This book is informative, interesting and thought provoking. As the editors state it provides an indication of “the rich diversity of information literacy and information behaviour carried out”. It demonstrates how people's information capabilities can and are being developed in a multitude of ways. It shows that information literacy is multifaceted and “approached from different perspectives, such as, cultural, cognitive, behavioural or focusing on the information landscape and people's knowledge of and interaction with information artefacts, people and other ways of being informed”.
The chapters are diverse and wide ranging with authors from four continents including well-known international experts in the field but also new authors who have carried out research in both the developing world and emerging economies. There are 15 chapters in total and they are organised into four areas: strategic view; delivering information literacy education; the link between university and work; and beyond higher education.
Each chapter brings an interesting, informative and often fascinating aspect/s to the reader. Whilst there were many aspects or contexts that I was familiar with and advocate about this did not distract from my knowledge or understanding but reinforced it or made me think about things in a different way or in more depth. These included information literacy's relationship to lifelong learning, information environments/landscapes and peoples’ experiences of information and the multitude of formats it comes in for different people and environments. Also other facets like, its link to organisational culture (in the workplace and in educational institutions), civic society and citizenship and personal motivation. Some contexts and theories were not familiar to me and I welcomed the opportunity to explore these and file these away for possible use.
There is great depth to this book and the practitioner narratives as well as the theoretical discussions gives the reader much to think about. There is much that academics, students and practitioners can learn from including different research methods and how the developing nations have used previous research from other experienced individuals/nations to inform their practice. This in turn should inform theory and practice. It is refreshing to hear from authors and countries that are not well known for their information literacy research and or practice, such as: Africa, the Far East, South America and Canada. It is also good to hear from experts and the direction their thinking or research is taking them. We can all learn from each other and I would recommend that the reader reads all the chapters not just the ones that seem to reflect their area of interest, work/sector or country.
Some of the chapters have illustrations, most are helpful, however, I found the small print size on some of them annoying and a couple of times the location of the illustration interrupted my flow of reading by being on the next page.
Whilst this book is likely to attract those interested in information literacy, it should also be of interest to those interested in people's information behaviour and capabilities and how this has implications for strategies for helping them develop people's information literacy. I would also recommend it to anyone interested or involved in the wider aspects of information provision and use. It is an ideal textbook for students and an inspiring reference book for practitioners.
The editors are to be commended for the contribution this book makes particularly to the field of information literacy, sharing with us the diverse rich tapestry of research and practice taking place in areas and contexts that few have recognised or ventured into. Also highlighting/reminding us of the links with information behaviour and capabilities. This made the book, informative and thought provoking as well as an enjoyable and fascinating read. One that I will return to and explore varies chapters, aspects or concepts further in aid of my practice, networks and forthcoming studies relating to information literacy and lifelong learning.
