One of the things that frustrate technical services managers most is the never-ending need for trained catalogers and copy catalogers. As the former head of a cataloging department, I can attest to the fact that the dearth of ALAaccredited library schools that require cataloging courses over and above “Organization of Information” contributes significantly to those frustrations. Entry-level catalogers arrive without the foundational knowledge necessary to quickly become fully contributing members of a technical services department.

As the cataloging profession anticipates the adoption of RDA (Resources: Description and Access) in a few years to replace AACR2r (Anglo-American Cataloging Rules, 2nd ed., revised), they recognize that catalogers and copy catalogers, as well as cataloging students, will continue to need training in current practices and rules. The following chapters are designed to be approachable by cataloging students, entry-level catalogers and copy catalogers. It can be used as a classroom textbook or as a text for individual study and it covers all formats except serials and archives/special collections.

In this book, Sylvia Hall-Ellis and her colleagues, Ann Jerabek and Merrie Valliant, present the essentials in accessible language with appropriate examples and explanations. Beginning with an overview of the development of cataloging and national and international bodies that influence cataloging principles and practices, each chapter has a set of review questions followed by extensive resources lists.