The Book in Society: An Introduction to Print Culture - Softcover

Robinson, Solveig

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1554810744 ISBN 13: 9781554810741

Publisher: Broadview Press, 2013

Synopsis

The Book in Society: An Introduction to Print Culture examines the origins and development of one of the most important inventions in human history. Books can inform, entertain, inspire, irritate, liberate, or challenge readers, and their forms can be tangible and traditional, like a printed, casebound volume, or virtual and transitory, like a screen-page of a cell-phone novel.

Written in clear, non-specialist prose, The Book in Society first provides an overview of the rise of the book and of the modern publishing and bookselling industries. It explores the evolution of written texts from early forms to contemporary formats, the interrelationship between literacy and technology, and the prospects for the book in the twenty-first century. The second half of the book is based on historian Robert Darnton’s concept of a book publishing “communication circuit.” It examines how books migrate from the minds of authors to the minds of readers, exploring such topics as the rise of the modern notion of the author, the role of states and others in promoting or restricting the circulation of books, various modes of reproducing and circulating texts, and how readers’ responses help shape the form and content of the books available to them.

Feature boxes highlighting key texts, individuals, and developments in the history of the book, carefully selected illustrations, and a glossary all help bring the history of the book to life.

About this title

About the Author:

Solveig C. Robinson is Associate Professor of English and Director of the Publishing and Printing Arts Program at Pacific Lutheran University.

Review:

“This textbook is the essential pedagogical tool that book historians have always needed. It covers all important developments in book culture in every part of the world and throughout history, from cuneiform to Kindle. For undergraduates with no prior knowledge of the subject, it explains everything with striking clarity and intelligence. It has no peer, and it can serve as the foundation of any introductory course in book studies.” ― Jonathan Rose, Drew University

“This is indeed a book that ‘offers its readers a chance to step outside themselves.’ A comprehensive overview of the evolution of print culture, the text can be read from cover to cover or dipped into at leisure. Each section is clearly labelled, including sub-headings within each chapter. The suggestions for Further Activities are ideal for encouraging students to undertake independent research while the Case Studies in each chapter provide some excellent examples for instructors to build upon. The author is to be commended for the breadth of research that underpins this text, clearly evidenced by the selected bibliographies at the end of each chapter. Whether you are new to the subject or looking to enhance the breadth of your knowledge, this is a text that is well worth consulting.” ― Clare Horrocks, Liverpool John Moores University

“The Book in Society is a book that allows readers from many different backgrounds into the complex world of print culture. Used in a team-taught class which mixed technical and professional communication with 18th century literary scholarship, for example, the book offered us a touchstone for bringing our different academic cultures and worldviews together. Undergraduate students from professional and public writing, literature, creative writing, education, and more found relevance in the way Robinson works through time periods, technical practices, and cultural differences, and, as professors, we appreciated the way the book fostered rich conversation while still allowing for flexibility in the way we ran our course on the history of the book in theory and practice.” ― Emily C. Friedman and Derek G. Ross, Auburn University Department of English

“The Book in Society: An Introduction to Print Culture by Solveig Robinson is written with students and those new to the history of the book in mind ... What makes this book particularly useful as a teaching tool is the thoughtfully selected bibliography that follows each chapter and the selected activities and resources that follow each part ... What is commendable about this book is that it makes the history of the book an approachable subject for students.” ― Joya Mannan, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada

About this edition

• Publisher: Broadview Press
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1554810744
• ISBN 13: 9781554810741
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 388