Libraries have a long history of collaboration with other libraries, especially with regards to cataloging. This book contains many articles originally published in Cataloging & Classification Quarterly (CCQ) volume 51, issue 1–3, which discuss collaborative efforts of cataloging units within libraries. The articles are broken down into the following broad categories:

• “Collaborations in Cooperative Cataloging and Authority Initiatives”
• “Collaborative Cataloging Initiatives”
• “Collaborations in Merging and Migrating Online Catalogs”
• “Collaborative Development of Training and Documentation”
• “Collaborative Approaches to Special Projects”

As acknowledged by the editor of this work, there is not a lot of published information on collaboration within cataloging units. To help increase the amount of library literature on this topic, the editor of this book placed a call for articles that were brought together into a triple issue of CCQ. This book brings to light a representative sampling of the different types of collaborative cataloging efforts that are currently underway in libraries. While there are many collaborative projects mentioned in this book, the following is a summary of a few of these ideas.

The first section of the book discusses different projects that have been completed to enhance authority initiatives. This includes information on how the Library of Congress worked with different libraries to develop the Library of Congress Genre/Form Terms (LCGFT) as well as the Electronic Cataloging in Publication (ECIP) Cataloging Partnership Program.

The second section gives some examples of cataloging initiatives with regards to bibliographic records. One of the projects includes the idea of “insourcing” the cataloging of music items within multiple libraries of the University of California system. Another cooperative cataloging project discussed is with the University of Montana working closely with the US Government Printing Office to catalog pre-1976 US Forest Service publications.

In a section on merging and migrating online catalogs, two different articles discuss the benefits and problems with combining multiple library catalogs into one system. These two use cases, completed in Florida and the West Indies, have similarities in that a major goal of each was to reduce the number of resources that each institution was committing to maintaining the same types of databases and systems. Combining their catalogs made it possible to have a centralized unit responsible for the management of their integrated library systems (ILS). Another interesting collaboration demonstrated in this section includes the migration to an open-source ILS at a library in the Galapagos Islands, which is mainly staffed by volunteers.

There are four articles related to collaboration for training and development within cataloging units. One of the articles, discussing efforts to build a skills inventory and a set of best practices within OHIOLink, includes a useful section on ideas for implementing such a project. Subsections within this include helpful tools for planning, project implementation, methods of compensation, creating a memorandum of understanding, and evaluating the project. Another major training collaborative that is discussed involves catalogers from Uganda and Norway assisting a library in Sudan with the implementation of an open-source ILS.

The final section of this book includes several “special projects” and how they were accomplished through collaboration. This includes a chapter about research datasets being integrated into existing digital repositories at the University of North Texas, updating web searching for the University of New Mexico by collaborating with their information technology department, the use of electronic discussion lists to maintain bibliographic and authority files, and how a library’s ILS can be used as a source for providing outreach to an academic institution.

An important aspect of this book is that it provides many examples of how library cataloging operations have changed in recent years. Catalogers have to reach out to the broader library community to achieve their goals and to continually improve the services that they provide. This book presents many collaborative situations that can be applied to cataloging units in different types of libraries by showing how working with other groups can help with budgetary constraints, by completing large projects where catalogers may not have the correct expertise, and through demonstrating ways that catalogers can apply their current knowledge and skills to situations outside of traditional library cataloging. As stated by the editor, collaborative efforts within libraries can “bring more ideas to the table, enhance creativity, and increase librarians’ ability to solve problems” (1).

While there are many more collaborative efforts continually being explored in library cataloging, this book brings together a good number of examples that shows the importance of this topic. This title would be a good resource for catalogers to help them get more ideas on collaborative opportunities. It would also be useful to library administrators and managers as a demonstration of the necessity of cataloging work, as well as in helping such leaders promote collaborative efforts within their libraries.