Maybe I Should be Surprised, but I'm Sorta Not....

I would like to take a moment to thank the Journal of Access Services for driving home the point that the work we do here in access services is ripe for the mocking.  I can’t exactly pinpoint my reaction to the fact that every article in the current issue is authored by the Annoyed Librarian.  I guess it wouldn’t bother me so much if I didn’t feel that the AL is just way more negative than they are witty or satirical.  I was a fan of AL a while back, but that changed when I found myself flinching more than laughing at the posts.

I guess I am feeling mostly disappointed that a peer-reviewed journal, in my particular area of librarianship, would publish 10 chapters of ranting.  I am all for having a sense of humor and throwing digs at some of the more absurd and knee-jerk reactions libraries and librarians tend to have, but I think the AL is just a lot of negative without a counter balance of anything positive.  Frankly, I am tired of negative.

For other opinions on this topic see the following posts:

• Apparently Annoyed Anonymous Bloggers can get Published in Peer Reviewed Journals (InfoSciPhi)
• Officially Annoyed (Deepening the Conversation)
• oh yeah, it’s a library “science” (Attempting Elegance)
• professionally annoyed (eclectic librarian)
• Being Annoyed without Being Annoying (Library Attack)

About these ads