IF Senarios

Senario #2

Based upon the Bellingham Library collection policy, I would suggest that the library not acquire the graphic novel entitled The Pro at this time. The Bellingham Library policy states:

"Library materials will be purchased only after citation in an
authoritative review or reviews in sources generally accepted in the
library profession, or upon examination by library professional staff."

The Pro, despite the fact that it is written by a well-known author has not yet been reviewed by a generally accepted source. While blogs can provide interesting insight into materials, they are not generally considered to be authoritative reviews.

The library must also ask where this novel falls in their larger graphic novel collection. Because the library already has a significant graphic novel collection, librarians must decide whether The Pro represents duplicate content in the collection. The Bellingham Library Policy states:

" The amount of material acquired on any one subject will be governed
by consideration of the duplication of content in materials already
held and by the need to use available money and space to best serve the
very wide range of users."

The library must take a look at the budget and the whole of the collection to ensure that The Pro does not constitute a duplication of content. Both of these factors indicate that the Bellingham Library system must do a bit more research or perhaps wait until the novel is reviewed before making a decision as whether or not it should be purchased.


Senario #5

I would recommend that Mallville Public Library retain a copy of The Haunted for its collection. The Mallville collection development policy states:

"Fictional material is selected from reviews and judged on the intent of the author or producer, and the general literary, artistic, social or other value of the work."

Chuck Palahniuk is a well respected and popular author who's previous works have been considered to contain literary, artistic and social value. While the posted reviews for The Haunted may not be the most flattering (especially in comparison to a novel such as Fight Club), the timeliness of this author and the popularity of his work should be reason to acquire this title.

This title does seem to contain some content that could possibly be construed as controversial or offensive, but the author's message is not obscene. The Booklist review states that "there's a point to the madness--Palahniuk is exploring our yearning for suffering and our newfound desire to make our misery marketable. The allegory is sometimes very clever and pitch-black funny." The Mallville Collection development policy states that "Each work is judged as a whole, not by certain
passages taken out of context that might prove offensive to some readers or viewers." Some passages in this novel will surely offend some people but the message contains societal meaning and so the title should be acquired by the library.