- Paperback: 160 pages
- Publisher: Touchstone; Touchstone ed edition (Mar 4 2003)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0743241754
- ISBN-13: 978-0743241755
- Product Dimensions: 21.7 x 14 x 1.1 cm
- Shipping Weight: 159 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#261,056 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #40 in Books > Reference > Publishing & Books > Bibliographies & Indexes > History
- #45 in Books > Reference > Writing > Editing
- #57 in Books > Reference > Writing > Academic & Commercial
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
We seem to be enjoying a tribute to scholarly impedimenta lately: first Anthony Grafton's The Footnote: A Curious History (1999), then H.J. Jackson's Marginalia: Readers Writing in Books (2001) and now another study of the footnote. At the risk of deflating public excitement over the birth of a new genre, one has to wonder where this obsession with the nonessential is coming from. Zerby has rightly deduced that a study so confined in its subject has to amuse as well as inform, and his book is full of efforts to charm. But the desired manner erudite but whimsical is difficult to sustain under the best of circumstances. Zerby is so intent on manufacturing interesting annotations that his text suffers in consequence. The thread of the narrative is split so often, it becomes irreparably frayed; at times the book seems itself like one long digression. It might have had a better shot at winning a following of history-of-the-book loyalists had it not been preceded by Grafton's. As it stands, it is hard to argue that the market can bear two studies both trade-oriented, both historical, both abounding in their own parentheticals and asides. Even their design is similar from twenty feet, the books are nearly indistinguishable. Nevertheless, the scrutiny of bibliophiles, once unleashed, should not be underestimated. Perhaps the myopic pleasures of the footnote will catch on. If not, Zerby's work will, no doubt, at least be immortalized in citation for years to come.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.From Library Journal
Beyond their basic function as a source of information and reference at the bottom of a page, can footnotes be a source of excitement, delight, and surprise? Maybe not in the eyes of most, especially students, novice writers, and some publishers. But Zerby, a former columnist and former dean of campus at Goddard, finds a lot to say, and convincingly so, for footnotes that do more than merely cite sources. He traces footnotes back to the 16th century, relating the story of the first genuine footnote and other trivia, such as a footnote that comprised a whole volume and another that served as the clue to a murder mystery. Alas, footnotes lost prestige when they became endnotes and were relegated to the back of books beginning in the 1950s. The author takes note of their unclear status in the new 21st-century electronic environment. Hardly stuffy or trivial, this is a unique book that is also entertaining, factual, and a good read. As if to live up to its title, this lighthearted but factual small volume has footnotes on nearly every page; there is even one on its cover. Highly recommended for all literary collections, this is a very good addition to most public and academic libraries. Ali Houissa, Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
THE NEED FOR AN ADEQUATE* book on footnotes is obvious. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt
THE NEED FOR AN ADEQUATE* book on footnotes is obvious. Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
My footnote to the 1-star review,
By Phillip Bocci (Greensboro, NC USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Devil's Details: A History of Footnotes (Paperback)
Don't listen to the reviewer who purports to give Zerby 0 stars, that review isn't worth your while. Try this, instead: I'm trying to delve into the study of footnotes (non-scholarly). Grafton's work relies too heavily on scholarly use. Kevin Jackson's Invisible Forms only lends the footnote a chapter. So Zerby, as of now, is the happy medium. And yes, he rambles. Yes, the book weaves in and out of direction. But that's the point, and assuming you'd encounter otherwise is somewhat deluded. If you accept Zerby's offering for what it is, and roll with the punches the book provides, you might learn a thing or two about how the footnote has evolved (AND discover a few interesting original sources to peruse later)!
1.0 out of 5 stars
Trivial, oh so trivial,
By
This review is from: The Devil's Details: A History of the Footnote (Hardcover)
This is a zero star book. I read about half and then skimmed the rest because I couldn't take the torture and I read for enjoyment and education, not as a form of masochism. I picked this book up because I am an editor/writer and love the English language, including its more obscure aspects. This book, however, offers nothing of value. The basis for the book appears to be the author's one semi-bright idea: that there can be a kind of interplay between text and footnote, which some authors exploit to good effect. Unfortunately, Zerby does not fall into that category.One needn't rack his or her brains for an appropriate and clever adjective to describe this book. It is simply stupid -- on every conceivable level. The scholarship on the beginnings of the footnote is suspect at best; the footnoting and comments on such are pompous and totally subjective; the ironic, "this is so trivial it must be amusing" tone is after a few pages damned irritating; and the author engages in an orgy of name dropping and jumps from one subject to another to make himself sound erudite, when it is clear he doesn't know what the hell he is talking about -- how does a book like this get published? As for those people who report to have enjoyed this pointless mush, fyi: readig a book that makes reference to obscure texts and a handful of name authors does not make you clever. Try reading a few of the originals instead.
5.0 out of 5 stars
book critic in love,
By Nicole (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Devil's Details: A History of the Footnote (Hardcover)
You will laugh, you will cry, you will beg for more from this mercurial clown of literary criticism and history! For those of you who are refreshed by sets of ten point text at the bottom of your current volume, or for those who are wondering just what good are they. Timely, appropriate, and altogether brilliant. Charles Zerby, we love you and your precious, precious footnotes.
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