Procedure for Cataloging Belles-Lettres

PROCEDURE FOR CATALOGING BELLES-LETTRES

Books included in this category are works of the imagination written by a single author. They can generally be classified as fiction, poetry, or drama. Anthologies are excluded.

All headings should be in the NAF; if not, NACO the name, or refer it to your supervisor.

ENTRY VERIFICATION

As with LC copy, verify that any copy in the book exactly matches the book in hand. If not, re-search RLIN for matching copy. Treat series in the same manner as you would an LC book.

NAF SEARCHING

Search all name and corporate headings in the NAF. If the author or any added entries (such as editors or translators) are not in the NAF, NACO the name or refer it to your supervisor.

CALL NUMBERS

Structure: A call number for a literary work is always made up of three elements —the class number (or literary author number), the book number, and the year. In almost all cases, the class number consists of two letters (the first is always P), a 4-digit number, and a first cutter based on the author’s surname. Example:

PS3509.L43$bF6 1990

This call number breaks down as follows: PS is for American literature. PS3509 is for American authors flourishing between 1900-1960 whose surname begins with the letter E. The L comes from the second letter of the author’s surname (in this case, T.S. Eliot). (In some cases the first cutter is based on the first letter of the author’s surname.) The 43 is a number which places Eliot alphabetically within the sequence of authors whose surname begins with E followed by L. Thus PS3509.L43 is T.S. Eliot’s literary author number—a number assigned to all his literary works and to all works about him. The second cutter number (or “book number”), which is always in $b, is based on the title of the particular work being cataloged (in this case, Four quartets). The year is, of course, the year of publication. Verification: On the NAF record for the author there may be an 053 field present; this indicates the established call number for that author. When an 053 field is present, always use that number. If there is no 053, check NOTIS for other literary works by that author. If we have cataloged other literary works by that author, use the number we have assigned. If we have no literary works by that author, search RLIN under the author’s name, looking for LC records for literary works. If found, use the number on the LC record. If there are no LC records for the author, check for member copy records that have assigned a literary author number. If no call number is established in the NAF, NOTIS, or by LC in RLIN, special care must be taken when using a number found on a member copy record. For the purposes of this task, we will assume that the member library has assigned the author to the correct nationality and time period (if you’re at all in doubt, let me know). What we need to ensure is that the number fits in alphabetically with other authors in NOTIS. Example: You have a book by a Melvin Anderson; member copy gives it the class number PR6051.N4. Search in NOTIS by call number, stopping after the first letter after the decimal point (fin cl PR6051n; omit the decimal point in the search). There are no records with that number. By looking at some of the records nearby, you see that:

PR6051.N395 = Anderson, Linda PR6051.N398 = Anderson, Rachel PR6051.N453 = Andrewes, Georgina

You can see that Anderson, Melvin should fall between Anderson, Linda and Anderson, Rachel; thus PR6051.N4 does not work for our collection. You need a number between N395 and N398: since M is closer to L than to R in the alphabet, give Melvin the number

PR6051.N396

This is not an exact science—just try to leave adequate “room” on either side of your call number for future growth. (N.B. Occasionally, our shelflist is itself out of alphabetical order, making it impossible for you to fit your author in; in such cases, just take a stab or consult your supervisor.)

Book number: Once the literary author number is found, assign a book number based on the title in hand. Using the Cutter table, formulate a number based on the first significant word in the title (i.e., ignore initial articles). Take the first letter of that word and add at least two digits based on the subsequent letters. Examples:

Title: Morning sickness Book number: M67 Title: Euphoria Book number: E89 Title: Quick now Book number: Q52

If we have cataloged other literary works by that author, do a call number search on NOTIS to make sure that the number you are assigning does not conflict with an already-assigned number and that the digits you assign in the book number place that title in the correct alphabetical sequence. Example: you have a novel by Joyce Carol Oates called Crooning. Based on the above procedure, you assign it the number PS3565.A8$bC76. But when you do a call number search on NOTIS under PS3565a8 you find that the book number C7 has been assigned to a book called Crossing the border. Since Crooning alphabetizes before Crossing, you need to change your book number to something like C68.

TRANSLATIONS

If your book is a translation, there are additional elements required on the catalog record:

 041. There should be an 041 in the catalog record showing the language of the translation in $a and the original language in $h. If you can’t determine the original language, use “und” (undetermined). Examples:

041 1 eng $h ita for an English translation of an Italian original 041 1 spa $h und for a Spanish translation of an undetermined original

 240. There should also be a uniform title (240) showing the original title followed by a $l and the language of the translation. Check NOTIS, then RLIN for the original title. If no original title can be found, skip the 240.

 Call number. Check to see if Princeton or LC has cataloged a variant edition (original or other translation), in which case you should use that book number. Then add 2 digits to the book number from the Translation table (if there is no uniform title, do not use the Translation table; cutter for the translated title).

 700. There should be an added entry for the translator if he/she appears on the title page.

COLLECTED AND SELECTED WORKS

If your book contains an author’s complete works or a selection of previously published works, two elements of the catalog record need attention:

240. A collective uniform title is needed whenever the title proper is not distinctive. A title is considered not distinctive when it consists only of generic terms such as “selected,” “collected,” “novels,” “poems,” and the author’s name. Examples:

Title: Selected poems of John Keats. Not distinctive. Uniform title needed.

Title: The sky above : the best short stories of Joe Blow. Distinctive. No uniform title needed. Use the following collective uniform titles:

Works.$f[date] For the author’s complete works. Plays For the author’s collected plays Poems For the author’s collected poems Short stories For the author’s collected short stories

In addition, the collective uniform titles above (except “Works”) may carry the addition “$kSelections” for selections from the author’s works in that form. Examples:

100 Blow, Joe. 240 10 Poems.$k Selections 245 10 Selected poems of Joe Blow.

100 Call, Blaine. 240 10 Plays 245 14 The complete plays of Blaine Call.

101 Tortilla, Oscar. 240 10 Works.$f1999 245 10 Oscar Tortilla : the complete works

Call number. Complete works of an author are given the author’s literary author number and a date—no second cutter. For collected works in one form add a second cutter from Table 40 (.xA14-.xA19) and the date. For selections, use the second cutter .A6 and the date. Examples:

Complete works of T.S. Eliot PS3509.L43 1999 Complete plays of T.S.Eliot PS3509.L43A19 1999 Selected poems of T.S. Eliot PS3509.L43A6 1999

SUBJECT HEADINGS

In most cases, subject headings are not assigned to belles-lettres. However, if your copy has subject headings, keep them as long as they are tagged 600, 610, 630, 650, or 651 with the second indicator 0. The final subdivision in each subject string should be –Fiction, --Poetry, or –Drama, as appropriate. Individual works of belles-lettres should never have form headings such as English poetry or Short stories, American.

SPECIAL SITUATIONS

The above procedure assumes that your author is subdivided by Table 40 of the Language and literature tables—by far the most common table applied to literary authors. If, in checking NOTIS or RLIN for a literary author number, you find a number with only one cutter or numbers where the book number always begins with the letter A regardless of the title of the book, bring the book to me.

If you find Princeton or LC copy for a variant edition of the same title you are cataloging, use the identical call number found on that record, varying the year of publication and/or adding or deleting translation digits. Also use any subject headings found on those records.

If the title of your work begins with the letter A or Z, you must take into account the fact that Table 40 provides the range A61-Z458 for individual titles. Works beginning with these letters need to be cuttered differently from the other letters. The following are guidelines for works beginning with A:

Aa-Af A6-699 Ag-Al A7-799 Am-Ar A8-899 As-Az A9-999

Thus a book about titled About face would get a book number such as A63; a book titled Arrest me! might get A89. There are no such guidelines for the letter Z (use your judgment!).