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BOOKS AS HISTORY: THE IMPORTANCE OF BOOKS BEYOND THEIR TEXTS.
Pearson, David
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First edition. Books have been hugely important in human civilization as instruments for communicating information and ideas. The digital age is challenging their ongoing existence - although the e-book has not yet taken over from print on paper, the landscape is constantly changing, with more and more of the traditional functions of books being performed electronically.
People usually think of books in terms of their contents, their texts, with less thought for books as artifacts. In fact, books may possess all kinds of potentially interesting qualities beyond their texts, as designed or artistic objects, or because they have unique properties deriving from the ways they have been printed, bound, annotated, beautified, or defaced. David Pearson explores these themes and uses many examples of books from the Middle Ages to the present day to show why books may be interesting beyond their texts. As the format of the book becomes history - as texts are increasingly communicated electronically - we can recognize that books are also history in another significant way. Books can develop their own individual histories, which provide important evidence about the way they were used and regarded in the past, which make them an indispensable part of the fabric of our cultural heritage.
This book will raise awareness of an important aspect of the life of books in the context of the ongoing debate about their future. Extensively illustrated with a wide range of images, it will not only be approachable but also thought-provoking.
David Pearson is Director of the University of London Research Library Services, with extensive experience of managing and working in major research collections. He is also a respected scholar in the field of book history, whose articles and books, including Provenance Research in Book History (Oak Knoll Press and The British Library, 1994) and English Bookbinding Styles, 1450-1800: a Handbook (Oak Knoll Press and The British Library 2005), have focused on various aspects of the ownership and binding of books. Co-published with The British Library.
Sales rights: North and South America; available elsewhere from The British Library.
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Books of related interests - -
> Zboray, Ronald J. and Mary Saracino Zboray, HANDBOOK FOR THE STUDY OF BOOK HISTORY IN THE UNITED STATES.
> THE LITERATURE OF THE BOOK.
> Hinks, John and Catherine Armstrong (editors), PRINTING PLACES: LOCATIONS OF BOOK PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION SINCE 1500
> Dahl, Svend, THE HISTORY OF THE BOOK.
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CENSURA LITERARIA. CONTAINING TITLES, ABSTRACTS, AND OPIN...
by Brydges, Samuel Egerton-
Reprint of the periodical printed by T. Bensley for Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme and J. White in London from 1805 to 1809. (NCBEL III, 1270; Lowndes I, 296) Published in installments over the course of several years, this was Brydges first extensive compilation of antiquarian literary material. He based his design on the previous works of Thomas Blount, William Oldys and Horace Walpole. Each yearly volume contains a detailed table of contents and an index, with the last volume also having a cumulative table of contents and index to the obituaries.
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