“Now, when I was in Baghdad” – A Short Guide to Iraq

May 11, 2010

One of my first posts on this blog concerned a World War II booklet illustrated by Dr. Seuss. It was one of a cache of such booklets that had belonged to one of my uncles during his wartime service as a Navy pilot. Although not collector’s items, these little guides to China, India, Burma, West Africa, and even New Caledonia, fascinated me as a kid. As an adult, both before and after my discovery that the Dr. Seuss booklet was a collector’s item, I didn’t give them much thought.

Several years ago, though, they were brought to mind by a call from the person who was then in charge of GPO’s public relations office. Every so often we get calls about long out of print Government publications, and this was one of them. A reporter was asking about A Short Guide to Iraq and did I have any information about it? “Well, yes. Oddly enough, I own a copy.” I explained the background and said I’d rummage around at home and find it.

Within a few hours, I was in her office doing a telephone interview with a wire service reporter with a British accent. She seemed fascinated by how I had come to own a copy of the booklet she was seeking. As far as I know, the story never went anywhere, but I’m still amazed at how much excitement these old documents can stir up.

As for A Short Guide to Iraq, what seems to engage people is that American troops were sent to Iraq during the Second World War and that so much of the advice it provides seems relevant even today. A university press has reprinted a facsimile under the title “Instructions for American Servicemen in Iraq during World War II” (the cover looks different but it’s basically the same book). It’s a quick read and very well done for its purpose, which was to give a quick overview of Iraq and its people for the average GI or sailor. It’s similar in intent, although less elaborate in execution, to the Afghanistan and Pakistan Smart Books I blogged about a couple of weeks ago. Click here to read this neat little booklet.

11 Comments | U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, Uncategorized, World War II | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Permalink
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Three Weeks of Government Book Talk

April 21, 2010

It’s the three-week anniversary of Government Book Talk. To mark this auspicious occasion, I thought I’d share some comments we’ve received since Day One, as well as some excellent questions about Federal Government publications and this blog – and what I hope are some useful answers.

Some comments:

 John Ahearn says: The site is excellent. I am pleased to the government being this responsive in its serving the public. Innovation is imperative if we are to keep up with the changes that we are all facing. Glad to see you take this step. Keep up the good work.

eric johnson says: I hope the freedom of information is never broken thank you GPO

Nydia Jacobs says: WOW! AWESOME! Welcome to 2010 and the future – GO GOV! Let God bless this site that we may truly become, “one nation under God”

Joe Harmon says: Neat blog.

Some questions and answers

Mimi asks: Will the blog posts keep coming to my email? I enjoy the blog, but don’t want to have to use a reader…I’d just like to keep reading the info via the email I already have to keep up with. Do I have to set something up to make sure the content will continue to be emailed to me? Thanks for help on this.

Govbooktalk answers: Good question! I have just added a blog subscription block so you can have posts emailed to you. Thanks for the suggestion.

chris decker asks: can i copy any work from g.p.o.?or do i need permission.

Govbooktalk answers: Here’s how GPO addresses this commonly asked question: The intent of Title 17, Section 105, United States Code, is to place in the public domain all works of the United States Government, defined as works “prepared by an officer or employee of the United States Government as part of that person’s official duties.”

This means that public documents can generally be reprinted without legal restriction. However, Government publications often contain certain copyright material which was used with permission of the copyright owner. Publication in a Government document does not authorize any use or appropriation of such copyright material without consent of the owner.

Since the Government Printing office serves as a printing and distribution agency for Government publications and has no jurisdiction over their content or subject matter, we suggest that you consult with the originating department or agency, or its successor, prior to the reprinting of any given publication.

Max Holland asks: Is there any reason why GPO publications are not sold in regular bookstores? A prohibition in law or regs?

Govbooktalk answers: Actually, commercial bookstores can sell Government publications. In the past, there have been some constraints that have limited us, but more recently we’ve been experimenting with more flexible terms and conditions. As a result, in a number of cases, at least one major bookstore chain has ordered books for resale. Let’s hope it’s a trend!

Barby asks: ARE WORDS AT BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE SUPPOSED TO READ “THEME CONTEMPT” INSTEAD OF “THEME CONTENT”?

Govbooktalk answers: Curiously enough, “Contempt” is actually the name of the template we’re using for the blog.

3 Comments | Uncategorized | Permalink
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Fun With the GPO Style Manual

April 15, 2010

 

It’s National Library Week, which prompted me to think about my favorite Government reference book – the U.S. Government Printing Office Style Manual, which since 1894 has been the Federal Government’s  guide to form and style in printing and a standard reference for professionals in the field. Although I’ve used the Style Manual for years in a number of different jobs I’ve had at GPO, the real reason it’s my favorite is, I confess, that I’m a member of the GPO Style Board. For many months prior to the publication of the latest edition, our little group met for two hours each week to discuss spelling, capitalization, and the myriad of other details that collectively make up any book of this sort. The best part – it was a lot of fun. As one of the members said to me one day, “This is the high point of my week!” For a word person, spending time on this stuff was really a plum assignment. Some of my colleagues were old acquaintances, while others were new to me. The one thing they all had in common was a  depth of  knowledge and a dedication to producing the best possible product that was truly awesome. I also found out what a demonym is: “Demonym is a name given to a people or inhabitants of a place. ” (See Chapter 17, Useful Tables, Pages 332-334.)

My favorite new features of the 2008 edition: A list of information technology acronyms and initialisms; a chapter on capitalization  with totally updated examples of proper names (a lot of research went into this, believe me!); and a clean, contemporary new design and typeface, thanks to GPO Creative Services.

Despite my obvious bias in favor of the Style Manual, many other Government books and periodicals are worthy of inclusion in the library reference pantheon – you can find a few of them here.

41 Comments | Government Printing Office (GPO), Uncategorized | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by govbooktalk

URL Update

April 15, 2010

Effective today, the new URL for Government Book Talk is http://govbooktalk.gpo.gov. The old URL, https://govbooktalk.wordpress.com, will redirect to the new one. Thanks!

1 Comment | Uncategorized | Permalink
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RSS Feeds

March 31, 2010

Since we’ve had numerous requests for an RSS feed, there is now a page where you can sign up: https://govbooktalk.wordpress.com/feed/. Thanks for this constructive input.

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