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Lädt ... The Business of Books: Booksellers and the English Book Trade 1450-1850von James Raven
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In 1450 very few English men or women were personally familiar with a book; by 1850, the great majority of people daily encountered books, magazines, or newspapers. This book explores the history of this fundamental transformation, from the arrival of the printing press to the coming of steam. James Raven presents a lively and original account of the English book trade and the printers, booksellers, and entrepreneurs who promoted its development. Viewing print and book culture through the lens of commerce, Raven offers a new interpretation of the genesis of literature and literary commerce in England. He draws on extensive archival sources to reconstruct the successes and failures of those involved in the book trade--a cast of heroes and heroines, villains, and rogues. And, through groundbreaking investigations of neglected aspects of book-trade history, Raven thoroughly revises our understanding of the massive popularization of the book and the dramatic expansion of its markets over the centuries. Keine Bibliotheksbeschreibungen gefunden. |
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Google Books — Lädt ... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)381.450020941Social sciences Commerce, Communications, Transportation Commerce Specific products and services BooksKlassifikation der Library of Congress [LCC] (USA)BewertungDurchschnitt:
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Raven points out that this is largely a "new and broadly cast" business history, in which he seeks to situate the book trade within the larger economic, social and political climate of England (pg. 4). The focal points here are the printing, publishing and bookselling industries (in their oft-intertwined forms) and the printers, publishers, and booksellers. Given the unfortunate paucity of extant business records, Raven has done a more than admirable job of reconstructing the contours of the trade as it developed.
The portion of the book I enjoyed best was Raven's exquisite walking tour of the mid- to late eighteenth century London bookselling scene - ah, to have strolled Paternoster Row and St. Paul's Churchyard during that time!
A few of the many additional elements covered here include financing and cooperative publishing practices, the growing book export trade, battles over government regulation and reprint rights, advertising competitions, the rise of the secondhand book trade, and ultimately the key changes that would occur to the trade with the arrival of mechanized printing during the middle of the nineteenth century.
Supplemented by nearly sixty pages of detailed footnotes and a twenty-page (but still select!) bibliography, Raven's work offers many additional avenues for inquiry and make an important concluding point - that literary history, book history and related fields are connected in important ways to the larger economic, social and political atmosphere: "For many it is no longer sufficient to consider literature without considering larger publishing strategies, professional networks, and the manner in which booksellers put the work of writers in print and created a literary market" (pg. 378).
A fine study, and highly recommended for those with a serious interest in the first centuries of the English book trade.
http://philobiblos.blogspot.com/2007/08/book-review-business-of-books.html ( )