Memoirs and autobiographies have been a wildly popular nonfiction genre for the past 20 years, ever since Frank McCourt and Mary Karr set the craze in motion with "Angela's Ashes" and "The Liar's Club", respectively. Memoirs have drawn fiction readers to the nonfiction shelves and elbowed their way into book discussion groups. In this confessional…

Discusses feature-length film or video documentaries, including cinema verite and direct cinema techniques, the use of documentaries for nationalistic purposes, censorship, and fiction versus nonfiction. An annotated bibliography of 20 video documentaries suitable for library collections is provided. (LRW)

Provides guidelines for ordering the best computer books, geared to the library's size. Covers series, articles, subjects, and publishers most useful to a broad audience, as well as the best places to seek information on new titles and where to find reviews. Offers time savers for upgrading a computer book collection and discusses weeding…

Reports the results of a survey of librarians at public libraries (PLs) that was conducted to provide details on budgets, circulation, and popular topics. Highlights include nonfiction, with the highest expenditures and circulation; local interest materials; a loss in print reference materials; and an increase in audiovisual and electronic…

A Library Journal survey of 2000 public libraries investigated adult book expenditures and circulation. This article presents statistics on purchasing power and circulation, sources used for purchasing decisions, where books are purchased, top circulating genres, topics of increased patron and librarian interest, topics being weeded and replaced,…