is some overlap between the volumes in the areas of general reference books, periodical indexes, and online and CD-ROM databases that cover government activity. (It should be noted that Congressional Masterfile I (1995) covers the period 1789-1969, and not pre-1789.) More details concerning procedures, particularly with regard to Congress, are included in the authors' earlier works, but other recent titles have updated that information (Charles Tiefer's Congressional Practice and Procedure: A Reference, Research, and Legislative Guide, CH, Dec'89, and Researching the Presidency: Vital Questions, New Approaches, ed. by George C. Edwards III, John H. Kessel, and Bert A. Rockman, CH, Jul'93). A Research Guide to Congress: How to Make Congress Work for You, by Judith Manion, Joseph Meringolo, and Robert Oaks (2nd ed., 1991), is the most similar recent work on Congressional research and includes many major primary and secondary sources of information as well as extensive explanation of Congressional procedures and terminology. An excellent sourcebook, it discusses databases that at the time it was published were all online and fee-based and have now been supplemented with free Internet sources such as GPO Access and Thomas (URL: http://thomas.loc.gov). These two new CQ guides are highly recommended for any library as very affordable, useful resources for users and as reference and training tools for librarians. L. Treff-Gangler University of Colorado at Denver
Booklist Review
Martin and Goehlert have written several books detailing the process of researching the three branches of the U.S. government. These two new volumes demonstrate once again their ability to digest and distill information and make it easily understandable to users. Most materials included are either government documents or from commercial publishers and should be readily available in most academic and larger public libraries. Identical introductory sections in both books include a step-by-step process for researching these topics. Unique sections in each book include annotated lists of secondary and primary reference sources, followed by selective bibliographies of monographs. Secondary sources include almanacs, dictionaries, encyclopedias, and biographical sources plus pertinent indexes and abstracts, online databases, and CD-ROM products. All are described in sufficient detail to give the novice a basic understanding of their coverage. The coverage of primary sources will be helpful for researchers attempting to sift through the large numbers of government publications available. Both print and electronic versions are discussed as appropriate, although information pertaining to the Monthly Catalog refers to only one CD-ROM version, the Government Documents Subscription Services, while other vendors such as SilverPlatter and MARCIVE also distribute this product. Most other entries in these sections tend to be title rather than vendor specific. Items in the bibliographies included a good mix of old standbys and books published in the last year or two. The bibliography sections of each volume are not annotated and list only books. In the volume on the presidency, the bibliography is divided into two major sections: the first addresses a variety of issues relating to the presidency, such as foreign policy, media coverage, presidential character, and succession; the second chronological section contains information pertaining to each president and his administration. In the volume on Congress, the subsections include issues such as the history of Congress, the powers of Congress, legislative histories, and congressional leadership. Both books contain author and title indexes. Checks of the indexes indicate that they are accurate as far as they go, but the authors and titles included in the selected bibliographies are not included in the indexes, and neither volume includes a subject index, although the tables of contents are fairly descriptive. The short glossaries in each may be helpful to the novice researcher. Although other volumes offer advice concerning research in these areas, none is as current, as easy to read and interpret, nor as well adapted to the needs of the novice researcher. Recommended for undergraduate reference collections and public libraries that assist researchers interested in these areas.
