Many reviews have filled the pages of The American Archivist since Theodore Calvin Pease wrote the first in 1938. In that first issue, Pease reviewed a work that has continued to serve as a lodestar for the archival community—Hilary Jenkinson's A Manual of Archive Administration. Pease's review engages the journal's readers in his perspective as a historian as he challenges (and is challenged by) some of Jenkinson's assumptions in light of his own experience.
The authors of the eleven reviews in this issue have continued the long tradition established by Pease of bringing recent works to light in The American Archivist. Each reviewer challenges archivists to reflect upon their perspectives and professional practices. They explore many facets of the archival literature, including publications on theoretical developments and debates in archival studies, covering the full range and diversity of practice. Their insightful and engaging reviews are sure to spark further conversations about these new, thought-provoking works.
Several notable publications are under review in this issue. Matthew Kirschenbaum discusses a recently-translated work from German media theorist Wolfgang Ernst, Stirrings in the Archives: Order from Disorder. A provocative and challenging work, Kirschenbaum encourages readers not to shy away from Stirrings in the Archives, but to consider reading it in the context of the larger philosophical tradition in which Ernst writes. Geoffrey Yeo's review of Research in the Archival Multiverse (edited by Anne J. Gilliland, Sue McKemmish, and Andrew J. Lau), assesses a book with a plurality of perspectives on the plurality of theoretical frameworks in archival studies. Another review examines a recent work in the history and anthropology of science. The review of Joanna Radin's Life on Ice: A History of New Uses for Cold Blood, by Anne-Flore Laloë, considers the ethics and challenges of collecting, preserving, and creating access to “bioarchives.” Laloë evaluates Radin's discussion of privacy and consent for blood collections, and ways that archival practice can intersect with the curation of bioarchives.
The reviews in this issue also assess works that question descriptive practices and propose ways we can make those practices more inclusive. In her review of Cruising the Library: Perversities in the Organization of Knowledge, Pamela Pierce analyzes author Melissa Adler's research into the history of cataloging practices and the Library of Congress's classification of sexualities. Eden Orelove examines Mark Speltz's visual narrative of civil rights photos in North of Dixie: Civil Rights Photography Beyond the South. Orelove interrogates this work from an archival perspective, raising important questions about descriptive practices for photographs.
Other reviews address publications on new trends in archival practice in the digital age. Dorothy Waugh discusses The Science of Managing Our Digital Stuff, a publication on personal information management (PIM) by Ofer Bergman and Steve Whittaker. Waugh focuses on the authors' recommendations for best practices and technologies for PIM that can aid archivists and researchers as they manage large amounts of personal digital data. Similarly, Kayla Siddell's review of Robin Rice and John Southall's The Data Librarian's Handbook examines an overview of best practices for research data management and assesses this volume's accessibility to the archival community and allied information professionals. But how do we decide what to collect and what not to collect? This issue prefaces the work of managing and preserving digital content, and in her review of Appraisal and Acquisition Strategies (edited by Michael Shallcross and Christopher J. Prom), Adrien Hilton discusses some of SAA's newest modules from its Trends in Archives Practice series and their guidance on collecting and appraising in the digital era.
Finally, three reviews explore connections between archives and communities—both the global and the local. J. J. Ghaddar's review of Francine Saillant's Diversity, Dialogue and Sharing: Online Resources for a More Resourceful World, assesses the UNESCO International Decade for the Rapprochement of Cultures (2013–2022) initiative's research on online resources (archival and otherwise) that foster intercultural dialogue and rapprochement. Ghaddar notes the timeliness of this publication and greater need for inclusive resources that incorporate more diverse perspectives outside of Eurocentric frameworks. Rory Grennan's review of Henriette Roued-Cunliffe and Andrea Copeland's edited volume, Participatory Heritage, explores a book on the power of community engagement that can promote the stewardship of a shared cultural heritage. Grennan reflects on the ways this book presents new pathways forward to fruitful collaborations between archivists and community members. And last, a review discusses a book in an area not new to archival practice, but to which few recent monographs have been devoted. Dennis Roman Riley reviews Managing Local Government Archives by John H. Slate and Kaye Lanning Minchew, a unique guide for repositories that collect and preserve local government records, analog and electronic. Riley reflects on the volume's guidance across the varying landscape of local government communities.
The Reviews section of The American Archivist has a long, rich history of engaging the archival community in new perspectives on recently-published works. I hope you enjoy the reviews in this issue! In addition to reviews of publications in the journal, The American Archivist invites reviews of digital resources, exhibits, technologies, and tools on the Reviews Portal, https://reviews.americanarchivist.org/. Feel free to contact me with any suggestions or to discuss contributing a review.