The Oral History Reader edited by Robert Perks and Alistair Thomson, is an international anthology of the key writings about the theory, method and use of oral history.

Arranged in five thematic sections, The Oral History Reader details issues in the theory and practice of oral history. The collection covers key debates in the postwar development of oral history including:

* problems posed by interviewing
* discussions of the politics of empowerment
* analytical strategies for interpreting memories
* concerns of archiving, practice, ethics and interpretation.

Each section contains an introduction which contextualises the selection by reviewing key isssues and relevant literature. Extensive cross-referencing and indexing provides an aid to research and a crucial comparative dimension.

This comprehensive volume illustrates similarities and differences in oral history work from around the world, with examples from North America, Britain, Australasia, Continental Europe, Latin America and Africa. It also details the subjects - such as labour history, women's history, gay and lesbian history, ethnic and indigenous people's history and disability history - to which oral history has made a significant contribution.

Review

The Oral History Reader is by far the most comprehensive, valuable collection of articles on the topic in the English language. Perks and Thomson have done a remarkable job of pulling together articles that capture the exciting potential as well as the complex problems inherent in the oral history process. Their historical sweep, from some of the earliest pieces on interviewing to the recent explorations of the use of new technology, offer something to both the novice and the seasoned practitioner. Not content with merely compiling some of the very best published articles on an array of topics, the editors' commentaries and extensive footnoting point the way to even more avenues of inquiry. This remarkable collection is a boon to students and teachers alike.
–Sherna Berger Gluck Director, Oral History Program California State University Long Beach

Within the anthology will be found pathbreaking works on the theoretical and methodological issues raised by the practice of oral history as well as key writings illuminating the ways in which oral history has expanded our understanding. The authors are to be commended for their commitment to bringing the best of oral history thinking and writing to the attention of a popular audience; work that has been simponal in changing our attitudes toward the practice of history and the devlopment of an international community of fieldworkers.
–Ronald Grele, Oral History Research Office, Columbia University in the City of New York

Rob Perks and Al Thomson have made an excellent choice of articles for The Oral History Reader. It is particularly helpful to have them available in one volume. The carefully chosen themes cover the sweep of an oral historian's work, and will be useful not only to the proposed audience but also to practising oral historians--both those in the academy and those in the community. This will be a book that stimulates and refreshes us....
–Megan Hutching, Historical Branch, Te Taiwhenua, Wellington, New Zealand

This rich and carefully balanced anthology should become a key resource for future students of oral history.
–Paul Thompson, author of The Voice of the Past: Oral History

The Oral History Reader demonstrates how central oral history is to a whole range of humanities and social science disciplines...Drawing on the internationalism of oral history, it provides an invaluable resource to students and their teachers.
–Joanna Bornat, The Open University

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