genealogy

This book is EXACTLY what you should get before you really get "into" doing your genealogy research. Wish I had! Instead I found myself being overwhelmed with what I had found and my various tries at organizing it just wasn't working! I did my research and this books looked like it had the most of what I wanted. That was an understatement. I have a LOT of work to do to organize my 1+ years of research ... but this book is really helping me get my act together.

One of the things I like best is she does not offer "THIS IS THE WAY TO DO xyz" ... instead she offers several ways to accomplish the specific task. States why you might want to use one over another and why she uses a specific one now.

Well written, easy to understand. Written as if she was sitting at your kitchen table just talking to you. Highly recommend!

This is not a bad book. Parts of this book are extremely helpful to help you organize your genealogical papers. The probem with this book is that the author lets her own dated opinion keep her from seeing the bigger picture in the state of genealogical research. In essence, she spites herself out of writing an excellent resource.

She has a rather misplaced rant about using genealogy software instead of handwritten and handtyped family resource sheets and pedigree charts. She uses a case study to back it up, which only shows she wears blinders. (The case study involves a woman who clearly would have been disorganized whether she would have used a computer or not to keep track of her research.)

Computer genealogy software such as Family Tree Maker, Legacy, Generations and Clooz, only helps genealogist and amateurs keep track of what they have. A person can look at their information presented so many ways (reports, charts, lists) just by a mouseclick. It is a completely different topic than organization and simply did not belong in the book, especially being ravaged as it was. It would be like someone saying at the turn of the century, that typewriters were not desirable for an organized genealogy file, because you would have to retype everything you'd already handwritten. (Another part of her logic.)

She also only extensively covers storage via file folder. Now, I don't know about you, but considering I live in an apartment I really don't have room for a file cabinet. For hard copies and photocopied documents, I keep 16 one inch, color-coded binders I store spine out in a storage bin in one of my closets. I have no problems desiring more space or any feelings that my organization should be more efficient.

You might say, but you're not a professional. No, of course not. But this book is not a trade publication and is targeted at beginners or at least people who have gotten over that first hump and realize they have to do something with their notebooks.

In this day and age, the author's kind of thinking hampers the reader from taking the rest of the information seriously. Do yourself a favor and read one of the many beginner's books on genealogy (Managing a Genealogical Project, or Unpuzzling Your Past, for example) that gives the same core information with a lot less attitude.

This is an excellent text for organizing your search for identity.

My mother had always told us we were descended from Alvar Nuņez Cabeza de Vaca. Sadly after reading this book, organizing my search and digging up the real information the truth is not as notable. It appears our entire genealogy, after running the gamut of various asylums for alcoholism and insanity, dead ends in some bizarre incestual prison camp off the coast of Madagascar. A bit disappointing but it explains the cross-eyed ness and assorted tics that run unchecked in our family.