Book Review: The Indexing Companion

Indexing is a crucial part of any information retrieval system. It is a challenging task requiring paying attention to many theoretical and practical issues. While the move towards digital information systems and automated indexing is thought to have reduced the need for indexers in some areas, professional indexers are still much needed and as a matter of fact electronic environment has posed new challenges for the indexers. The book ‘The Indexing Companion’ written by two professional indexers is an up-to-date resource for learning how to index. The book consists of eleven chapters. The first two chapters of the book present some information about the basics of indexing. Chapter one, The Indexing Work Environment, introduces the industry and the people who provide the context for the indexing process. The chapter gives a good overview of the people with whom indexers need to work and cooperate. It presents some general information about indexing and indexers such as what an index is and what indexers do as well as some information about different working environments. The second chapter is about standards and definitions related to indexing.