Book Review: Genealogical.com's “At a Glance” Series of …

Genealogical.com publishes the “At a Glance” series of genealogy research guides. These are 8 ½ x 11, laminated, 4-page bulletins that are handy to read and sturdy enough to carry around in your suitcase, briefcase, laptop case, or the canvas bag bearing your society’s logo. I’ve compared these guides to the look and content of the competitors’ guides, and these are far superior in all respects.

The guides have a standard format: a beginning section offering background on the subject, followed by informational sections with plenty of additional resources cited: books, websites, microfilms, indexes, online sources, and major repositories.

The [table of] Contents box on the front page, along with a Quick Facts box stimulates your immediate interest. The background colors in the boxes enhance the overall appearance of the guide, without obscuring the text. The text size, though small, is easy to read, set against white paper that contrasts well with the font. I could easily read and absorb the material.

There are guides published for states (“Pennsylvania Genealogy Research” (by the very-missed John Humphrey) and guides published for ethnic research (“German Genealogy Research” by the unequaled Ernest Thode) and general guides, such as the U.S. Federal Census by Kory Meyerink, a topic so replete with details his portable guide is very helpful. The red, white and blue colors on the census guide seem fitting.

The records cited are well-described even though the paragraphs are brief. 

Each author is a solid, practiced professional whose name is immediately recognizable, with good reason. The authors have published widely, spoken to national audiences, and convinced genealogists of the high qualities of their work.

This is an example from “French Genealogy Research” by Claire Bettag:

“…two French record sources, both of unknown provenance, might be helpful: The Le Havre Passenger Index (1780-1840) is a card file of 75,000 individuals (passengers, sailors, others), giving name, age or date of birth, place of birth, embarkation and debarkation place, parents, and sometimes the name of the vessel. For searches, contact the Groupement Généalogique du Havre et de Seine-Maritime (www.gghsm.org/index.aspx).”

The above example illustrates the unique information that the authors provide, authors who are well-versed in the subject matter and recognized in their fields. Each guide reflects the author’s expertise and sets us off in the right direction.

Genealogical.com continues to issue the guides; a full list is available at their website at http://goo.gl/WWhWb. The publisher has put together a smart, crisp set of publications which are genuinely useful to genealogists.