An Introduction to Book History (review)

David Finkelstein and Alistair McCleery have written an excellent introduction to the history of the book. This concise volume covers the major aspects of book history to introduce the novice or to refresh the memory of the scholar. Finkelstein (Queen Margaret University College, Edinburgh) and McCleery (Napier University, Edinburgh) progress chronologically from orality to the advent of print to the future of the book in the current technological landscape. This volume complements their previous Book History Reader (2001), which includes essays by many of the scholars whom they cite.

In seven chapters the authors trace the "historical arc of manuscript and book production from the pre-Christian age through the Industrial Revolution to contemporary times" (133). The first chapter of the book explores the theoretical issues of book history since the beginning of the twentieth century. The authors seek connections between the major scholars in the field and an answer to "how book historians go about the business of studying books, print, and texts" as well as what we learn from this analysis. In their study social connections are as important as the physical text that is produced. The book goes on to explore the importance of and relationship to orality in the eventual production of texts before delving into the creation of manuscripts in the Middle Ages. In the chapter entitled "The Coming of Print" the authors investigate ways in which book history can create new interpretations of traditional readings of social and cultural history from the Middle Ages through the Industrial Revolution. These connections seem particularly important. Following this discussion, Finkelstein and McCleery briefly examine the concept of authorship and its development. In the final chapters they question what they call the "missing link" in book history—the reader. Drawing on recent works about reading and readers by scholars such as Radway and Rose, the authors examine who the reader is and how we interpret reading in the context of book history, as opposed to how the reader is viewed in literary criticism. Finally, the authors look at the future of the book, addressing the myths of the death of the book and the influence of media and technology on books and reading.

What makes this volume most interesting is its focus on the development of the field of book history over the past several decades. Finkelstein and McCleery highlight the scholars in the field of book history and related disciplines (e.g., Darnton, Chartier, Rose, Winship, Radway, Ong, etc.) in the context of discussing development of the discipline. Throughout the book they reference the foundational texts of the discipline that someone with a deeper interest would need to read. The bibliography provides a starting point for digging deeper into the key literature of the emerging discipline.

Although this relatively slim volume is an overview, it provides an introduction well worth looking at for students in many disciplines. Each chapter links to the next, and the book as a whole provides a starting place for further discussion and exploration into the history of literacy, the book, and ideas about reading and text.