Ed Jones, Associate Director for Assessment and Technical Services at National University in San Diego, brings more than three decades of expertise to the writing of this manual. It is intended primarily for catalogers familiar with the MARC data-encoding format, the current Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR2), and the principles of the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) model, but it does not postulate familiarity with either the new cataloging code, Resource Description and Access (RDA), or with serials cataloging.
The book is usefully organized, and written in an approachably conversational style. Instructions governing how to craft the elements of a bibliographic record alternate with vivid examples drawn from real life (the complex history of Saturday Review) or invented (The Journal of Devious Book Publishing). Jones provides clear and brilliantly illustrative guidelines for the cataloging treatment of both straightforward and complex cases. Examples are given with MARC field tagging, which will help to anchor the guidelines to familiar practice for working catalogers. An epilogue looks forward to the future, when MARC tagging will be left behind in favor of new encoding schemes that will enable library data to interact more companionably with data formats in use by vendors, publishers, and other communities.
A rapid gallop through the history of rule changes from 1876 to the present situates the shift from AACR2 to RDA in the context of evolving standards and practice. Even the seasoned cataloger will find that these passages provide insight into shifts of practice that are still reflected in legacy records for older serials.
The section on cataloging online resources is full of valuable ideas. It will provide leadership for the development of consensus among the experts in the Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC) CONSER community who finalize standards and best practices and issue cataloging policy documentation widely followed in the English-speaking world. The discussion of the CONSER program's use of provider-neutral records to pull together the common aspects of e-journals that are issued in a variety of interfaces by different vendors (pp. 169-170) is particularly recommended to the standards community for study. It offers a persuasive argument that the approach is consistent with the principles of the new code, a point still in contention in some quarters.
A refreshing lack of tentativeness makes this a usable manual for hands-on practitioners. There is no “hemming and hawing” over matters where RDA is still a moving target and continuing to develop. Jones has few peers for expertise and has long been an influential voice in circles where cataloging policy is forged. Working catalogers will be able to use this manual for day-to-day practice and will find it of lasting value as a reference manual for unusual or difficult cases. It will be found useful in libraries large and small and can serve as a reassuring introduction to the cataloging of serial publications. Deft deployment of wry humor makes the book pleasantly readable.
