- Although the market is expanding now, there have been many challenges to Spanish-language collection development. The publication market only really became aware of the Spanish-language market in the 1990's, and early on it was plagued by poor translations, use of non-standard Spanish, and poor binding and paper quality. There has also been a general lack of bibliographic data and copy cataloging, which poses a challenge for libraries without bilingual staff. As we see with the #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign here has also been a historic lack original language children's materials being published; instead there has been more of a focus on translating popular English language titles in to Spanish. There are also often bottlenecks in distribution and marketing, so material selectors should thoroughly investigate a source before making purchases.
- I have come across this frustration twice now: this article also raved about the same two collection resources that, after extensive googling and broken links, I am fairly sure no longer exist: Criticas and the Barahona Center for the Study of Books in Spanish for Children and Adolescents.
- In terms of adult collection, the author recommends against dealing directly with foreign-based publishing companies, instead choose several "acquisitions partners" based on selection, service, and speed.
- That said, don't expect the same promptness you would with other vendors.
- Fortunately, major companies like Baker and Taylor are coming on to the scene and making selection easier.
RUSA Guidelines for the Development and Promotion of Multilingual Collections and Services as a good jumping off point, so, as a natural progression, my next post with detail that resource.
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