An Odyssey in Print: Adventures in the Smithsonian Libraries

Rating:
Summary: Journey Through the Smithsonian Libraries
Review: "An Odyssey in Print" is primarily the catalogue of an on-going (through May 2003) exhibition at the Smithsonian Libraries. The exhibition highlights some of the rarest, most beautiful and most interesting works in the Libraries' collections, loosely organized around the theme of "journeys" -- real, imagined and metaphorical. Saying the organization is "loose" is being generous -- in fact, the organization is almost haphazard (books that reflect real journeys show up in the section on journeys over land, but also in the section on journeys of the mind) and seems to have been imposed after-the-fact on books that were selected primarily for their historical or aesthetic importance (for example, the trade literature in the final pages probably has historical importance, but it's a tight squeeze to force it into the "journeys" theme). Nevertheless, the books selected are invariably interesting and many are beautiful -- if you are a lover of books or of natural history, you will enjoy browsing through the catalogue, without regard to the somewhat sloppy curating. A brief paragraph summarizing the background and significance of each book in the catalogue is included along with very nice reproductions of one or more of the book's illustrations.

What I found most intriguing were the introductory essays. Michael Dirda provides an eloquent paean to the joys of reading and the mystique of libraries, where everything is possible. Mary Augusta Thomas, the exhibition curator, covers the history of the Smithsonian Libraries and their collections. Most interesting to me was the essay by Storrs Olson, Senior Curator of the Division of Birds, National Museum of Natural History, who discusses the importance of the Libraries and their historical collections to the on-going work of science. It's easy to look at the books exhibited in this volume and see them only as objects, as magnificent illustrations of the book arts or historical curiosities, but Olson makes it clear that these books have continuing life and utility for those who care for them. Recommended for anyone interested in the the book arts, the history of the book or the history of science.

Rating:
Summary: Journey Through the Smithsonian Libraries
Review: "An Odyssey in Print" is primarily the catalogue of an on-going (through May 2003) exhibition at the Smithsonian Libraries. The exhibition highlights some of the rarest, most beautiful and most interesting works in the Libraries' collections, loosely organized around the theme of "journeys" -- real, imagined and metaphorical. Saying the organization is "loose" is being generous -- in fact, the organization is almost haphazard (books that reflect real journeys show up in the section on journeys over land, but also in the section on journeys of the mind) and seems to have been imposed after-the-fact on books that were selected primarily for their historical or aesthetic importance (for example, the trade literature in the final pages probably has historical importance, but it's a tight squeeze to force it into the "journeys" theme). Nevertheless, the books selected are invariably interesting and many are beautiful -- if you are a lover of books or of natural history, you will enjoy browsing through the catalogue, without regard to the somewhat sloppy curating. A brief paragraph summarizing the background and significance of each book in the catalogue is included along with very nice reproductions of one or more of the book's illustrations.

What I found most intriguing were the introductory essays. Michael Dirda provides an eloquent paean to the joys of reading and the mystique of libraries, where everything is possible. Mary Augusta Thomas, the exhibition curator, covers the history of the Smithsonian Libraries and their collections. Most interesting to me was the essay by Storrs Olson, Senior Curator of the Division of Birds, National Museum of Natural History, who discusses the importance of the Libraries and their historical collections to the on-going work of science. It's easy to look at the books exhibited in this volume and see them only as objects, as magnificent illustrations of the book arts or historical curiosities, but Olson makes it clear that these books have continuing life and utility for those who care for them. Recommended for anyone interested in the the book arts, the history of the book or the history of science.