- Hardcover: 336 pages
- Publisher: Yale University Press; 1st Edition edition (Jan 11 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0300082134
- ISBN-13: 978-0300082135
- Product Dimensions: 2.4 x 1.6 x 0.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 658 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,856,012 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Kirkus Reviews
Benton (English/Pacific Lutheran Univ.) explores the clash between cultural purists and preying capitalists in the publishing worlds mad rush to create deluxe editions of distinguished authors during the 1920s and '30s. In this boom of fine editions of literary classics, was the goal of the post-WWI publishing industry to illuminate the darkened masses, to finesse the egos of a wealthy generation of parvenus, or to preserve the art of the word for a self-determined cultural elite? Benton answers this question by interrogating the historical record of the publishing world and the lives of the men and women who directed it in the early years of the 20th century. With witty anecdotes that enliven and sharpen her narrative, the publishing giants of yesteryear come alive, complete with the personality wrinkles which line their character. Firecracker Beatrice Ward, stodgy Porter Garnett (who made his employees work under a depiction of Gods eye), and mercenary Bennett Cerf, among others, participated in an unparalleled publishing phenomenon: the marketing of exquisitely handcrafted books, selling for outrageous sums to customers wealthy enough to afford them. Reacting to the mass industrialization of the world around them, these printers worked to create an artistic form for books that mirrored their delicious content. Noble objectives notwithstanding, filthy lucre never fully disappeared from the purity of the projectthis paradox reaching its height as publishers cashed in on the supposed anti-commercialism of their project to sell more and more titles. Bentons lucid prose exposes this fault line between vision and reality with good humor and rigid research, resulting in the most readable of scholarly tomes. A fine book about fine books, Bentons study will delight bibliophiles with its clever mix of history, anecdote, and analysis. -- Copyright ©2000, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
Book Description
Beauty and the Book is a cultural history of the craze for fine books which began after WWI and ended with the Depression. Benton begins by describing the massive public demand for fine editions, and the anxieties about class, literacy and culture which this craze reflected. She goes on to tell the stories of a range of publishers (from Bennet Cerf at Random House to owners of small, private presses) who catered to this demand by producing absurdly expensive editions, whose prices were justified both by the materials used (vellum, gold leaf, etc.) and the labor intensive processes by which they were created. Ostensibly, these limited editions were an antidote to the rise of mass literacy, and the consequent decline in literary taste. Unlike cheap romances and magazines, these limited editions (usually of classic works) embodied a pre-industrial ideal of "high" culture. Using fine editions as a jumping off point, Benton highlights the many aspirations and investments that swirl around book reading and book buying. Particularly at time in which the book as physical object is being challenged by new technologies, Beauty and the Book describes an extreme version of the materialistic concerns and attachments that are always one aspect of book buying and reading.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding and involving -- a bibliophile's pleasure.,
By Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Beauty and the Book: Fine Editions and Cultural Distinction in America (Hardcover)
This cultural history of post-World War I publishing and fine editions provides a narrower focus than most books on publishing, considering how deluxe editions evolved, how publishers came to specialize in the limited edition book market, and how their personalities influenced their creations. Any bibliophile will find this outstanding and involving.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
5.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews) 5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding and involving -- a bibliophile's pleasure.,
By Midwest Book Review - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Beauty and the Book: Fine Editions and Cultural Distinction in America (Hardcover)
This cultural history of post-World War I publishing and fine editions provides a narrower focus than most books on publishing, considering how deluxe editions evolved, how publishers came to specialize in the limited edition book market, and how their personalities influenced their creations. Any bibliophile will find this outstanding and involving.
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
essential reading,
By Jerad Walters - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Beauty and the Book: Fine Editions and Cultural Distinction in America (Hardcover)
This is a very well-written account of the fine and private press in the United States, including accounts of the Limited Editions Club and Bruce Rogers and all those people. It attacks the self-indulgence, or at least exposes, of the era. I am more and more convinced that Bruce Rogers simply did not know what he was doing except for a few instances. His work is devoid of character and completely lacking in the intelligent use of white space. The same must be said for Dwiggins' misguided attempt at a title page for H. G. Wells' The Time Machine, which is a disaster in my view. The only people that look interesting here is the Black Sun Press. A good read all in all, makes you think, made my change my assumptions about a lot of things. She exposes the fact that most of these books were machine printed, machine bound, on machine made paper.
|
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
- Books > Arts & Photography > History & Criticism
- Books > History > Historical Study > Social History
- Books > Home & Garden > Antiques & Collectibles > Books
- Books > Nonfiction > Social Sciences > Library & Information Science
- Books > Nonfiction > Social Sciences > Sociology
- Books > Reference > Publishing & Books
- Books > Reference > Writing > Journalism
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
