A Passion for Books

by D. Salwak (Editor)

Overview

Leading writers and critics, including Margaret Drabble, Alan Sillitoe and Ferdinand Mount, share their passion for books and the joys of reading in an inspiring collection of essays and writings. A Passion for Books is both a celebration of the value and importance of reading and a spirited defence against the many gloomy voices in our so-called electronic age who say the book will soon be obsolete. This book, itself a joy to read, is written for anyone who cares at all about the past and future of books and reading.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780333714485
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan UK
Publication date:	04/23/1999
Edition description:	1999
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	6.69(w) x 9.61(h) x (d)

About the Author

FRANCES H. BACHELDER Poet, non-fiction author, concert pianist and teacher for over forty years JOHN BAYLEY Leading critic, author of numerous books including 5 novels and former Fellow and Tutor at New College, Oxford GILL DAVIES Managing Director and Publisher MARGARET DRABBLE World-renowned Author and Editor ELIZABETH L. EISENSTEIN former Alice Freeman Palmer Professor of History and authority on print-culture at the University of Michigan MICHAEL ELLIS former President of the International Brotherhood of Magicians, he was previously an actor, stage manager and producer JOSEPH EPSTEIN has written twelve books and is the editor of The Norton Book of Personal Essays MARY GORDON best-selling novelist and Professor of English at Barnard College NINA KING one of the leading literary journalists in the USA and editor of Book World (Sunday Literary Supplement of the Washington Post) LAURENCE LERNER Author, critic and Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature JEFFREY MEYERS Acclaimed biographer and Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature FERDINAND MOUNT author of The Subversive Family (1982), The British Constitution Now (1992) LAURA L. NAGY college administrator, instructor, and freelance editor and writer CATHERINE PETERS worked in publishing before teaching at Oxford University and is now a writer JAMES SHAPIRO Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University ALAN SILLITOE Acclaimed novelist for over 30 years and author of Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, and his most recent book is The Broken Chariot G. THOMAS TANSELLE Vice President of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and Adjunct Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. He has written extensively on print-culture ANNE THWAITE Author of children's books and numerous biographies, Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and a Churchill Fellowship

Table of Contents

Preface Acknowledgements Notes on the Contributors PART ONE: CONTEMPORARY TRENDS The Pleasure of Reading; J.Epstein Other Worlds to Inhabit; J.Bayley Casaabon's Syndrome, or Reader Rampant; F.Mount Books in My Life; G.T.Tanselle PART TWO: BOOKS OF OUR OWN Hooked...; N.King Mountains and Caverns; A.Sillitoe Obsessed by Thomas Mann; J.Meyers Encountering Philip Larkin; D.Salwak Devouring of the Printed Page; A.Thwaite Discovering Jane Eyre ; C.Peters The Radiant Way and After; M.Drabble Reading My Father; M.Gordon Into Terra Nova: A Crossing with Books; L.L.Nagy Sine Qua Non; F.H.Bachelder The Performer and the Reader; M.Ellis PART THREE: FUTURE CONCERNS Literature Without Books? L.Lerner The Sad Demise of the Personal Library; J.Shapiro The Future of the Academic Book; G.Davies The End of the Book? Some Perspectives on Media Change; E.L.Eisenstein Related Works Index

Editorial Reviews

"Good browsing material and a terrific source for anyone called upon to pontificate about books and reading." - Booklist

"Book enthusiasts will find this collection... both familiar and reassuring, while younger readers will find much here to inspire them to pursue what could become a lifelong passion for the printed word." - Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher