CA Reading List

There is, of course, no way I'm going to read everything on the Certified Archivist exam reading list. A co-worker is trying, but I would implode if I tried. So I decided to start with the SAA Fundamentals Series:

Managing Archival and Manuscript Repositories by Michael J. Kurtz
Arranging and Describing Archives and Manuscripts by Kathleen D. Roe
Selecting and Appraising Archives and Manuscripts by Frank Boles
Providing Reference Services for Archives and Manuscripts by Mary Jo Pugh
Preserving Archives and Manuscripts by Mary Lynn Ritzenthaler
Understanding Archives and Manuscripts by James M. O’Toole & Richard J. Cox
A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology by Richard Pearce-Moses

The Ritzenthaler book isn't on the list, but the 2nd edition is recent and I think it will have good information. Still waiting for my ILL copy, though, and it's a long one, so I may not get around to it. Roe's book was really good for me to read since I don't have a classroom education in archival anything. Instead, four different faculty members with four different approaches have given me varying instructions depending on what project I'm working on. It's no wonder I've been confused. It was refreshing to start with the basics. I asked for, and was granted, a small collection to process on my own from start to finish and I worked my way through Roe and the collection at the same time. Doing so allowed me to develop my own path and reinforce my belief that my department needs a processing manual.

The glossary is a reference, of course. Someone suggested that learning the terms would almost guarantee a pass. Sure, and I'll just memorize the dictionary while I'm at it. I am using it as a companion so I don't feel like an idiot when I read some of the books. It's been good to me.  

Several authors reference Terry Cook's What is Past is Prologue and I hope that the history contained in that article will allow me to skip, say, Selected Writings of Sir Hilary Jenkinson which is lurking somewhere behind me as I write this. I'm planning to skip the Dutch Manual, too. If they seem to be essential reading for a pass, then I suppose I'll get to read them when prepping for my next attempt.

I'm currently working on Selecting and Appraising (at home) and Karen Benedict's Ethics and the Archival Profession (during lunch breaks - it's pleasantly concise) which provides an overview of SAA's 1992 Code of Ethics with ample case studies. While the Code was updated in 2005, the case studies still seem to apply.

I've also looked over Providing Reference Services but the information seems to parallel what I learned in library school (my emphases were reference and special collections) and what so I've decided not to worry much about that section. I'm pretty confident in my preservation knowledge as well, but I hope to get to some of those materials before August 24.