This new edition of Maxwell is not directly linked to a major revision of AACR2 and differs from its predecessors in two major respects: it incorporates the amendments to AACR2 which were issued as a consolidated volume in 1993, and its numerous examples are given in USMARC format as well as in AACR2 format.
It is a detailed commentary on AACR2, set out in the same way as the 1989 revision; that is, its chapters cover the same material (although differently numbered) as in AACR2. A brief introduction to each chapter discusses the main issues for the cataloguing of that medium or set of rules. There are copious examples, both in USMARC and in AACR2’s ISBD format, which illustrate very well the text and rules. An appendix of lists of headings for British sovereigns, US presidents and common anonymous classics precedes an index. This book impresses because of its very high quality of production and layout.
Maxwell’s Handbook for AACR2 is an excellent source of information about how AACR2 is applied. I would have no hesitation in recommending it as a guide to current AACR2 and USMARC practice ‐ but with provisos. One of these is the price, which puts it into the too high bracket for students. A more significant concern is the general question of AACR2 and its role in providing bibliographic access to library collections. As an Australian educator, I would have serious doubts about prescribing this book as set reading for my students, because I believe that it promotes a very narrow view of cataloguing (I prefer the term “providing intellectual access”) which is no longer appropriate in the Australian context. However, it is undeniably very useful to cataloguers whose experience allows them to place it in the wider context. I am also a little concerned by the apparent narrow world view of the authors in their claim(p. xii) that there are only three manifestations of MARC in the anglophone world ‐ USMARC, UKMARC and CANMARC!
