Essential Cataloguing

by J.H. Bowman

Cataloguing has always been important but hardly any library schools teach it, leaving many students and information professionals to learn on their own. This book covers descriptive cataloguing and is designed as a simple companion to "AACR2". The author believes that most items can be dealt with by using comparatively few of the rules, and that many of the more abtruse ones can be ignored until you need them. This book therefore concentrates on the basics. It has a clear, informal approach, with less important aspects set in smaller type, and is fully cross-referenced to "AACR2", taking into account the 2002 revisions. Concentrating on the materials most Anglo-American libraries are most likely to meet, it includes MARC21 coding and examples, and is designed for library school students, beginning cataloguers and information professionals who need to revise cataloguing skills.

Genres: Library Science, Nonfiction, Grad School

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

John Bowman retired in September 2008 from University College London, and is now an Honorary Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Information Studies at UCL. He taught extensively on Cataloguing during his time as a lecturer at UCL.

Reviews

[M]

Fulfills its purpose very well, in being both comprehensive and accessible; nevertheless, what a boring read.

[Penelope]

(class reading for Cataloging and Classification I)

I actually only read about 2/3 of this book. It doesn't seem that we'll be using it for the rest of the semester so I don't know if I'll finish it.

I found this book really helpful because of all the different examples. It's also useful that the same examples (for the most part) are used throughout the book, so you can see how the concepts build on each other from one chapter to the next. I found myself referring to this book frequently when completing my cataloging assignments--it's an easy to use, quick reference tool.

[Sarah left GR]

An indispensable companion to AACR2. Clear, real-world examples, and a generous dose of humor to boot.

[angeleen]

learn basic catalog(u)ing from the adorably English.

[{erika}]

Made the AACR2 a lot easier to understand. A good comparison and I enjoyed the humor in the introduction and the style of writing.

[Leonie]

An excellent book - I wonder if it will be rewritten for RDA?

[Erin]

Comprehensive and truly essential reading for anyone learning about cataloguing. Written in a surprisingly accessible and humorous style, which I enjoyed more than I expected.

[Ellen]

I skimmed a lot of the technical data. But the introductory material, on the nature and importance of cataloguing, was informative and entertaining.