''The Book Collector'' is a

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

based journal that deals with all aspects of the book. It is published quarterly and exists in both paper and digital form. It prints independent opinions on subjects ranging from typography to national heritage policy, from medieval libraries to modern first editions. It has run series on Unfamiliar Libraries, Literary and Scientific Autographs, Author Societies, Bookbinding, Contemporary Collectors, Bibliophiles, and many other subjects.

History

An earlier series that preceded the ''Book Collector'' was the ''Book Handbook''. ''The Book Collector'' was launched by the novelist

Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., a ...

in the same year, 1952, that he wrote the first

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

novel, '' Casino Royale''. This has been discussed at the TLS. The journal has had only four editors since it was founded. After the death in 1965 of

John Davy Hayward John Davy Hayward CBE (2 February 1905 – 17 September 1965) was an English editor, critic, anthologist and bibliophile. Early life Hayward was educated at Gresham's School and in France before going up to King's College, Cambridge in 1923 t ...

, the friend and muse of

T.S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National B ...

, it was edited for fifty years by

Nicolas Barker Nicolas John Barker (born 1932) is a British historian of printing and books. He was Head of Conservation at the British Library from 1976 to 1992 and is a former editor of ''The Book Collector''. A bibliography of his work was published to m ...

, sometime publisher and first head of conservation at the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

. He gave a presentation on the history of ''The Book Collector'' at the

Caxton Club The Caxton Club is a private social club and bibliophilic society founded in Chicago in 1895 to promote the book arts and the history of the book. To further its goals, the club holds monthly (September through June) dinner meetings and luncheo ...

in 1998. In 2015 he stepped down and James Fergusson, founding obituaries editor of ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 1986-2007, took his place. Essays about book collecting by

Geoffrey Keynes Sir Geoffrey Langdon Keynes ( ; 25 March 1887, Cambridge – 5 July 1982, Cambridge) was a British surgeon and author. He began his career as a physician in World War I, before becoming a doctor at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London, where h ...

in the ''Book Collector'' have been published in a compilation volume.

Highlights

Some articles of particular interest include "Our Literary Banquet," a fantasy banquet for bibliophiles with place settings (2021); "National Trust Libraries"(2005);"In Search of Missing Copies of Shakespeare's First Folio"(1994); “The Elmer Belt Library of Vinciana”(1989);"Russian Bookbinding from the 11th to the Middle of the 17th Century;" and a series on the Biblotheca Thuana.

Publication

''The Book Collector'' publishes four times a year in March, June, September and December. Each issue consists of 192pp and is sent to subscribers by airmail, where appropriate. Subscribers also have digital access to every issue of ''The Book Collector'', as printed, since its first appearance in 1952 and to its predecessor ''Book Handbook'', which was published in twenty-eight numbers between 1947 and 1951. There is no restriction for libraries and other institutions on the number of digital users. ''The Book Collectors website holds its complete archive, indexed.

Podcasts

''The Book Collector'' produces Podcasts at Soundcloud. The Book Collector
Soundcloud
/ref> Episodes include: "

: A Personal Memoir" by P.H. Muir, read by Rupert Vansittart; "Portrait Of A Bibliophile XVI:

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and politi ...

1819-1900" by James S. Dearden; and 'Scribes in Ice and Darkness' by Fergus Fleming.

Publication details

References

External links

Official website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Book Collector Book collecting Business magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines published in London Magazines established in 1952 Bookbinding *