Judged by number of works, Giacomo Puccini left behind a relatively slender śuvre.
Nonetheless, the most popular of his operas as well as the "minor pieces" pose some-times thorny bibliographical, editorial, and source-critical problems. The composer of La Bohčme and Madama Butterfly constantly tinkered with his compositions, and the changes are reflected in a welter of conflicting printed editions. Dieter Schickling's detailed thematic catalogue brings order into this editor's nightmare while offering complete coverage of all of Puccini's music, including the surviving drafts.

It is a standard reference work, not only for scholars and libraries throughout the world, but also for music antiquarians and autograph dealers.