Book Review: Practical Cataloguing: AACR, RDA and MARC 21

Abstract

Practical Cataloguing: AACR, RDA and MARC 21. By Anne Welsh and Sue Batley. Chicago: Neal-Schuman, 2012. 217 p. $75 softcover (ISBN: 9781-55570-743-9). In their preface, Anne Welsh and Sue Batley, both cataloging instructors, write that Practical Cataloguing was commissioned to bridge a between cataloging textbooks meant for the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR2)/MARC21 environment and textbooks focused on the new standard, RDA: Resource Description and Access. (1) Given that many libraries will delay implementing RDA until after the Library of Congress's planned implementation date of March 31, 2013, and that AACR2 records, like pre-AACR2 records, will be in library catalogs for years to come, book indeed Fills a that will be present for some time. Perhaps in recognition of the fact that nobody could write a definitive print cataloging manual in 2012 that would not be obsolete six months later, Practical Cataloguing is neither a how-to-catalog text nor a workbook. Rather, Practical Cataloguing provides a map to the gap between AACR2/MARC21 and RDA by combining a discussion of cataloging theory, history, and the issues (and controversies) created by current and future standards, augmented with practical advice for working catalogers in any environment. The book begins by discussing cataloging codes from Charles Cutter's Rules for a Printed Dictionary Catalogue through RDA. (2) Additional chapters address related issues such as the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR), International Standard Bibliographic Description (ISBD), and access points and headings. (3) The language avoids jargon and is accessible to both novice and experienced librarians. The text takes on a narrative quality as it discusses the evolution of ISBD, AACR2, and MARC21, why and how RDA (with its FRBR underpinnings) has come to replace AACR2, and navigating a workflow where both codes must coexist in an environment with many unknowns. Each chapter contains detailed explanations and copious examples of descriptive data and access points in ISBD, MARC21, RDA, and AACR2. Particularly valuable are the bolded Practice Notes in each chapter that give advice on the local interpretations, shortcuts, and compromises catalogers make in their local library systems. Readers in the United States will quickly recognize that the authors are based in the United Kingdom, both from the British spellings of and colour, and from the wry humor that slips into the text. For example, a practice note tells us that this rule is often ignored or forgotten by cataloguers, as we can see in example from a real catalogue (29); access points are introduced with, When confronted for the first time with the phrase 'access points' you might think that you are being faced with a piece of modern cataloguing jargon. And you might be right (49). Chapter 10 contains a number of sample records illustrating level 1 and level 2 AACR2 and RDA descriptions. The examples are in ISBD (AACR2 and RDA) and MARC 21 (AACR2 only) format. The examples are all for print monographs; given the ready availability of copy cataloging for print monographs, some examples of serial, nonprint, and nontextual materials would have been more helpful to new catalogers. …