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Latin American Literature in Spanish: Within the U.S. academic library world, a Spanish-speaking clientele is increasing and requesting that primary materials in Spanish be in the collection. Many of these materials come from Latin America and the Caribbean. Their selection and acquisition can be a complex task, especially for librarians responsible for collecting in this area who are not necessarily specialists. Literary works from the 20th century pose special problems of identification and the timely acquisition of recent titles. This paper, which is directed at the novice selector in this area, suggests a strategy and tools for collecting these literary titles. Population projections for the United States give a "highest series" figure of 25.7 percent to population by Hispanic origin for the year 2050. 1 While the word "Hispanic" is not adequate to describe any group of people, it is the terminology used by the U.S. Census Bureau, and does imply a knowledge of Spanish that is shared by many of its constituents. By the same token, a Spanish-speaking clientele will increase greatly within the U.S. academic library world in the next few decades and will make new demands upon material and human resources. For example, states such as California and Florida are expected to have significant increases in college-eligible Hispanic students. 2 Even states with moderate growth of Hispanic populations, such as Illinois, will see important increases. By 2020, 14.1 percent of the Illinois population is projected to be of Hispanic origin.3 With regard to enrollment in higher education in Illinois, Hispanics in the age group from 5 to 19 years old will increase from 268,112 (1990) to 528,892 (2020). 4 Not only will this clientele include students of Hispanic origin, but also students in Latino or Latin American studies programs, students who need to learn Spanish, and faculty researchers in many fields. Patrick J. Dawson, who writes about Hispanic-American materials in the University of California libraries, refers to the factors that create the broad scope of this clientele. He states that not only libraries in regions where the Hispanic population is exploding will need to review collection development practices, but also institutions of higher education that have diversified the student population through aggressive recruitment and scholarships, as well as institutions where student agitation for diversity has taken place.5 Thus, it is reasonable to think that academic libraries in many parts of the U.S. will need to build up collections in Spanish. In addition, this work may involve librarians who are not necessarily bibliographers in romance languages or Latin American studies. They may be reference, humanities or diversity librarians who do collection development in a number of areas. One of the principal Spanish language resources that U.S. academic libraries collect in is literature, mainly serious literary works. However, depending on the needs of the clientele, this subject area can present obstacles, for the specialist and non-specialist alike. One of the most difficult areas is the selection and acquisition of current titles of 20th century literature in Spanish by Latin American and Caribbean authors, including novels, short stories, poetry and drama. This limitation is not meant to dismiss Iberian or Latino/Chicano literature, which would have to be included in a comprehensive collection. However, Iberian bibliographic services appeared to be more developed, and Latino/Chicano literature is not confined to Spanish, and has generally been published in the U.S., where its acquisition is not as difficult. Detailed scholarly works about selection sources and methodology for Latin American and Caribbean literature exist, as well as recent articles with many new resources. However the beginning selector for these Spanish-language materials needs much time and experience to assimilate this knowledge. While one may be eager to delve into the field, constraints such as
• Rebecca Martin, Assistant Professor, Cataloging Department, Founders Memorial Library, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb. 173 budget restrictions and multiple job duties interfere. Meanwhile, one has been put in the position of having to select and acquire current titles on demand. It becomes necessary to prioritize the many new and retrospective selection tools, and determine a viable strategy. This paper, then, addresses such a strategy for the novice selector. Current literary titles in Spanish by Latin American and Caribbean authors present difficulties in several aspects. One is that their identification cannot rely on reviews and bibliographies in literary journals because these may lag by as much as two years. Second, short print runs in many Latin American and Caribbean countries limit the acquisition of these books. One must rely, then, on knowledgeable vendors who can supply catalogs, set up approval plans with profiles, and acquire books quickly. Before seeking out a vendor, however, there are several ways to familiarize oneself with the publishing industry in Latin American and the Caribbean. There are many helpful scholarly publications about collection development in Latin America and the Caribbean. Among the most recent is Laurence Hallewell's comprehensive bibliographic essay (Choice 1996). 6 It lists many retrospective and recent resources, including David Block's edited book section of essays about collecting by individual country in Latin America and the Caribbean.7 These concise, detailed essays give names of specialized book dealers, review sources and country-specific strategies that are useful for selecting literary works. Hallewell also lists publications by SALALM—Seminar on the Acquisition of Latin American Library Materials, a professional organization that promotes networking and has numerous publications, including reports and current bibliographies about special aspects of collection development. In addition, the Reference and Adult Services Division of the American Library Association issued an article with guidelines for core fiction focused on the public library.8 Laura Gutierrez-Witt makes important distinctions between Latin American and Latino library materials in the humanities, including literature, and lists publishers and distributors that can provide these materials. 9 Next, there are World Wide Web (WWW) resources. This includes the home pages of universities with noted collections in Spanish language collections, Latino and Latin American Studies programs; and book dealers, vendors, publishers, listservs and professional organizations related to Spanish language materials (Appendices B and C). Some university home pages have their recent acquisitions lists online. While certain WWW commercial sites furnish lists of recent literary titles, there may be issues of unfamiliarity and confidence in the quality and comprehensiveness of these titles. Another step to take before selecting a vendor is to learn the focus of the different patrons of literary materials in Spanish. Members of the Modern Languages Department at the Latin American Studies program usually supply the majority of titles. At what level are these programs—undergraduate, Master's, or Ph.D.? Second, it is important to identify the countries, regions or groups that are of interest to the patrons. Will the collection be comprehensive or more related to specific needs? Then, the catalogs of book dealers, vendors and distributors who specialize in these areas are the most valuable sources. Faculty from appropriate countries can often recommend specific dealers. Many of these dealers have an online address or at least a mailing address in the U.S. SALALM literature indicates that library selectors have great confidence in approval plans, and blanket and standing orders with these foreign and American dealers, and that these book dealers maintain active working relations with their clients. Thus, approval plans with profiles are the most expedient method for acquiring even a small collection of several hundred monograph titles and a few dozen serial titles per year. It is also possible to identify individual titles without the use of approval plans, the online and print services of the Latin American Book Store (Ithaca, NY), Puvill Libros S.A. (Barcelona), and Iberbook International (Madrid) supply comprehensive lists of Latin America and Caribbean literary titles in Spanish. The Latin American Book Store offers a range of very reliable services. Puvill and Iverbook are also notable for distributing fast, selective bibliographical information in machine-readable cataloging (USMARC format) to the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC). So, one can search for individual titles on WorldCat, a Web database of records cataloged by OCLC member libraries, in many bibliographic fields, such as subject headings, notes, edition, vendor, date and language. Joining a professional organization such as SALALM is very helpful in meeting colleagues and book dealers, learning about trends, receiving news and proceedings, and ordering specialized materials. There are also international bookfairs, such as the Feria Internacional de Libros (FILS) in Guadalajar, Mexico. 174 If there is institutional support, acquisitions trips to area countries are quite valuable. It also is important to maintain correspondence with a variety of institutions (e.g. academic, non-academic, government, non-government, etc.) in the chosen country and to develop gift and exchange programs. Finally, it is good to keep up with journal literature, advertisements and literary prizes. Several journals that are helpful in identifying Latin American literature are Latin American Research Review, New York Review of Books, Times Literary Supplement, Vuelta, and Revista Iberoamericana. There has been a boom in recent years in the Latin American publishing industry, and the number of literary titles in Spanish has increased. For example, of the 1,088 new Chilean titles in Spanish published in the past six years, 37 percent were of literature. 10 It is becoming easier for all selectors to identify and acquire quality literature. One big advantage is the close geographic presence of the Guadalajara International Book Fair. Latin American publishers have had a strong presence at the annual fair with perhaps a third to a half being from Latin America. 11 Needless to say, collecting in Spanish language materials requires time and networking. However, there is no reason why librarians who have a background in the humanities and a strong interest in this area, not necessarily a specialty in Latin American bibliography, cannot begin building up a literary collection if their libraries have this need. References and Notes 1. Jennifer Cheeseman Day, Population Projections of the United States by Age, Sex, Race and Hispanic Origin: 1995 to 2050 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, 1996), 13 (Table J). 26 June 1998, http://www.census.gov/prod/1/pop/p25-1130/p251130b.pdf. 2. Patrick J. Dawson, "Collection Development of Hispanic American Materials," Collection Building 15, no. 4 (1996): 34-35. 3. "Population Trends in Illinois, 1990-2020: an Overview," in Population Estimates of Counties and Components of Change, 1990-1995 PPL-35 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, 1996), (Table 6). 26 June 1998, http://138.87.160.6/cadus/overview.htm. 4. "Population Trends in Illinois, 1990-2020: an Overview," (Table 7). 5. Dawson, 35. 6. Laurence Hallewell, "Latin American Area Librarianship: a Guide for Collection Development," Choice (June 1996): 1593-1605. 7. David Block ed., "Part 3: Iberia, Latin America, and the Caribbean," in Selection of Library Materials for Area Studies, Part I. Asia, Iberia, the Caribbean, and Latin American, Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, and the South Pacific, ed. Cecily Johns (Chicago: American Library Association, 1990), 127-384. 8. "From Committees of RASD, Developing Collections for the Spanish Speaking," RQ 35 (Spring 1996): 330-42. 9. Laura Gutierrez-Witt, "Selecting Latin American and Latino Library Materials in the Humanities," The Acquisitions Librarians. 17/18(1997): 125-140. 10. Guadalajara, 1999 Professional Guide (Feria Internacional del Libro de Buadalajara, Apdo. Postal 39-130, Guadalajara, Jal., 44170, Mexico), 3. 11. Ibid., 1. Appendix A
Sources consulted for selecting literary, titles from Latin America in Spanish:
• Catalogs of book dealers, vendors, distributors, publishers Appendix B • Book dealers, vendors and publishers with a strong literary focus Atlantis Livros, Brazil 175 Appendix C Useful World Wide Web Sites: Guadalajara International Book Fair: http://www.fil.com.mx/ Internet Resources for Lating American Studies—New Mexico State University Library: http://lib.nmst.edu/suj=bject/bord/laguia LANIC—Latin American Network Information Center, University of Texas at Austin: http://www.lanic.utexas.edu/ Latin American Library—Tulane: http://www.tulane.edu/~latinlib/internet.html Latino Literature Web: http://www.ollusa.edu/alumni/alumni/latino/latinol.htm Library of Congress, Hispanic Division: http://lcweb.loc.gov/ Choose Library Services—Reading Rooms— Hispanic and Research Tools Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection University of Texas at Auston: http://www.lib.utexas.edu/Libs/Benson/benson.html Resources for Latin American Studies Vanderbilt: http://www.library.vanderbilt.edu/central/latam.html SALALM: http://latino.lib.cornell.edu/salamhome.html University of Illinois Latin American Library: http ://www.library.uiuc.edu/lat/ 176 |
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