College and Research Libraries ,/ 258 I College & Research Libraries • May 1982 to other sources explaining additional types of media cataloging. A bibliography of read- ings or additional sources is not provided. A most valuable feature of this manual is the second appendix where the previously presented examples are shown in MARC tagged format. Few other tools provide this type of example and many catalogers will welcome this feature. The book also contains an overview of problems in the cataloging, processing, and storage of nonbook materials, as well as a de- scription of procedures in use at Mankato State University, where its author is located. The manual will be most useful to the cat- aloger unfamiliar with media cataloging, the library just beginning to acquire media in many varied formats, and the student. The reader will find the work a good, basic intro- duction to media cataloging and the prob- lems it may present. Library school profes- sors should look closely at this title for possible adoption as a text for cataloging classes.-Andrew Lisowski, George Wash- ington University Library, judith A. Ses- sions, Mt. Vernon College Library, Wash- ington, D.C. McCrimmon, Barbara. Power, Politics and Print: The Publication of the British M u- seum Catalogue, 1881-1900. Hamden, Conn.: Shoe String/Linnet, 1981. 186p. $17.50. LC 80-28124. ISBN 0-208-01874- 3. To any librarian who has been engaged in the organization and publication of a mas- sive catalog, Barbara McCrimmon's Power, Politics and Print suggests striking historical parallels to his or her own past labor. To American librarians it will also be a reveal- ing demonstration of the characteristically close-working relations between the highest levels of the government of the United King- dom and the nation's principal cultural insti- tutions, such as the British Museum and the British Library. I had much to do with the publication of the National Union Catalog: Pre-1956 Im- prints in this country and something to do with "GK 3," the general catalog of the Brit- ish Museum Library (since 1972 a part of the newly formed British Library), published between 1959 and 1966. From the back- ground of these experiences I have read this book with special appreciation for the clarity of its presentation of the long history of the production of "GK 1," the first general cata- log of that great library. The author has described vividly the pro- tracted task of publishing "G K 1," which was finally completed in 1900 after decades of struggle. Its 37 4 volumes containing several million entries comprised by far the most am- bitious bibliographic publication ever at- tempted up to that time. Because it opened the holdings of one of the world's greatest re- search libraries to scholars everywhere, it was a monumental British contribution to the world of learning. Though "the British literary public clam- ored for a printed catalogue of the British Museum library" through much of the nine- teenth century, it was not until1881 that ac- tual printing commenced. This critical point in the story was the culmination of four dec- ades of planning and of "frustration and con- tention, of small steady victories over inertia, and of a final triumph that came too late for celebration." Principal credit for the dogged persistence and occasional resort to subter- fuge and artful stratagem-without which the enterprise could never have succeeded- goes to Sir Edward Bond, principal librarian (i.e., director) of the British Museum, and Richard Garnett, keeper of printed books and general editor of the catalog. Dr. Mc- Crimmon describes their determined efforts in a fascinating tale. One of the main attractions of Power, Pol- itics, and Print is the skillful way the author places the drama of the catalog's evolution in the political and administrative context of the period. The parts played, for instance, by Gladstone and Disraeli, both long-time trustees of the museum, and repeatedly prime ministers and chancellors of the Ex- chequer, are admirably developed. Dr. Mc- Crimmon makes a lively tale of the endless skirmishing among the librarians, between Edward Bond and the trustees, and between the trustees and treasury officials upon whom the museum depended for its financial support. Although all this happened a cen- tury ago, it will be engrossing reading for present-day librarians who work with facul- ties, university administrators, committees of all shapes and sizes, government officials, and other individuals of every variety. This entertaining book is effectively writ- ten, refreshingly free of jargon, and uncom- MANSELL New Titles British and Irish Library Resources Second Edition A bibliographical guide by Robert B. Downs . 448p . 1982. (0-7201-1604-X). about $62. This revised guide to the resources in British and Irish libraries includes 6,700 entries on all subject fields, all types of libraries and all categories oflibrary materials . Dum barton Oaks Bibliographies based on Byzantinische Zeitschrift, Series II, Literature in Various Byzantine Disciplines, 1892-1977, Volume 1, Epigraphy Edited by Jelisaveta S. Allen and Ihor Sevcenko. 408p . 1982. (0-7201-1586-8 ). $72 . Series II, Volume 1, classifies items on Byzantine epigraphy that appeared in annotated bibliographies, articles and book reviews in the periodical Byzantinische Zeitschrift. Geographers: Biobibliographical Studies, Volume 5 Edited by T.W. Freeman. 160p. 1982. (0-7201-1635-X ). about $26. Volume 5 of this book contains 20 studies of individuals who have made major contributions to the development of geographical thought and in the field of geography. History of Technology, Sixth Annual Volume, 1981 Edited by A. Rupert Hall and Norman Smith. 152p. 1982 . (0-7201-1634-1 ). about $30. This collection of essays deals with the technical problems confronting different societies and periods and the measures taken to solve them. Index of English Literary Manuscripts This major reference work lists, describes and locates literary manuscripts by 270 major British and Irish authors from 1450 to 1900. Volume IV, 1800-1900, Part 1, A-G Compiled by Barbara Rosenbaum and Pamela White. 900p. 1982 . illus. (0-7201-1587-6). about $160. Volume IV, Part 1 deals with the extant works of23 19th-century British and Irish authors. Volume 1, 1450-1625, Parts 1 and 2 Compiled by Peter Beal. 2 vols. 1,258p. total. 1980 . ill us . (0-7201-0807 -1 ). $320. Volume llists and describes 12,000 manuscript texts from the works of72 writers of the Renaissance. For more information on these titles and a complete listing of Mansell publications, write to: Mansell Publishing Ltd. 950 University Avenue Bronx, New York 10452 260 I College & Research Libraries • May 1982 monly well organized. Dr. McCrimmon has included a chronology extending from 1753 to 1979 that relates her story not only to seri- ous political events, but also to its social envi- ronment by including such dates as the open- ing of H. M. S. Pinafore and Bond's introduction of electric light . in the great reading room. Power, Politics, and Print is far more than the history of a catalog; it is an important account of the success of an intel- lectual enterprise of vast ramifications.- Douglas W. Bryant, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Hubbard, William J. Stack Management: A Practical Guide to Shelving and Maintain- ing a Collection. Chicago: American Li- brary Assn., 1981. 102p. $7. LC 80-28468. ISBN 0-8389-0319-3. Stack Management is a fine example of clear, concise writing and good organiza- tion, representing sound thinking and rea- soned advice. It is an excellent guide for the new stack manager and a handy reference tool for the experienced librarian. In a quick consultation, one can discover that 86 per- cent full is considered maximum stack capac- ity, learn the advantages and disadvantages of several types of compact shelving, and de- termine how best to shelve kits and games. Hubbard has revised an earlier work by W. H. Jesse called Shelf Work in Libraries (1952), and this new edition reflects and stresses the current concern with access and availability of collections. Other contempo- rary issues such as problems of security and the use of detection systems, online circula- tion systems, and the increasing need for re- mote storage facilities are addressed at ap- propriate points in the new text. There are two minor points which I would draw atten- tion to regarding the revision, however: one is the occasional use of the term "shelf worker" instead of the more current "shelver" or even "stack attendant" or "stacker"; and the second is a lack of any mention of physical access for the handi- capped user and how that affects stack aisles and stack placement. The book is divided into eight chapters and proceeds logically from the broadest as- pect, collection management (shelf arrange- ment, open or closed stacks, and shelving of different types of materials) through succes- sive chapters on more specific topics. These topics are sorting and shelving routines, moving and shifting books (everything from how to plan space requirements to how to shelve), shelving types and arrangements (in- cluding lighting, book trucks and signs), and weeding, storing, and paging, with particu- lar emphasis on the desirability of storage collections and how to plan and select for them. Hubbard's good sense and directness are particularly evident in this comment on off-site storage facilities: "Regardless of the frequency of trips, the schedule must be maintained if the service is to retain its credi- bility with patrons. Nothing destroys confi- dence in a library faster than broken prom- ises through fluctuating schedules" (p.67). The remaining chapters deal with how to handle, clean, and repair books, missing books (how to search and inventory them), and finally some practical words on supervis- ing stack personnel. There is an appendix of basic information on using sampling to collect statistics on the quantity of work performed, book availabil- ity, and collection characteristics. The book is indexed. A comprehensive bibliography at the end, however, or all chapter references grouped at the conclusion of the individual chapters would have been preferable to the scattered footnotes throughout. Stack Man- agement, is definitely useful and a worth- while investment.-]ean W. Farrington, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Dessauer, John P. Book Publishing: What It Is, What It Does. 2d ed. New York and London: Bowker, 1981. 230p. $23.95 cloth; $13.95 paper. LC 81-10065. ISBN 0-8352-1325-0 cloth; 0-8352-1326-9 pa- per. John P. Dessauer's book is a superb exposi- tion of the workings of the American book publishing industry. Dessauer describes in successive chapters how books are created, manufactured, marketed, stored, and deliv- ered. He also goes into some detail on the fi- nancing, planning, and management of book publishing enterprises. Dessauer presently serves as chief statisti- cian for the Book Industry Study Group (formed in 1976 as a research organization for the publishing community), and this sec- ond edition incorporates much information from the group. Although the book has the same structure as the previous edition (e.g.,