Bibliography and Textual Criticism

This section is devoted to analytical bibliography and the Anglo-American tradition of textual criticism. Several closely allied works appear in the immediately following section, Book Collecting.

Handbooks, Dictionaries, and Encyclopedias

U5190

Glaister, Geoffrey Ashall. Encyclopedia of the Book. 2nd ed. with new introd. New Castle: Oak Knoll; London: British Lib., 1996. 551 pp. Z118.G55 686.2′03.

A dictionary of technical terms, presses, binderies, organizations, awards, periodicals, printers, publishers, binders, calligraphers, booksellers, and other persons associated with the book, paper, printing, and publishing trades. The 3,932 entries, which range from a few lines to several pages, offer clear definitions or biographies, cite important scholarship, and provide extensive cross-references to related entries. Several are accompanied by illustrations; unfortunately, many of the black-and-white ones are unclear. Four appendixes: selected type specimens; Latin place-names in imprints of early books; British proof correction symbols; a selected bibliography. Generally authoritative and accurate, Glaister is the essential glossary of terminology related to the history and production of books and manuscripts. The 1996 edition reprints the second edition (Glaister’s Glossary of the Book: Terms Used in Papermaking, Printing, Bookbinding, and Publishing, with Notes on Illuminated Manuscripts and Private Presses, 2nd ed. [London: Allen, 1979; 551 pp.]) with an introduction by Donald Farren on the genesis and evolution of the encyclopedia; the first edition—An Encyclopedia of the Book (Cleveland: World, 1960; 484 pp.); Glossary of the Book (London: Allen, 1960; 484 pp.)—remains useful for entries and illustrations subsequently dropped. Reviews: (1st ed.) Times Literary Supplement 3 Feb. 1961: 78; (2nd ed.) Paul S. Koda, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 75.2 (1981): 219–21; G. Thomas Tanselle, Printing History 4 (1982): 78–79.

Occasionally useful complements are the following:

  • Feather, John. A Dictionary of Book History. New York: Oxford UP, 1986. 278 pp. Entries cover the book trade, printers, publishers, booksellers, bibliographers, presses, libraries, collectors, printing, paper, binding, periodicals, reference books, organizations, and bibliographical terminology. The selection is miscellaneous and the explanations less thorough and far less reliable than in Glaister, but the entries typically cite related sources or studies.

  • Peters, Jean. The Bookman’s Glossary. 6th ed., rev. and enl. New York: Bowker, 1983. 223 pp. The entries for terms used in publishing, book manufacturing, bookselling, and the antiquarian trade are much briefer than those in Glaister or Feather.

U5191

The Oxford Companion to the Book. Ed. Michael F. Suarez and H. R. Woudhuysen. 2 vols. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2010. Z4.O946 002.09. Online through Oxford Reference (I530).

A collaborative history of the book and dictionary of terms associated with it; coverage is impressively international and spans the ancient to the modern world. The separately authored essays in the first part of vol. 1 include 19 thematic studies (e.g., missionary printing, printed ephemera, and the electronic book) and 32 regional or national histories. Each begins with an outline and concludes with a selective bibliography (with some entries keyed to the list of abbreviations [1: lxiii–lxv]); in the body of an essay, cross-references to entries in the dictionary are variously marked with an asterisk or printed in small caps.

The dictionary includes 5,160 entries (ranging from brief definitions to nearly 2,000 words) for people, publishers, kinds of books and manuscripts and parts thereof, libraries, organizations, periodicals, auction houses, specific books and manuscripts, manuscript hands, technical terms—in short virtually anything connected to the history of the book. Two indexes: a thematic index of entries (1: xxix-lxii); a general index (at the end of vol. 2) of people, businesses, and titles of books and manuscripts that do not have an entry in the dictionary.

Impressive in its scope and its contributors (many are leading authorities in their respective fields), Oxford Companion to the Book is the most authoritative conspectus of book history worldwide. Reviews: William Baker, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 105.3 (2011): 407–13; David Finkelstein, Victorian Studies 58.3 (2011): 528–31; Arthur Freeman, TLS: Times Literary Supplement 5 Feb. 2010: 7–8.

U5193

Lexikon des gesamten Buchwesens (LGB2). 8 vols. and Register zu den Bänden I–IV: “A” bis “Lyser”. Ed. Severin Corsten et al. 2nd ed. Stuttgart: Hiersemann, 1985– . (Published in fascicles.) Z1006.L464 020′.331.

An encyclopedia of all aspects of the history of the book, including its production, distribution, reception, and related topics. The approximately 16,000 signed entries cover illustration and illustrators, publishers, printers, bibliographers, libraries, associations and societies, periodicals, booksellers, terminology, technical processes, book collectors, and binding. Most entries conclude with a brief list of additional sources. The most extensive and thorough of the encyclopedias of the book, Lexikon des gesamten Buchwesens is near completion.

See also

Carter and Barker, ABC for Book Collectors (U5340).

General Introductions

U5194

Greetham, D. C. Textual Scholarship: An Introduction. Corr. rpt. New York: Garland, 1994. 561 pp. Garland Reference Lib. of the Humanities 1417. Z1001.G7 010′.44.

A historical and methodological introduction to textual scholarship. Following an introductory discussion of terminology, successive chapters focus on the process of textual scholarship: finding the text (enumerative and systematic bibliography); making manuscript and printed books (analytical bibliography); describing the text (descriptive bibliography); reading the text (paleography and typography); evaluating the text (textual bibliography [i.e., ways in which the process of making a manuscript or printed book can affect content of the text]); criticizing the text (textual criticism); editing the text. Concludes with an appendix illustrating types of scholarly editions and an extensive selected bibliography (updated and substantially enlarged in the corrected reprint). Indexed by persons, titles, and subjects. Firmly grounded in the history, theory, and practice of each area it treats and replete with examples and illustrations, Textual Scholarship offers the best introduction to the field. Reviews: T. H. Howard-Hill, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 86.4 (1992): 477–79; B. J. McMullin, Bibliographical Society of Australia and New Zealand Bulletin 19.1 (1995): 52–60, with a reply by Greetham, 167–93.

U5195

Gaskell, Philip. A New Introduction to Bibliography. Rpt. with corrections. Oxford: Clarendon–Oxford UP, 1985. 438 pp. (Readers should avoid the uncorrected second printing of the American edition [New York: Oxford UP, 1975], since it omits several passages and duplicates others. The corrected second printing begins with “were” rather than “for” on p. 11.) Z116.A2 G27 686.2′09.

An introduction to the technical processes of book production from 1500 to 1950 in Great Britain and America. The bulk of the work consists of a history of book production organized in two extensively illustrated divisions: the handpress period (1500–1800) and the machine press period (1800–1950). The first discusses the technical details of printing type, composition, paper, imposition, presswork, the warehouse, binding, decoration and illustration, patterns of production, and the English book trade; the second, plates, type from 1800 to 1875, paper, edition binding, printing machines, processes of reproduction, mechanical composition and type from 1875 to 1950, printing practices, and the book trade in Britain and America. Following the history is a too-brief section on bibliographical applications: the identification of edition, impression, issue, and state; bibliographical description (with sample descriptions printed as an appendix); and textual bibliography (with two analyses of transmission of texts in an appendix). Another appendix reprints Ronald McKerrow’s discussion of Elizabethan handwriting (see below). Concludes with a useful, but now dated, selected bibliography that evaluates important scholarship through the early 1970s. Thoroughly indexed by persons and subjects. Although it is better in its treatment of the machine press era and the eighteenth century than the earlier period, inadequate in its attention to analytical bibliography and demonstration of the applications of physical bibliography to the transmission of texts, and densely written in many places, this work provides the best basic introduction to the technical aspects of book production and a necessary prelude to Bowers, Principles of Bibliographical Description (U5205), and Gaskell, From Writer to Reader (U5220). For the inception and evolution of the Introduction, see David McKitterick’s introduction to the 1994 reprint (Winchester: St. Paul’s Bibliogs.; New Castle: Oak Knoll, 1994). Reviews: Fredson Bowers, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 67.2 (1973): 109–24; Albert H. Smith, Library 5th ser. 28.4 (1973): 341–44; G. Thomas Tanselle, Costerus ns 1 (1974): 129–50.

(Researchers who must use the uncorrected second printing should obtain Corrections to the 1975 “Second Printing” American Edition of Gaskell’s New Introduction to Bibliography [New York: Book Arts, School of Lib. Science, Columbia U, 1975; 3 pp.; Occasional Pub. 4].)

Although now dated in some respects, Ronald B. McKerrow, An Introduction to Bibliography for Literary Students, 2nd impression with corrections (Oxford: Clarendon–Oxford UP, 1928; 359 pp.), has not been superseded in its integration of the history of book production, bibliographical theory, and application to textual matters in handpress books of the period 1560–1660. (See Vander Meulen, “Revision in Bibliographical Classics: ‘McKerrow’ and ‘Bowers’” [U5205a] for an examination of changes, usually unidentified, that occurred in reprintings.) McKerrow and Gaskell must be read together.

An essential complement to both Gaskell and McKerrow is Mark Bland, A Guide to Early Printed Books and Manuscripts (Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010; 236 pp.), which—in sections devoted to paper, format and structure (including binding), production, analysis of evidence, variants, and the book trade—addresses the methods and processes used to examine and describe late-sixteenth- and early-seventeenth-century books and manuscripts as material objects.

U5200

Williams, William Proctor, and Craig S. Abbott. An Introduction to Bibliographical and Textual Studies. 4th ed. New York: MLA, 2009. 188 pp. Z1001.W58 010′.42.

An introduction to the methods and applications of twentieth-century Anglo-American textual and bibliographical scholarship. Chapters discuss analytical bibliography, descriptive bibliography, transmission of texts, and textual criticism; a selective bibliography concludes the work. Particularly informative are the description of the process of preparing a critical edition and the appendix on textual notation, a convenient guide for readers puzzled by the symbols and lists in the editorial apparatus of a critical edition. Although not a substitute for Gaskell, New Introduction to Bibliography (U5195), and McKerrow, Introduction to Bibliography (U5195a), this is an admirably clear introduction for the reader who needs a basic understanding of bibliography and textual criticism and their applications in literary scholarship. Reviews (1st ed.): Hugh Amory, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 80.2 (1986): 243–53; John Feather, Library 6th ser. 9.2 (1987): 196–97.

See also

Tanselle, “Copyright Records and the Bibliographer” (Q3260).

Descriptive Bibliography

U5205

Bowers, Fredson. Principles of Bibliographical Description. 1949. Winchester: St. Paul’s Bibliogs.; New Castle: Oak Knoll, 1994. 505 pp. Z1001.B78 010.1.

A detailed guide to the principles and methods of descriptive bibliography that consolidates scattered scholarship, offers a rationale for the field, and establishes norms for bibliographical description. The 12 chapters provide exacting, detailed treatment of the nature of descriptive bibliography; edition, issue, and state and ideal copy in the handpress period; the bibliographical description of books of the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries; the transcription of title pages and other features; format and collation formula; reference notation; statement of signing, pagination and foliation, and other elements of a description; special considerations for the description of eighteenth-century books; incunabula; the bibliography of nineteenth- and twentieth-century books; the determination of publication, edition, impression, issue, and state in the machine press period; and the description of nineteenth- and twentieth-century books. Three important appendixes conclude the work: a digest of the collation and pagination or foliation formulas; sample descriptions of books of different periods; collation formulas for incunabula. Indexed by persons, subjects, and titles. Principles of Bibliographical Description is more thorough in its treatment of books published before 1700 and has been modified and extended in some areas by recent scholarship; nevertheless, it remains the indispensable guide to the theory and practice of descriptive bibliography. The 1994 reprint includes an introduction by G. Thomas Tanselle, who traces the inception, reception, and reputation of the book and notes important recent studies.

Essential complements are Tanselle, “A Sample Bibliographical Description, with Commentary,” Studies in Bibliography 40 (1987): 1–23, which consolidates and illustrates modifications made to Bowers’s principles; Tanselle, Bibliographical Analysis: A Historical Introduction (Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2009; 167 pp.), which discusses the analysis of the manufacture and design of books; David L. Vander Meulen, “The History and Future of Bowers’s Principles,” Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 79.2 (1985): 197–219, which surveys modifications and extensions, as well as summarizes the reception and impact of this magisterial work; B. J. McMullin, “Bowers’s Principles of Bibliographical Description,” Bibliographical Society of Australia and New Zealand Bulletin 15.2 (1991): 53–59, which identifies portions needing revision and which is supplemented by Tanselle, “Bowers’s Principles: Supplementary Notes on Issue, Format, and Insertions ,” Bibliographical Society of Australia and New Zealand Bulletin 23.2 (1999): 107–09; and Vander Meulen, “Revision in Bibliographical Classics: ‘McKerrow’ and ‘Bowers,’” Studies in Bibliography 52 (1999): 215–45, an examination of the changes, usually unidentified, that occurred in reprintings of Principles and McKerrow’s Introduction to Bibliography (U5195a).

Because Principles of Bibliographical Description requires a sound knowledge of printing practices and bibliographical techniques, readers should first master Gaskell, New Introduction to Bibliography (U5195), and McKerrow, Introduction to Bibliography. Those daunted by Bowers’s detailed instructions for transcribing title pages and other parts of a book, determining format, and recording collation and pagination will find M. J. Pearce, A Workbook of Analytical and Descriptive Bibliography (London: Bingley, 1970; 110 pp.), a helpful beginning guide. (Gaskell’s section on bibliographical description is also helpful, but it adopts several modifications to Bowers that have not gained wide acceptance.)

Textual Criticism

Leah S. Marcus, “Textual Scholarship,” pp. 143–59 in Nicholls, Introduction to Scholarship in Modern Languages and Literatures (A25), offers a succinct, balanced overview of textual criticism and associated activities.

U5210

Greg, W. W. ““The Rationale of Copy-Text”.” Studies in Bibliography 3 (1950–51): 19–36. Reprinted with minor changes in Greg, Collected Papers, ed. J. C. Maxwell (Oxford: Clarendon–Oxford UP, 1966) 374–91.

The classic formulation of the theory of copy-text (a text chosen as an expedient guide in formal matters for a critical edition) and the distinction between substantive readings (those “that affect the author’s meaning or the essence of his expression”) and accidental readings (those that affect mainly the formal presentation of the text). Although sometimes misunderstood and misapplied, Greg’s theory, its subsequent modifications, and the debates engendered by the theory are central to modern Anglo-American textual editing. For a history and critique of the responses and modifications to Greg’s theory and evaluation of writings on textual theory, see G. Thomas Tanselle, “Greg’s Theory of Copy-Text and the Editing of American Literature,” Studies in Bibliography 28 (1975): 167–229; “Recent Editorial Discussion and the Central Questions of Editing,” Studies in Bibliography 34 (1981): 23–65; “Historicism and Critical Editing,” Studies in Bibliography 39 (1986): 1–46; “Textual Criticism and Literary Sociology,” Studies in Bibliography 44 (1991): 83–143; “Textual Instability and Editorial Idealism,” Studies in Bibliography 49 (1996): 1–60; and “Textual Criticism at the Millennium: 1995–2000,” Studies in Bibliography 54 (2001): 1–80. (The preceding are conveniently reprinted in Textual Criticism since Greg: A Chronicle, 1950–2000 [Charlottesville: Bibliog. Soc. of the U of Virginia, 2005; 373 pp.].)

U5215

Committee on Scholarly Editions” (“CSE”). MLA, 26 Broadway, 3rd floor, New York, NY 10004-1789. <http://www.mla.org/comm_scholarly>.

The Committee on Scholarly Editions, the successor to the Center for Editions of American Authors (CEAA; see below), was established in 1976 to encourage the highest standards in scholarly editing of all kinds of works or documents by distributing information about scholarly editing and editorial projects (see the CSE Approved Editions link for a list of CSE- or CEAA-approved volumes); advising and consulting with editors on request; awarding emblems to qualified volumes submitted for review; and promoting dissemination of reliable texts for classroom use and among general readers.

The standards and procedures for obtaining the CSE emblem are described in “Guidelines for Editors of Scholarly Editions” and “Review Process of the MLA Committee on Scholarly Editions” (both have links on the CSE Web page; an earlier version of the first is also printed in Electronic Textual Editing [U5217], on pp. 23–49). Although the committee does not prescribe an editorial methodology or procedure, it does insist that an editor “establish and follow a proofreading plan that serves to ensure the accuracy of the materials presented,” strongly recommend that an edition include a textual essay and apparatus, and require that the edition undergo formal inspection by a CSE representative.

The CEAA was established to oversee the preparation of critical editions of American literature (primarily of the nineteenth century). Standards and procedures that governed CEAA-approved editions are explained in Statement of Editorial Principles and Procedures: A Working Manual for Editing Nineteenth-Century American Texts, rev. ed. (New York: MLA, 1972; 25 pp.). Although it is addressed to those editing nineteenth-century American literary works and although the principles underlying CEAA editions engendered considerable debate, the manual remains a valuable source of practical advice for those editing literary texts.

U5217

Electronic Textual Editing. Ed. Lou Burnard, Katherine O’Brien O’Keeffe, and John Unsworth. New York: MLA, 2006. 419 pp. and CD-ROM. PN162.E55 808′.027.

A collection of essays addressing the applications, principles, and procedures of electronic textual editing, especially in projects that adhere to the Text Encoding Initiative (TEI) guidelines (provided on the accompanying CD-ROM). Along with case studies are discussions of methods of inputting text; using levels of transcription; maintaining textual reliability; managing documents and files; representing special characters; documenting markup choices; storing, retrieving, and rendering text; knowing when not to use TEI; transforming a printed editorial project into an electronic one; dealing with rights and permissions; and preserving an electronic edition. Full of sound practical advice from many of the leading practitioners in the field, Electronic Textual Editing is required reading for those contemplating an electronic edition or evaluating one.

U5220

Gaskell, Philip. From Writer to Reader: Studies in Editorial Method. Oxford: Clarendon–Oxford UP, 1978. 268 pp. PN162.G3 808′.02.

A collection of case studies that demonstrate how textual evidence can be used to produce editions for various kinds of audiences. The 12 examples—which range from 1591 to 1974 and encompass poetry, drama, nonfiction prose, and fiction—are effectively chosen to illustrate the kinds of problems that confront an editor and to show that each textual situation is unique. For each example, Gaskell characterizes the surviving forms and their relationship, discusses the choice of copy-text, proposes emendations, and suggests an appropriate kind of edition or examines an existing one. The introduction briefly discusses authorial intention, copy-text, techniques of presentation and annotation, regularization, and works not intended for publication as a printed book. Indexed by persons and subjects. Designed to complement New Introduction to Bibliography (U5195), From Writer to Reader presumes a knowledge of the history of printing and the basic concepts and theories underlying textual criticism. Although reviewers have raised serious objections to several of Gaskell’s assertions, this work is a valuable illustration of the range of problems facing editors. Reviews: Vinton A. Dearing, Analytical and Enumerative Bibliography 3.2 (1979): 105–16; D. F. Foxon, Review of English Studies ns 30.118 (1979): 237–39; Daniel Karlin, Essays in Criticism 30.1 (1980): 71–78; G. Thomas Tanselle, Library 6th ser. 2.3 (1980): 337–50 (essential reading for its exposure of numerous weaknesses in the work).

U5225

Kline, Mary-Jo, and Susan Holbrook Perdue. A Guide to Documentary Editing. 3rd ed. Charlottesville: U of Virginia P, 2008. 329 pp. Z113.3.K55 808′.027. <http://gde.upress.virginia.edu>.

A guide to the principles and practices of editing documents, especially unpublished materials such as letters, journals, diaries, speeches, and ledgers. Following an overview of American documentary and critical editing, chapters proceed more or less in order of the tasks facing an editor: organizing a project; locating, collecting, and organizing materials; maintaining records; determining the scope and organization of an edition; evaluating and transcribing the source text; deciding on the presentation of the text, with discussions of type facsimiles, diplomatic transcriptions, electronic publication, and inclusive, expanded, and clear texts; using editorial symbols (for interlineations, deletions, and the like, with a helpful list on pp. 153–58 of symbols that have been employed) and writing textual notes; understanding general rules and their exceptions, emending the text, and handling variant forms of a document; dealing with the mechanics of establishing a text; preparing an edition for the printer (including writing annotations, indexing, and drafting a statement of editorial method); and handling relations with the publisher (with attention to electronic publication). Each chapter concludes with a helpful list of suggested readings; current lists, discussions of new technological advances, and additional examples of editorial techniques can be found on the Web site. An appendix prints sample inquiries addressed to librarians, booksellers, and auction houses. Based on a solid command of editorial theory and extensive familiarity with related scholarship and published editions, this work combines theory and practical advice to produce the best overall guide to documentary editing. The discussion of transcription must be supplemented by David L. Vander Meulen and G. Thomas Tanselle, “A System of Manuscript Transcription,” Studies in Bibliography 52 (1999): 201–12. Kline and Perdue is addressed primarily to those working with historical documents, but editors of all kinds will benefit from the sound advice about all aspects of the organization, preparation, and production of an edition. Review: Esther Katz and Ann D. Gordon, Documentary Editing 21.2 (1999): 29–32.

For examples of how editors have handled transcription, presentation, annotation, and indexing, see Michael E. Stevens and Steven B. Burg, Editing Historical Documents: A Handbook of Practice (Walnut Creek: Alta Mira–Sage, 1997; 264 pp.; Amer. Assn. for State and Local Hist. Book Ser.). While the photographic reproduction of examples of solutions to transcription and presentation problems is quite effective, the agglomeration of fonts and point sizes in the discussion of other topics is disconcerting and constitutes a serious flaw in the design of the book.

Robert Halsband, “Editing the Letters of Letter-Writers,” Studies in Bibliography 11 (1958): 25–37, remains the best general introduction to the editing of correspondence.

U5230

Shillingsburg, Peter L. Scholarly Editing in the Computer Age: Theory and Practice. 3rd ed. Ann Arbor: U of Michigan P, 1996. 187 pp. Editorial Theory and Lit. Criticism. PN162.S45 808′.027.

An introduction to the use of computers in the preparation of scholarly editions. The first part surveys the principles underlying textual criticism in chapters on the concept of textual authority, the forms (or details of presentation) of a text, authorial intention, the “ontological status of literary works,” authorial expectations (in relation to editing by a publisher), artistic closure, and the concept of ideal text. The second part discusses the selection of copy-text, emendation, and types and arrangement of apparatus. Using the CASE programs developed for the Thackeray edition as an example, the last part addresses the practical applications of computers to collation, manuscript preparation, typesetting, and electronic editions. Indexed by persons and subjects. Scholarly Editing is not a manual, but it does offer substantial practical advice on using a computer to prepare a critical edition. Review: T. H. Howard-Hill, Analytical and Enumerative Bibliography ns 2.2 (1988): 73–77.

U5240

Thorpe, James. Principles of Textual Criticism. San Marino: Huntington Lib., 1972. 209 pp. PR65.T5 801′.959.

A discussion of the importance and imperfection of textual criticism that stresses the need for aesthetic judgment by an editor. Successive chapters draw on a wide range of examples from British and American literature to examine basic principles of textual criticism: the aesthetics of textual criticism (favoring the argument that textual criticism is a system of perfectible details rather than a science); the ideal of textual criticism (“to present the text which the author intended”); the province of textual criticism (especially its relations to bibliography); the basic principles of textual analysis; the treatment of accidentals; and the establishment of the text. Indexed by persons and subjects. Although some of Thorpe’s assertions have occasioned disagreement among textual critics, this work is essential reading for those who would edit or use critical editions.

Other important discussions are in the following:

  • Bowers, Fredson. Bibliography and Textual Criticism. Oxford: Clarendon–Oxford UP, 1964. 207 pp. The Lyell Lectures, Oxford, Trinity Term, 1959. In his argument for the importance of analytical bibliography in textual analysis, Bowers emphasizes the assessment of textual evidence.

  • Dearing, Vinton A. Principles and Practice of Textual Analysis. Berkeley: U of California P, 1974. 243 pp. A highly technical discussion of mathematical methods for determining relations among forms of a text.

  • McGann, Jerome J. A Critique of Modern Textual Criticism. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1983. 146 pp. McGann argues that many principles of modern textual criticism—especially the emphasis on an author’s final intentions—ignore the complex social nature of literary production. An important critique of McGann is David J. Nordloh, “Socialization, Authority, and Evidence: Reflections on McGann’s A Critique of Modern Textual Criticism,” Analytical and Enumerative Bibliography ns 1.1 (1987): 3–12, with a response by Craig S. Abbott, 13–16.

  • Tanselle, G. Thomas. A Rationale of Textual Criticism. Philadelphia: U of Pennsylvania P, 1989. 104 pp. Explores the nature of texts and the distinctions between texts of documents and of works.

See also

Guide to Editing Middle English (M1760).

Book Trade, History of the Book, and Publishing History

Suggestions for research are offered in “Research Opportunities in the Early English Book Trade,” Analytical and Enumerative Bibliography 3.3 (1979): 165–200, a special section consisting of three articles on the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries, and in David D. Hall and John B. Hench, eds., Needs and Opportunities in the History of the Book: America, 1639–1876 (Worcester: Amer. Antiquarian Soc., 1987; 280 pp.), which reprints surveys of research on printing, publishing, distribution, books and popular culture, and bibliography and textual study from Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society 94.2–96.1 (1984–86).

Wallace Kirsop, “Booksellers and Their Customers: Some Reflections on Recent Research,” Book History 1 (1998): 283–303, surveys the state of research on bookselling (primarily in France and English-speaking countries) and offers suggestions for future work. Mirjam J. Foot does the same for bookbinding in “Bookbinding Research: Pitfalls, Possibilities, and Needs,” Eloquent Witnesses: Bookbindings and Their History, ed. Foot (London: Bibliog. Soc.; London: British Lib.; New Castle: Oak Knoll, 2004): 13–29.

Research Methods

U5241

Finkelstein, David, and Alistair McCleery. An Introduction to Book History. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge–Taylor and Francis, 2013. 166 pp. Z4.F49 002′.09.

An introduction to the developing field of book history, with chapters on major theories and debates, the history of writing, continuities between manuscript and print culture, changes in concepts of authorship, cultural agents that affect book production, the reader and reading, and the future of the book. Includes a selective bibliography. Indexed by names, titles, and subjects. Each chapter formulaically states its thesis, maps the evolution of its topic while introducing major or representative scholarship, and summarizes conclusions. Addressed to readers new to the field (many of whom would benefit from more attention to methodology), the work fulfills the promise of its title.

The same cannot be said of Ronald J. Zboray and Mary Saracino Zboray, A Handbook for the Study of Book History in the United States (Washington: Center for the Book, Lib. of Congress, 2000; 155 pp.), which offers little in the way of actual guidance on how to go about research in the field. In addition, glaring errors (e.g., the “685 volumes” of the “National Union Catalog [i.e., NUC, Pre-56 (E235)] . . . represent the book, pamphlet, map, atlas, and music holdings in the Library of Congress”) and omissions (e.g., WorldCat [E225] and RLG Union Catalog) hardly inspire confidence. Review: Daniel Traister, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 96.2 (2002): 310–15.

Handbooks, Dictionaries, and Encyclopedias

See

Oxford Companion to the Book (U5191).

Archives

U5242

Albinski, Nan Bowman. A Guide to Publishers’ Archives in the United States. SHARP, 2013. 31 Dec. 2014. <http://www.sharpweb.org> (path: Resources/Archives and Collections/Publishers’ Archives: Albinski List ). (Revision of ““Guide to the Archives of Publishers, Journals, and Literary Agents in North American Libraries”,” Dictionary of Literary Biography Yearbook: 1993 [1994]: 202–25.)

Locates the archives of publishers, journals, and literary agents—primarily from the United States and Great Britain—held in North American libraries. Entries are listed alphabetically in three lists: book publishers, journal publishers, and literary agents.

Much of Albinski’s information on twentieth-century United States publishers is subsumed in Martha Brodersen, Beth Luey, Audrey Brichetto Morris, and Rosanne Trujillo, A Guide to Book Publishers’ Archives (New York: Book Industry Study Group, 1996; 140 pp.; the updated electronic copy formerly at http://www.bookwire.com/bisg/archives is no longer available, though a copy may eventually be posted on http://www.sharpweb.org). In covering company archives as well as papers of editors, founders, and others closely associated with the publisher, the authors interpret “book,” “publisher,” “archive,” and “United States” inclusively. The approximately 600 publishers are listed alphabetically (with cross-references for alternative names, imprints, and corporations). A full description includes details about size, years covered, contents, finding aids, restrictions on use, and location, but since descriptions are based on a variety of sources, the amount of information varies (with unverified details noted). Indexed by persons and imprints, but the indexing is not thorough. Review: Barbara A. Brannon, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 91.2 (1997): 249–54.

Archives of many English-language Canadian publishers can be found in the Canadian Publishers’ Records database (http://content.lib.sfu.ca/cdm/landingpage/collection/cpr_1).

U5243

Weedon, Alexis. British Book Trade Archives, 1830–1939: A Location Register. N.p., n.d. 12 Feb. 2013. <http://britishbookarchives.beds.ac.uk>. (A revision of Weedon and Michael Bott, British Book Trade Archives, 1830–1939: A Location Register [Bristol: Eliot, 1996; 75 pp.; Hist. of the Book: On Demand Ser. 5].)

A location register of book trade archives in Britain and Dublin (and a few in the United States). Entries are organized alphabetically in six sections: publishers and printers, stationers and booksellers, literary agents, professional associations, bookbinders, and Dublin book trade archives. A typical entry includes the location of the archive, dates of coverage, references to microforms or catalog entries, cross-references to other entries, source for the entry, and locations of related material. Indexed by names. Admittedly a preliminary survey, British Book Trade Archives nevertheless offers the fullest guide to the location of archives essential to the history of publishing in Britain.

Indexes

U5245

British Book Trade Index (BBTI). University of Birmingham. U of Birmingham, 2012. 18 Jan. 2013. <http://www.bbti.bham.ac.uk>. Updated regularly.

A database of individuals active by 1851 in the book trade in England and Wales. Records can be searched through two search screens: the Normal Search Page (any combination of personal name, date, county, town, trade, or trade descriptor); the Advanced Search Page (the preceding combination of options plus address, non–book trade descriptors, and keywords in the notes to records). Users should read the Important Search Information page (click the Search link). A typical record includes name, address(es), biographical and trading dates, trade (both book trade and non–book trade occupations), notes, and the source(s) of information. The database is still very much a work in progress (users are invited to contribute or amend data). This work will eventually incorporate (and render more accessible) most of the standard published indexes as well as information from archival materials and private files. Quadrat: A Periodical Bulletin of Research in Progress on the History of the British Book Trade (1995–2011; now online: http://www.bbti.bham.ac.uk/QUADRAT.htm) provides updates on the project.

The Scottish Book Trade Index (which can be browsed or downloaded as a series of PDF files from http://www.nls.uk/catalogues/scottish-book-trade-index) covers the Scottish book trade to c. 1850. Still very much a work in progress, the index draws from the National Library of Scotland collection as well as city directories and bibliographies of Scottish books.

Surveys of Research

U5255

Tanselle, G. Thomas. ““The Historiography of American Literary Publishing”.” Studies in Bibliography 18 (1965): 3–39. Z1008.V55.

An evaluative survey of scholarship about and sources for the history of literary publishing in the United States. In emphasizing how to reconstruct a list of works by a publisher, Tanselle treats national, regional, and other bibliographies; unpublished papers; reminiscences of publishers; and histories of firms. Authoritative evaluations, practical advice, and numerous suggestions for research make “The Historiography of American Literary Publishing” an essential introduction to a neglected area of scholarship.

Histories

U5258

The Cambridge History of the Book in Britain. John Barnard, D. F. McKenzie, David McKitterick, and I. R. Willison, gen. eds. 7 vols. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1999– . Z8.G7 C36 002′.0941. Online through Cambridge Histories Online (http://histories.cambridge.org).

  • Vol. 1: 600–1100. Ed. Richard Gameson. 2012. 827 pp.

  • Vol. 2: 1100–1400. Ed. Nigel Morgan and Rodney M. Thomson. 2008. 615 pp.

  • Vol. 3: 1400–1557. Ed. Lotte Hellinga and J. B. Trapp. 1999. 743 pp.

  • Vol. 4: 1557–1695. Ed. Barnard and McKenzie. 2002. 891 pp.

  • Vol. 5: 1695–1830. Ed. Michael F. Suarez and Michael L. Turner. 2009. 1,020 pp.

  • Vol. 6: 1830–1914. Ed. McKitterick. 2009. 808 pp.

  • Vol. 7: The Twentieth Century. Ed. Willison.

Offers essays by major scholars on all aspects of the book trade, collecting and ownership, audiences, book production, and the use of books. Each volume concludes with a bibliography; some include statistical appendixes. Variously indexed (the online volumes do not include indexes). Reviews: (vol. 3) Alexandra Gillespie, Notes and Queries 48.1 (2001): 11–14; (vol. 6) Leslie Howsam, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 106.1 (2012): 99–109.

U5260

A History of the Book in America. David D. Hall, gen. ed. 5 vols. Worcester: Amer. Antiquarian Soc.; Chapel Hill: U of North Carolina P, 2000–10.

  • Vol. 1: The Colonial Book in the Atlantic World. Ed. Hugh Amory and Hall. 2000. 638 pp. Z473.C686 381′.45002′0973.

  • Vol. 2: An Extensive Republic: Print, Culture, and Society in the New Nation, 1790–1840. Ed. Robert A. Gross and Mary Kelley. 2010. 697 pp. Z473.E98 381′.45002097309034.

  • Vol. 3: The Industrial Book, 1840–1880. Ed. Scott E. Casper, Jeffrey D. Groves, Stephen W. Nissenbaum, and Michael Winship. 2007. 539 pp. Z473.I53 381′.45002097309034.

  • Vol. 4: Print in Motion: The Expansion of Publishing and Reading in the United States, 1880–1940. Ed. Carl F. Kaestle and Janice Radway. 2009. 669 pp. Z473.P75 381′.450020973.

  • Vol. 5: The Enduring Book: Print Culture in Postwar America. Ed. David Paul Nord, Joan Shelley Rubin, and Michael Schudson. 2009. 618 pp. Z473.E53 381′.450020973.

A collaborative history made up of individually authored essays on printing, publishing, bookselling, reading, types of books, periodicals, copyright, and literary culture; some volumes conclude with a selective bibliography, bibliographical essay, and statistical appendix.

History of the Book in America is complemented by John Tebbel, A History of Book Publishing in the United States, 4 vols. (New York: Bowker, 1972–81), an extensive history of book publishing from 1630 to 1980, with discussions of printing, bookselling, economics of the trade, publishers, copyright, bestsellers, illustration, production, censorship, and specialized types of publishing (especially religious, children’s, music, private press, book club, and university press). In some volumes, these topics are broken down by geographic area. Five appendixes: (in vol. 2) a year-by-year breakdown by category of American publishing from 1880–1918, tables depicting book publication, and directory of publishers for 1888, 1900, and 1919; (in vol. 3) an economic overview and a list of bestsellers. Indexed in each volume by persons, places, titles, subjects, and publishers. Valuable for its accumulation of information rather than its interpretation, the History must be used cautiously because of uncritical reliance on sources and numerous errors. Reviews: (vol. 3) Gordon B. Neavill, Publishing History 6 (1979): 107–11; Susan O. Thompson, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 75.2 (1981): 230–33.

Guides to Scholarship

Surveys of Research

U5273

Greetham, D. C., ed. Scholarly Editing: A Guide to Research. New York: MLA, 1995. 740 pp. PN162.S24 808′.027.

A collection of surveys of the state of textual criticism in several literatures, classical to modern. Following an initial chapter on the varieties of scholarly editing, individual treatment is accorded the Hebrew Bible, the Greek New Testament, Greek literature (classical to the Renaissance), classical Latin literature, Old English literature, Middle English literature, Renaissance nondramatic literature, non-Shakespearean Renaissance drama, Shakespeare, eighteenth-century British literature, nineteenth-century British poetry and prose, nineteenth-century British fiction, colonial and nineteenth-century American literature, twentieth-century British and American literature, Old French literature, early modern French literature, Italian literature, medieval Spanish literature, German literature, Russian literature, Arabic literature, Sanskrit literature, and folk literature. The chapters—by major scholars in the fields—typically survey the editorial tradition, consider theoretical and practical problems peculiar to the literature or period, comment on major editions, and conclude with a bibliography. Two indexes: subjects; names and titles. Scholarly Editing admirably fulfills its intent of providing the neophyte with an authoritative introduction to the state of scholarly editing within a national literature or period.

Serial Bibliographies

G. Thomas Tanselle, “The Periodical Literature of English and American Bibliography,” Studies in Bibliography 26 (1973): 167–91, identifies where English-language bibliographical journals are indexed. Tanselle’s survey is complemented by B. J. McMullin, “Indexing the Periodical Literature of Anglo-American Bibliography,” Studies in Bibliography 33 (1980): 1–17, an evaluation of the indexing of bibliographical scholarship in the 1974 volumes of ABHB: Annual Bibliography of the History of the Printed Book (U5275), Bibliographic Index (D145), British Humanities Index (G370), Essay and General Literature Index (G380), Humanities Index (G385), Internationale Bibliographie der geistes- und sozialwissenschaftlichen Zeitschriftenliteratur (G390), Library Literature, ABELL (G340), and MLAIB (G335). McMullin’s conclusion that ABELL is “the most satisfactory index to Anglo-American bibliography” must be modified because of the introduction of subject indexing with the MLAIB for 1981. However, there is still no serial bibliography that thoroughly covers bibliographical scholarship.

For an evaluation of the indexing of studies in the history of the book, see John van Hook, “The Indexes to Current Work on the History of the Book: A Review Article,” Analytical and Enumerative Bibliography ns 6.1 (1992): 10–19.

U5275

Book History Online (BHO). Ed. Matthew McLean. Brill Online Bibliographies. Brill, 2012. 18 Jan. 2013. <http://bibliographies.brillonline.com/browse/book-history-online>.

ABHB: Annual Bibliography of the History of the Printed Book and Libraries: [1970–2000] (ABHB). Dordrecht: Springer, 1973–2006. Annual. Z117.A55 016.00155′2.

A bibliography of scholarship (including dissertations and reviews) on the history of the printed book since the fifteenth century and the arts, crafts, and techniques involved in its production, distribution, and description throughout the world. ABHB excludes discussions of manuscripts before the invention of printing and modern technical processes, as well as most textual studies. Entries are organized in 12 divisions: general; paper, inks, printing materials; calligraphy, type design, type founding; layout, composition, printing, presses; illustration; binding; book trade and publishing; book collecting; libraries and librarianship; legal, economic, and social aspects of book history; newspapers, periodicals, and journalism; other subjects. Except for the last—which is organized by Dewey Decimal Classification—each division has sections for general studies and countries, with the latter subdivided by century and then persons, places, or subjects, depending on the topic of the division. Two indexes: scholars and anonymous titles; geographic and personal names discussed. Cumulative index: vols. 1–17, Cumulated Subject Index, ed. Hendrik D. L. Vervliet, vol. 17a (1989): 209 pp. ABHB was sometimes far behind in coverage (with volumes typically including several retrospective entries), inconsistent in indexing journals ostensibly scanned on a regular basis, and frequently inaccurate in transcription and classification (though its accuracy in both areas improved in the later volumes). For a detailed evaluation of ABHB, see B. J. McMullin, “Indexing the Periodical Literature of Anglo-American Bibliography,” Studies in Bibliography 33 (1980): 1–17.

Book History Online both cumulates and continues ABHB (although the records from early volumes have not yet been added to the database). Search allows for a keyword search of the entire record; Advanced Search allows searches of full text, author, title, publisher, ISBN, ISSN, and DOI. Results, which are listed in ascending order by date, can be filtered in various ways (e.g., document type, language, subject keyword), depending on the content of records returned. The search interface used for Brill Online Bibliographies is not sophisticated enough to permit refined searches, but the welcome revival of BHO in 2013 means that book historians are no longer without an adequate bibliography of international scholarship.

Selected studies before 1970 are listed in these works:

  • Myers, Robin. The British Book Trade from Caxton to the Present Day: A Bibliographical Guide Based on the Libraries of the National Book League and St. Bride Institute. London: Deutsch, 1973. 405 pp. Although this work is a highly selective and sometimes idiosyncratic list of English-language books, it is far superior to Paul A. Winckler, History of Books and Printing: A Guide to Information Sources (Detroit: Gale, 1979; 209 pp.; Books, Publishing, and Libs. Information Guide Ser. 2), which omits too many significant works and is replete with errors.

  • “A Selective Check List of Bibliographical Scholarship for [1949–72].” Studies in Bibliography 3–27 (1950–74). A list of works on printing and publishing history, bibliography, and textual criticism, with an emphasis on Western literature, especially English and American. Although selective, it is the best general bibliography of pre-1970 scholarship. The bibliographies for 1949 through 1955 are reprinted with corrections and a cumulative index as vol. 10 (1957); those for 1956 through 1962 are reprinted with a cumulative index as Selective Check Lists of Bibliographical Scholarship, Series B, 1956–1962, ed. Howell J. Heaney and Rudolf Hirsch (Charlottesville: UP of Virginia for Bibliog. Soc. of the U of Virginia, 1966; 247 pp.).

Additional reviews are listed in Index to Reviews of Bibliographical Publications: An International Annual, [1976–85] (Troy: Whitston, 1977–91; vol. 1 was also published as Analytical and Enumerative Bibliography 1.4 [1977]), an index of reviews (published in 300 to 400 journals) of general bibliographical books and articles; studies of the book trade and printing history and of bibliographies, editions, concordances; and manuscript studies of English and American literature.

U5280

Bibliographie der Buch- und Bibliotheksgeschichte, [1980–2003] (BBB). Bad Iburg: Meyer, 1982–2004. Annual. Z4.B54 016.002.

A bibliography of books, articles, and reviews on bibliography and the history of the book and libraries. Although originally limited to scholarship on German-speaking countries, coverage was international at its demise. Entries are organized in eight variously classified divisions: general studies (including sections for bibliographies of bibliographies, national bibliographies, and analytical and descriptive bibliography); individual authors; book production (including sections for handwriting and typography, composition, printing, paper, illustration, and binding); types of printed works (including children’s books, periodicals, newspapers, and ephemera); bookselling, publishing, book collecting, libraries, and bookplates; readers and reading; curiosa; and reviews. Five indexes: scholars; reviewers; persons as subjects; places; subjects. Although it overlaps considerably with ABHB: Annual Bibliography of the History of the Printed Book (U5275), BBB was somewhat more current and accurate (however, like ABHB, it contains numerous errors, misclassifications, and omissions). The two should be used together. Reviews: B. J. McMullin, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 79.2 (1985): 260–62; 80.2 (1986): 263–65; 81.1 (1987): 81–82.

See also

Secs. G: Serial Bibliographies, Indexes, and Abstracts and H: Guides to Dissertations and Theses.

ABELL (G340): Bibliography division.

MLAIB (G335): See the Bibliographical heading in the General division in volumes for 1935–52; General III: Bibliographical in the volumes for 1953–55; General IX: Bibliographical in the volumes for 1956–66; General VI: Bibliographical in the volumes for 1967–69; General V: Bibliographical in the volumes for 1970–80; and the Bibliographical division in pt. 4 of the later volumes. Researchers must also consult the headings beginning “Analytical Bibliography,” “Bibliographical,” “Bibliography” “Textual,” “Print,” “Printed,” “Printer’s,” “Printing,” and “Publishing” in the subject index to post-1980 volumes or in the online thesaurus.

YWES (G330): Chapter on Reference, Literary History, and Bibliography since vol. 66 (for 1985).

Other Bibliographies

U5283

Baker, William, and Kenneth Womack, comps. Twentieth-Century Bibliography and Textual Criticism: An Annotated Bibliography. Westport: Greenwood, 2000. 262 pp. Bibliogs. and Indexes in Lib. and Information Science 13. Z1002.B28 016.011.

A selective, annotated bibliography of twentieth-century English-language studies (published through 1998) relating to Anglo-American bibliography and textual studies. The 769 entries are organized alphabetically by author under six divisions: general bibliographical or textual studies; analytical bibliography; descriptive bibliography; textual criticism; historical bibliography; and enumerative bibliography. The annotations are descriptive, though the ones for collections of essays simply list authors and titles; most users would benefit from more attention to how a particular work fits into developments in editorial theory, bibliographical concepts (such as copy-text), and textual issues (e.g., authorial intention). Selection is generally judicious, except in the enumerative bibliography division, which includes an unsystematic sprinkling of enumerative bibliographies among works about the subject. Three indexes: authors; titles; subjects (which offers the best access to works about a topic). Although the lack of a list of journal acronyms will prevent some users from locating articles, Twentieth-Century Bibliography and Textual Criticism provides a much-needed guide to the theory and method of bibliography and textual criticism.

The fullest lists of publications on bibliography and textual criticism are G. Thomas Tanselle, Introduction to Scholarly Editing: Seminar Syllabus, 18th rev. (Charlottesville: Book Arts, 2002; 257 pp.) and Introduction to Bibliography: Seminar Syllabus, 19th rev. (2002; 370 pp.); both are online at http://rarebookschool.org/tanselle.

U5285

Index to Selected Bibliographical Journals, 1933–1970. London: Bibliog. Soc., 1982. 316 pp. Z1002.I573 016.002.

Barr, Bernard. ““The Bibliographical Society: Index to Selected Bibliographical Journals (Addenda)”.” Library 6th ser. 9.1 (1987): 44–52.

Feather, John. An Index to Selected Bibliographical Journals, 1971–1985. Oxford: Oxford Bibliog. Soc., 1991. 134 pp. Occasional Pub. 23. Z1002.I5732 016.002.

An author and subject index to signed articles, notes, and some letters—but not reviews—published for the most part from 1933 through 1969 in 11 major bibliographical journals, with coverage for 6 continued for 1971–85 in Feather’s supplement. Under each author or subject, 1933–1970 lists entries alphabetically by journal, then chronologically by publication date; Feather lists entries alphabetically by title under author heads, by author under subject heads. Because 1933–1970 is derived from a Bodleian Library card index that was compiled over several years by various persons, there are numerous errors in transcriptions, oversights (e.g., an entire volume of Library was omitted, although it is indexed in Barr’s addenda), and inconsistencies in subject headings. Subject indexing is frequently superficial or inaccurate because of the reliance on title keywords. Feather offers superior subject indexing but unaccountably fails to continue coverage of Studies in Bibliography and Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America—two of the most important bibliographical journals—or to replace journals no longer published with AEB: Analytical and Enumerative Bibliography or TEXT: An Interdisciplinary Annual of Textual Studies. The general untrustworthiness of 1933–1970, the failure to index volumes published in 1970, and the unacceptable reduction in coverage offered by 1971–1985 underscore Feather’s prefatory remark that “bibliography has not been well served by indexers.” Indeed, it is unfortunate to have to say that 1933–1970, Barr’s addenda, and Feather constitute the single best index to this body of publications. They must, however, be supplemented by the serial bibliographies in section U: Literature-Related Topics and Sources/Bibliography and Textual Criticism/Guides to Scholarship/Serial Bibliographies. Review: (1933–1970) B. J. McMullin, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 78.1 (1984): 57–67. A major desideratum remains a full and accurate index to bibliographical publications.

U5288

Luey, Beth. Editing Documents and Texts: An Annotated Bibliography. Madison: Madison House, 1990. 289 pp. Z5165.L83 [PN162] 016.808′027.

A highly selective bibliography of English-language publications (through 1988) on the editing of postclassical historical documents and literary texts. Although prefatory matter to editions is excluded, some reviews of editions are listed. The approximately 900 entries are organized in a single alphabetical author list. Each entry consists of the citation, a list of keywords that serve as headings in the subject index, and a brief descriptive annotation. There is a list of mystery novels in which documents, manuscripts, or editors figure prominently. Indexed by subject. Several entries are for inconsequential or outdated discussions, there are some significant omissions, most annotations are too brief or general to convey an adequate sense of a work’s content or place in the controversy over a topic or the development of scholarly editing, readers would benefit from more cross-references, and through-numbering would allow for easier location of entries; yet Luey serves as a convenient preliminary guide to the basic works on the theory and practice of textual editing. The prefatory “Suggestions for Teaching” offers useful advice for those preparing a course in editing. Review: Mary Ann O’Donnell, Analytical and Enumerative Bibliography ns 4.2 (1990): 134–37.

U5290

Tanselle, G. Thomas. Guide to the Study of United States Imprints. 2 vols. Cambridge: Belknap–Harvard UP, 1971. Z1215.A2 T35 016.015′73.

A bibliography of published research through 1969 on printing and publishing in the United States. Entries are organized geographically and then chronologically by date of coverage or publication in most of the nine divisions: regional lists; genre lists (by type, form, or subject); author lists (limited essentially to descriptive bibliographies or lists of editions); published copyright records; important or representative auction, booksellers’, exhibition, and library catalogs; retrospective book trade directories; studies of individual printers and publishers; general studies; checklists of secondary material. Some entries cite selected reviews. An appendix lists 250 essential works on printing and publishing in the United States. Indexed by persons, publishers, and subjects. Users must be certain to read the introduction, which clearly outlines the scope and organization of each division, cites additional sources, and offers valuable advice on the uses of each type of work listed and on research procedures. Tanselle, while not comprehensive, nonetheless offers the fullest list of published research through 1969 on printing and publishing in the country and is an important source for locating reference works that will identify a particular printed book. For studies published after 1969, consult ABHB: Annual Bibliography of the History of the Printed Book (U5275). Review: Hensley C. Woodbridge, Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 67.3 (1973): 351–56.

See also

Howard-Hill, Index to British Literary Bibliography (M1355).

Leary, Articles on American Literature (Q3295).

New Cambridge Bibliography of English Literature (M1385).

Woodress, Dissertations in American Literature, 1891–1966 (Q3320).