Re: GEN: Subject heading for How-to books

[uv middle school library <snbcs@NORWICH.NET>]

Since this might be of interest to others, I am replying to the group
rather than the original poster.
Perhaps you could identify how-to books with a spine label, like the ones
that identify horse stories, mysteries, etc.  You wouldn't need to give the
books subject headings, which would only create a section of the catalog or
OPAC that grouped together totally unrelated books anyway.

Giulia Greenberg,Librarian
Unadilla Valley Middle School
S. New Berlin, NY
snbcs@norwich.net

----------
> From: Dan Robinson Indexing Services <drobinson@INFO.HWWILSON.COM>
> To: LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
> Subject: Re: GEN:  Subject heading for How-to books
> Date: Thursday, April 23, 1998 9:55 AM
>
> I passed this question on to the Editor of Sears, Joseph Miller. Here
> is his reply:
>
> How to identify how-to books
>
> I think racking your brain is an apporpriate response to this
> question, since there really is no answer that I know of.  The
> purpose of subject headings is to isolate clearly identifiable
> subjects and make them available for searching.  But "how-to" is not
> really a subject, and I don't think it is even a form in the sense
> that "Bibliography" or "Pictorial works" are forms.  A how-to book can
> be anything.  Here are some titles taken at random from the LC
> bibliographic file:
>
> How to emblam your mother-in-law
> How to enjoy 1 to 10 perfect days in San Francisco
> How to be cool in the third grade
> How to be an Italian
> How to beat the credit bureaus
> How to build a deck
> How to have a conversation with God
> How to win at weight loss
>
> The real subjects of these books, as I guess from the titles and as
> the subject headings assigned by LC would indicate, are all over the
> map, from Wit and humor to Weight loss.  The only thing they all have
> in common is some sense of practicality, as indicated by the "How to"
> in the title.  If any book that is called "How to etc. etc." qualifies
> as a how-to book, then there is your answer.  The titles  should all
> be together in the catalog, either physically in a card catalog or in
> the proximity display on an opac.  If anyone has a better idea, I
> would be delighted to hear it.
>
> Joseph Miller
> Editor, Sears List of Subject Headings
> H. W. Wilson Company
> 950 University Ave.
> Bronx, New York 10452
> (718) 588-8400 ext 2749
> jmiller@hwwilson.com
>
>
> On 23 Apr 98 at 8:19, Megan Volmer wrote:
>
> > A teacher who had recently assigned a "how-to" book report came in
saying
> > we ought to mark books as how-to books.  Not a bad idea, but I do not
know
> > what the appropriate Sears Subject heading is.  I looked and "how-to"
is
> > not mentioned.  I have been racking my brain trying to  figure what the
> > appropriate subject heading is.  Thank you for your help.
> >
> > ***************************
> > Megan Volmer
> > Media Specialist
> > Fort Mill Elementary School
> > Fort Mill,  SC
> > volmerm@fort-mill.k12.sc.us
> > ***************************
> >
> >
>
> A personal thought: If the book doesn't start with 'How to...', why
> not make up a uniform title added entry for How to books' or 'How to
> ... ' . It's not standard cataloging, but it solves your problem by
> bringing all of the books together.
>
> Dan Robinson
> Indexing Services
> H.W. Wilson Company
> Bronx, NY
> drobinson@hwwilson.com
>
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