The emergence of print in late fifteenth-century Italy gave a crucial new importance to the editors of texts, who could strongly influence the interpretation and status of texts by determining the form and context in which they would be read. Brian Richardson examines the Renaissance production, circulation and reception of texts by earlier writers including Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio and Ariosto, as well as popular contemporary works of entertainment. In so doing he sheds light on the impact of the new printing and editing methods on Renaissance culture.

When printing first began, a new book automatically fell into the public domain upon publication. Only a special law or privilegium enacted by a competent authority could protect it from being reprinted without the consent of the author or publisher. Such privileges for books are attested before 1480, but in Germany and Italy their efficacy was limited to a relatively small area by the political fragmentation of the country. During the 1480s and 1490s France became one of Europe's main centres of book production and, as competition intensified, privileges were sought there from 1498. Although...

This book is about the radical transformation of British literary culture during the period 1880 to 1914 as seen through the early publishing careers of Joseph Conrad, Arnold Bennett and Arthur Conan Doyle. Peter D. McDonald examines the cultural politics of the period by considering the social structure of the literary world in which these writers worked. By tracing the complex network of relationships among writers, publishers, reviewers and readers, McDonald demonstrates the importance of social history and publishing to questions of critical interpretation.

This book is about the radical transformation of British literary culture during the period 1880 to 1914 as seen through the early publishing careers of Joseph Conrad, Arnold Bennett and Arthur Conan Doyle. Peter D. McDonald examines the cultural politics of the period by considering the social structure of the literary world in which these writers worked. By tracing the complex network of relationships among writers, publishers, reviewers and readers, McDonald demonstrates the importance of social history and publishing to questions of critical interpretation.

Explores how the idea of rare books was shaped by collectors, traders and libraries from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries.

Explores how the idea of rare books was shaped by collectors, traders and libraries from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. Using examples from across Europe, David McKitterick looks at how rare books developed from being desirable objects of largely private interest to become public and even national concerns.