Professional Pages Book Review …Something old; something new; nothing borrowed; tried and true!:

March/April 2008

A review of Standard Cataloging for School and Public Libraries

Tom Adamich

Intner, Sheila S.; Weihs, Jean. 2007. Standard Cataloging for School and Public Libraries (4th ed.). Chicago: Libraries Unlimited. xi, 286 pages. (ISBN: 9781591583783. $50.00

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In the introduction, Sheila Intner, Professor Emerita at Simmons College's Graduate School of Library & Information Science, and Jean Weihs, a key member of the Toronto-based Technical Services Group, profile the changes in the landscape of public and school library collections since the third edition of Standard Cataloging for School and Public Libraries was published in 2001. No longer is a "small collection" composed of a few thousand titles, since some "small school and public library collections may contain "up to 20,000 titles" (p. 1)! Similarly, larger collections - defined in the past as having several hundred thousand titles - may now contain upwards of 1 million.  Furthermore, those collections now contain a much larger number of "non-book" objects - including electronic resources transmitted, according to the authors, as "digital signals via computer" (p. 1). As you may be aware, many of these collections now also belong to the shared library catalog environment known as the "virtual library catalog,"that often extends beyond both institutional and geographic boundaries.

Moving through Standard Cataloging, the reader has a sense of the core rationale behind the prospect of good standardized cataloging - that it is the "key that opens the door of better access to local materials - resources that can satisfy patrons' information, recreation, and education needs" (p. 4) (whether that patron is a student or an educational professional in a school library setting, or a patron in a public library setting). Each topic profiled will assist both schooland public library information professionals in identifying what they need to create and maintain access to cataloging records and materials in their library automation systems using accepted practices while adhering to international standards.

Two of the best features of the Standard Cataloging for School and Public Libraries are the numerous examples including image-based reproductions of such items as DVD discs, versos of title pages, alphabetical filing lists, etc., and the subject/classification/MARC cataloging exercises in selected chapters. There's also a comprehensive glossary of cataloging terms and multiple indexes - features which make Standard Cataloging for School and Public Libraries a natural for cataloging coursework or continuing/workshop education while on the job.

Finally, when you receive your copy of the Standard Cataloging for School and Public Libraries, take a look at Chapter 13 - "Managing the Cataloging Department." The discussion profiles the similarities/differences between traditional cataloging and "metadata creation." This information by itself is very timely and worth the cost of this excellent resource. The fact that metadata creation, as described by Inter and Weihs, involves not only creation of the record but development of strategies for its use in marketing library products and services (i.e. digital repositories, etc.) is very important today, particularly for school libraries with their increasing use of "portfolio-based" learning where student-generated presentations and objects often become permanent parts of a school library's collection.

As a bonus, numerous other subject, classification, and access features mentioned (including reprints of LCC and DDC schedules and ALA Filing Rules summaries) make the Standard Cataloging for School and Public Libraries a "must" for every school and public library professional resources shelf!

Works Cited

Intner, Sheila S., and Jean Weihs. 2007. Standard Cataloging for School and Public Libraries (4th ed.). Chicago: Libraries Unlimited.

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This review is dedicated to Tom's mother, who is in the photo (taken at the Glenmoor Gathering of Significant Automobiles last Sept. in front of a beautiful 1936 Cord 812).     Tom Adamich has been a certified teacher-librarian since 2000 and a librarian since 1991. A graduate of the Kent State University (Ohio) School of Library/Information Science and KSU College of Education (School Library Media Certification), Tom has been a teacher-librarian and consultant for the Indian Valley Local Schools (Ohio) since 1999 and president of the Visiting Librarian Service, a contract librarian firm he has operated on a full- or part-time basis since 1993. Currently, Tom also serves as the Cataloging Librarian at Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh, PA, and has been involved in K-12 cataloging research and its connection to critical thinking skill development and standards-based education since 1998.

Professional Pages Book Reviews are a KQWeb feature edited by Carolyn Karis.