Where can I get scholarly reviews of journals or magazines?

May 4, 2008 6:01 PM

What are some good resources for getting scholarly reviews of journals (other than Magazines for Libraries)?

This is for a friend. They need to get a bunch of scholarly reviews for a variety of sources. Book reviews are easy to find, journal reviews less so. I'm aware of Magazines for Libraries which apparently has reviews of a number of journals. Unfortunately, they need more than just one review. It would also be nice not to have to schlep all the way to the library just for a couple of reviews.

So an online resource would be ideal. Barring that, a couple of other book or journals that contain journal reviews would be great.

posted by Deathalicious to education (3 comments total)

I was a librarian in a previous (very short) life and, except for Mags for Libraries, I never ran across anything like what you seek.
posted by HotPatatta at 6:51 PM on May 4, 2008

Ulrich's has a periodicals directory. In it, when you look at a list of journals of a particular subject type (or however you generate the list you're searching for), there is a code for journals that have been reviewed. Ulrich's has compiled reviews from a variety of sources, including Magazines for Libraries, but also other sources (library publications, publisher's weekly, independent reviews, etc...). While you can't guarantee that every title you're looking for is going to even have a review, let alone more than one, I've come across multiple reviews more than once.

That said, I don't have a clue how the average person would gain access to the Ulrich's system. I've got access because I review for Magazines for Libraries each edition, and even then my access is turned on and off based on deadline.
posted by librarianamy at 7:36 PM on May 4, 2008

Thanks for the responses.

Yeah, unfortunately my friend already checked Ulrichs and it didn't have the reviews either.

This AskMe did answer one question -- when's the worst time to ask a question on AskMe about library stuff. :) Answer: Sundays at 9.
posted by Deathalicious at 8:39 PM on May 5, 2008