An Odyssey in Print: Adventures in the Smithsonian Libraries
by:
Thomas, Mary Augusta (Foreword)
Gwinn, Nancy E. (Corporate Author)
Publisher:
Smithsonian Books
Published:May, 2002
ISBN:1588340368
Format:Hardcover
Pages:182
Description:
From Publishers Weekly
Accompanying the Smithsonian Libraries exhibition of the same name, this glossy volume is a catalogue of some of the most noteworthy volumes among the Libraries' holdings of 1.5 million books and manuscripts, beautifully
illustrated with reproductions from the materials themselves. Curator of the Smithsonian's exhibition, Thomas organizes this fascinating tour of the collection around the theme of journeys. The first section, "Journeys Over Land and Sea," combines early
European texts documenting the New World with later European and American books about air and space travel, like an early German children's book about a zeppelin voyage to "Neuyork," or the signed frontispiece of First on the Moon, by Neil Armstrong. The
second section, "Journeys of the Mind," reproduces documents by scientists who explored the earth and hypothesized about the heavens, from detailed wildlife illustrations to a page from Johannes Kepler's Prologue to a dissertation on a description of the
universe. The final section shows off the work of artists, writers, architects and commercial illustrators who were "explorers of the imagination." Thomas's introductory essay offers a capsule history of the Smithsonian Libraries, as well as details
about the conservation and restoration of priceless volumes. The book also includes personal takes on the libraries by Pulitzer Prize-winning literary critic Michael Dirda of the Washington Post Book World, and Storrs L. Olson, senior curator in the
Division of Birds at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. This is a delight for bibliophiles and general readers alike.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Track your book collections, book libraries with our software:
- tiny libraries, personal book collections: try our simple book organizer
- for small libraries we offer small and powerful library software for Windows
#commissionsearned
PrimaSoft, as an Amazon Associate, receives a commission from qualifying purchases made on the affiliate links we share.