Den litterære jæger (arkiv)

Alle bøgers bog

Hvis man som undertegnede er bibliofil, litterat og forfatter, så kan man jo bare ikke få bøger nok. Men hvad der er endnu værre - man kan ikke få bøger om bøger nok. Derfor bugner mine hylder af alskens meta-bøger. Den store bog om krimier, kæmpenoteværker til enkelte klassiske værker og så selvfølgelig alle bøgerne bag, om, over og i det hele tagende vedrørende bogen.

Men nu kan man tilsyneladende endelig slappe af. For nu er den her - Bøgernes Bog. Det er Oxford University Press - der laver de mest fremragende “ledsagere”, de såkaldte companions til både dette og hint - som har lavet bogen med den fabelagtige titel: The Oxford Companion to the Book. Intet mindre. Og jeg skal hilse at sige, at den ser lovende ud.

Til januar kan man holde den i hånden, hvis man da har kræfter nok i sin bibliotekarhånd til at holde over en million ord - svarende over 1400 sider - i én hånd.

Teksten nedenfor er produktbeskrivelsen fra Amazon.com i sin helhed.

Og til dem, der endnu ikke har lært, hvordan bøger egentlig virker, er der et link her til en virkelig god, norsk introduktion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zotTf0G9STM

“Product description: The Oxford Companion to the Book is a unique work of reference, covering the book, broadly conceived, throughout the world from ancient to modern times. It includes traditional subjects such as bibliography, palaeography, the history of printing, editorial theory and practice, textual criticism, book collecting, and libraries, but it also engages with newer disciplines such as the history of the book and the electronic book. It pays particular attention to how different societies shape books and how books shape societies. The two-volume work is organized in two parts, totalling a million words. The first part is a substantial series of introductory essays, making up about a third of the text. Nineteen of the essays provide generic histories of the subject ranging from writing systems, the ancient and the medieval book, through central aspects of book production, to theories of text, editorial theory and textual criticism, the economics of print, and the sacred book. These are complemented by 29 surveys of the history of the book around the world, including the Muslim world, Asia, Latin America, and Sub-Saharan Africa. The second part of the Companion comprises an A-Z section of over 5,000 entries on every aspect of this exceptionally rich and diverse subject, ranging from brief definitions and biographical entries to more extensive treatments of up to 2,000 words. The two parts are linked by thorough cross-referencing (both between and within the sections) and the whole is also served by a general index and a classified index of entries. The text is illustrated throughout with reproductions, diagrams, and examples of various typographical features. The contents of the book have been planned around the following scheme which aptly illustrates the breadth and depth of this most interdisciplinary of subjects: § book genres of every kind including dictionaries, government documents, and music § all aspects of the physical book, and a generous coverage of individual bookbinders, paper-makers, typographers, type-founders, and designers § authorship, including issues of attribution, authors’ societies and communities, forgeries and hoaxes § the entire reproduction process over the centuries (in both Asia and the West), not forgetting individual engravers, illuminators, and illustrators § printers and publishers around the world, plus book-trade organizations, and patronage § intellectual property issues § distribution and sales, comprising international coverage of booksellers, as well as book clubs, auction houses, and advertising § preservation, covering not only libraries and library systems but also individual collectors, librarians, and professional associations § suppression of the book, including censorship and stamp acts, and issues surrounding blasphemy and pornography § scholarship, covering bibliography, editions, and scholarly centres and organizations, as well as numerous individual scholars in all parts of the world § aspects of reading and reception, including book organizations and literary prizes § a broad range of periodicals encompassing literary, professional and trade, and scholarly and bibliophile interests § named manuscripts, scripts, and individual scribes and calligraphers § individual books as exemplars of book history The Companion is the only reference book of its kind in the field. It has been written by 400 of the world’s best scholars in bibliography and book history, and will have an international readership. As appropriate to its subject matter, the finished book is designed to be both exceptionally practical and aesthetically pleasing.”