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The Embedded Librarian's Cookbook Kaijsa Calkins, & Cassandra Kvenild, editors. Chicago: ACRL, 2014. 180 pp. ISBN: 978-0-8389-8693-6. $48.00.
The Embedded Librarian's Cookbook is the second offering in the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Cookbook Series, modeled on Ryan Sittler and Douglas Cook's Library Instruction Cookbook (2009), which uses a "recipe" format to deliver embedded library instructional activities and program development strategies in an easy-to-read and quickly digestible format. Each recipe includes "Nutrition Information" to provide background information and summarize activities. Similar to Sittler and Cook's recipes for instruction, The Embedded Librarian's Cookbook also includes "Cooking Time" and "Preparation" in order to provide readers with a full list of ingredients and planning strategies to successfully implement embedded librarian activities in the classroom, online, and at the program level. In the spirit of the series, recipes also include "Allergy Warnings," "Chef's Notes," and "Additional Resources," which provide valuable insight to implementing and delivering embedded instruction and services.
The edited volume consists of two principal sections divided into key areas of concentration. Part I includes a variety of tested recipes for embedded instruction that can be implemented in the classroom or by libraries new to creating embedded librarian programs at their institution. Part II provides advanced recipes that can be used or modified by libraries who are interested in adding embedded librarian activities to their long range planning and includes examples of programs and methods of assessment.
The Embedded Librarian's Cookbook is useful for librarians in all settings. Librarians providing instruction in reference or who play a role in instructional design, information literacy, outreach, technology and online learning in academic libraries will certainly benefit from reviewing the lesson plans presented. The instruction recipes in Part I of the book can be easily adapted or incorporated into academic and public library instruction programs. Recipes cover a wide range of audiences and tactics, including embedding small projects into typical one-shot library instruction sessions or workshops, working with campus First-Year Experience and other academic success programs, and collaborating with faculty to embed long term projects into their curricula. Part I also discusses embedding library services in specific disciplines as well as online courses, and provides real examples for librarians interested in becoming more involved in outreach activities with...