UMass Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press

Artifacts and Commentary

Edited by Scott E. Casper, Joanne D. Chaison, and Jeffrey D. Groves

A fine introduction to print culture in America, accompanied by a CD-ROM image archive

A collection of primary source materials and original essays, Perspectives on American Book History is the first text designed for the growing number of courses in American print culture, as well as a unique supplement for courses in American literature and history. It seeks to fill the void that has developed as the expanding history of the book has moved out of the archive and scholarly journal and into the classroom. The volume includes an introductory essay by Robert A. Gross, chair of the program in the history of the book at the American Antiquarian Society, fourteen chapters composed of primary artifacts and original essays by rising scholars in the field, and an annotated bibliography of research sources.

Chapters trace topics in American print culture from Puritan New England to the future of newspapers in a digital age. The artifacts and documents, most of which have never before been anthologized, include excerpts from readers' diaries, accounts of the printing and publishing trades, materials from the alternative press, commentaries on authorship and reading, and visual images. The essays place these primary source materials in their historical, literary, and political contexts and model the ways students might approach them.

The volume is accompanied by a CD-ROM image archive, which includes nearly 200 digital images, captioned and keyed to the different chapters. Easily read with standard browsers, the CD-ROM allows access to otherwise scarce materials and vividly assists students in learning how book history is hands-on history.

In addition to the editors and Robert A. Gross, the contributors are Nancy Cook, Patricia Crain, Ann Fabian, Alice Fahs, Ellen Gruber Garvey, Jen A. Huntley-Smith, Charles Johanningsmeier, Jill Lepore, Russell L. Martin, Trysh Travis, Glenn Wallach, and Susan S. Williams.

"This book offers a treasure trove of primary materials and an array of powerful commentaries. It is a milestone event in the cause of bringing American book history into the classrooms of English, American studies, and history departments."

Jay Fliegelman, Stanford University
"This is one of the most intelligently edited collections of essays I have seen in a long time. An intellectually compelling work, it commands the field of American print history, covering a delightfully wide variety of topics with expert knowledge. Most important, it is teachable."

Ezra Greenspan, coeditor of the annual Book History

Scott E. Casper is associate professor of history at the University of Nevada, Reno.

Joanne D. Chaison is the research librarian at the American Antiquarian Society.

Jeffrey D. Groves is professor of English at Harvey Mudd College.

Literary Studies / Cultural Studies / American Studies
480 pp., 44 illus., image archive on CD-ROM 7" x 91/4" format
$70.00s library cloth edition, ISBN 1-55849-316-6
$39.95s paper, ISBN 1-55849-317-4
May 2002
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Published in association with the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress and the American Antiquarian Society.

A volume in the series Studies in Print Culture and the History of the Book

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