My review of Indexing Tactics & Tidbits, by Janet Perlman (Information Today, Inc., 2016). The review first appeared in the ISC/SCI Bulletin, vol. 38, no. 2, Summer 2016. This issue of the Bulletin is currently only available to ISC/SCI members, in the Members Area, but will soon be freely available, along with all of the other back issues, here.
Indexing Tactics & Tidbits is well named, and the title reflects both its strengths and weaknesses.
Following the lead of Hans Wellisch’s classic, Indexing from A to Z (which I have not read), Perlman’s book is organized by topic in alphabetical order, starting with Aboutness and ending with Work Methods and Workflow. The format invites browsing, and I enjoyed picking up the book, opening it at random, and seeing where the topics and internal cross-references took me. The structure also lends itself well to easily searching for and focusing on specific topics that you may want to find. Information is clearly labeled by headings and subheadings, and sections are at most a few pages long.
The breadth of information covered is impressive, with several sections covering the business and techniques of indexing, including getting started, negotiations, and bidding on projects. I was glad to see sections on quality and elegance in indexes—elegance being an intriguing approach to a document that otherwise needs to be precise and readily useable. There is an interesting discussion of mashups, and, being Canadian, I was glad to see that the Professional Societies section included societies beyond ASI (though society newsletters, including the ISC Bulletin, did not make the cut under The Literature of Indexing). I also found Perlman’s discussion of her indexing workflow, as well as her interactions with clients, to be informative, as hearing from others often is. There is much in this book that justifies the Tactics in the title, which I define as a reasonably extensive discussion of the topic.
On the downside, a number of entries fall under Tidbits, which seems to me to provide insufficient discussion. Of course, a short entry alone does not indicate lack of information. I thought the four brief paragraphs discussing certification to be adequate, though some expansion on the Institute of Certified Indexers could be helpful. History of Indexing and Marketing, however, should be expanded on, and the information under Function Words could be better integrated with Prepositions or the entries for And and On.
The Tidbits feed into another aspect of the book, which is that Perlman extensively refers the reader to additional resources. In a way, the book functions as an index to the pre-existing literature, and the reader is perhaps best served by having the other resources on hand too. I think this approach is fine so long as Perlman does provide adequate discussion of the topic, along with the references. Where it falls short is when Perlman primarily refers.
I would recommend this book as a great introduction to indexing. It might be particularly useful for someone who is unsure if indexing is for them, as the format is accessible and the information presented in bite-sized chunks. For the committed or experienced indexer, there is good food-for-thought here too. Browsing might lead to rethinking an aspect of your business or craft—I am already rethinking my use of prepositions. Then again, if you already have a well-stocked indexing library, the topics covered here might be repetitious, and your existing library sufficient.