Radical Cataloging - by K R Roberto (Paperback)

About the Book

This collection of critical and scholarly essays addresses the state of cataloging in the world of librarianship. The contributors, including Sanford Berman, Thomas Mann, and numerous front-line library workers, address topics ranging from criticisms of the state of the profession and traditional Library of Congress cataloging to methods of making cataloging more inclusive and helpful to library users.

Book Synopsis

This collection of critical and scholarly essays addresses the state of cataloging in the world of librarianship. The contributors, including Sanford Berman, Thomas Mann, and numerous front-line library workers, address topics ranging from criticisms of the state of the profession and traditional Library of Congress cataloging to methods of making cataloging more inclusive and helpful to library users.

Other essay topics include historical overviews of cataloging practices and the literature they generate, first-person discussions of library workers' experiences with cataloging or metadata work, and the implications behind what materials get cataloged, who catalogs them, and how. Several essays provide a critical overview of innovative cataloging practices and the ways that such practices have been successfully integrated in many of the nation's leading libraries.

Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.

Review Quotes

"interesting historical overview...offers practical recommendations"-Booklist; "doesn't disappoint"-American Libraries; "every voice in this volume is valuable. Some essays are funny, some filled with righteous outrage, but each is a learning experience...will help catalogers discover, or nurture, their radical side"-Technicalities; "a good book that feeds the fire of the revolutionary cataloger...a must-read"-Library Collections, Acquisitions, & Technical Services; "W&L urges readers to ensure their institutional librarians consider purchasing [this] book. It includes many items of interest to librarians and all of us interested in how knowledge and points of view will or won't be preserved or discoverable, if preserved"-Women and Language.

About the Author

K.R. Roberto is the serials/electronic resources librarian at the University of Denver. Roberto is the co-editor of Revolting Librarians Redux: Radical Librarians Speak Out (2003).