1) How useful were the pre-course readings?

1: The reading were helpful, but since most things in the readings were covered in class (& previous knowledge of them wasn't required), it will be helpful to read them now, after the course, 2: The ones I had time to do were helpful (but a bit dry - unlike the course). 3: Fairly useful; they provided background history and terminology which was useful. 4: Very useful. It is a special opportunity to take a course from an expert who has published important works on the subject and who is an authority on the subject. It was also nice to have the bibliography filled with other experts' writings. 5: They were quite useful. The advance readings were quite intelligible and effective even though I didn't have a chance to review all of them prior to my arrival at RBS. 6: Useful. 7: Very pertinent; I had to obtain most through interlibrary loan. 8: The readings were good, but I will be re-reading much of it. It makes more sense after hearing SA's lectures. 9: They were very useful, although I did not finish them all.

2) Were the course syllabus and other materials distributed in class useful (or will they be so in the future, after you return home)?

1: Very useful. 2: Yes - The timeline is helpful; the reading list looks good. 3: Yes, the bibliography as very useful since SA regularly referred to articles and books on the list, with interesting comments about the value of various works. 4: It was extremely helpful to have the collections of grain covers (boxed), slides, and original books from each decade. Also, the personal collection of brasses made the process of book stamping so real and exciting. I also enjoyed the documentation, specifically the correspondence between artists and publishers. 5: Yes, I will be referring to them for years to come. 6: Very useful. 7: Yes; they will definitely be useful in the future. 8: The syllabus was relevant; the boxes of cloth grains were especially useful. My partner and I referred to them at least daily. I hope TB will expand on this idea. 9: They were very, very helpful. RBS handouts are always invaluable, in my experience.

3) Was the intellectual level of the course content appropriate?

1: Yes. 2: Yes - looking at all these beautiful bindings was pure pleasure, but that is not to say that the course was not intellectually stimulating. In other RBS courses I have taken, my interest flagged at times; in this one, I felt interested and stimulated almost the entire week. 3: Yes. 4: I liked the level of the course. It was challenging and stimulating. I understand more about the periods and the stages of bookbinding. Although I knew so little when I walked in the door, it is amazing that now I can identify so much better. 5: Yes, it was very appropriate. I did not feel that I was talked down to or out of my league. The level was just about right. 6: Yes. I learned many things well beyond my previous knowledge. 7: Yes; I knew very little and learned a lot! 8: Yes. 9: It was quite stimulating; some times I felt quite slow, but SA's gentleness and support and the camaraderie of the class and Calvin Otto pulled me through times of failing confidence!

4) If your course had field trips, were they effective?

1: The time spent examining bindings from the BAP collections and Special Collections was extremely useful. 2: Yes, I think maybe a second trip to Special Collections would have been even more wonderful. 3: Yes, especially time spent in the Rotunda. That was a great opportunity to browse numerous bindings and actually handle the books. Also, it was great to have to describe the bindings, using terminology and background we had learned earlier in the day/week. 4: It was time very well spent. I enjoyed the visits to the Rotunda where we could apply our knowledge (in our exercises there). It is also a nice way to learn, because it exposed me to more materials, for example CO's wonderful exhibit. 5: Yes it was, although I might have liked a bit more time that was structured, perhaps, at our final visit to the Rotunda. 6: Yes. I thoroughly enjoyed the three afternoon sessions in the Rotunda. 7: Yes. 8: Yes! 9: Absolutely. The gems in Special Collections were stunning. The collections in the Rotunda gave me a chance to apply newly learned material immediately to lots of bindings.

5) Did the actual course content correspond to its RBS brochure description and Expanded Course Description (ECD)? Did the course in general meet your expectations? 1-2: Yes. 3: Mostly. I expected a little more on English bindings and binding designers after 1900. 4: Yes, I feel that the course content was exactly what I had anticipated. 5: Yes, it corresponded. I guess I thought there might have been a bit more information relating to the preservation of cloth bindings - more than the publishers' attempts at it by boxing and jacketing, which were useful to know about but not exactly helpful after the fact. 6: Yes, and the course was much richer in visual and mental stimulation than I expected. 7: The primary emphasis was on American cloth. 8-9: Yes.

6) What did you like best about the course?

1: A tremendous amount of information was imparted in a brief time. By periodically reviewing points already made, SA helped to reinforce major topics and improve retention (I hope). 2: SA's charming personality and her love of and excitement for the books. I loved her comments about books she didn't like or liked less - she has such good taste artistically and aesthetically. 3: SA's enthusiasm and knowledge of the subject, combined with extensive amount of real examples of what she described or showed in her slides. 4: I enjoyed the instructor, her knowledge and her approach: (to understand the process of bookbinding) and her genuine interest in and admiration of the people in its history - [monogram of SW in a heart], Feely, Stilman, and I could go on. 5: I best liked the exuberance of SA as a teacher. I'm sure she's taught the course countless times before, but most of the time I felt like we were the first ones to experience it. 6: While I had an appreciation for the approximate age of books by binding style, this course gave me a much more precise understanding of the distinct periods by decade. 7: The instructor's knowledge, combined with a large group of materials upon which to draw for examples. The excellent items in the box of binding examples. 8: SA's expertise, combined with the resources of the Book Arts Press, provided so many opportunities for example and comparison that I have come away from the course with some truly meaningful information. 9: SA and CO. They're the best.

7) How could the course have been improved?

1: The boxes with samples of book cloth were most helpful, but would have been even more so if there were more samples included. (Though I realize that it is difficult to gather such samples in sufficient quantity for distribution.) This is particularly important since we were not allowed to handle the material in the teaching collections, despite this being a very tactile, as well as visual, subject. 3: A little more about post-1900 designs. I would like to know more about the relationship between publisher and binder during 1820-1890. We did a little of this and could have been limited by documentation. Also, it would be interesting to discuss/learn more about the impact of bindings and book readership. This was hinted at, ie, with gift books. Did booksellers advertise particular bindings? 5: I think only by some preservation information. Otherwise it was pretty much perfect - a good mix of slides, lectures, viewing of examples. Also, a small point, make sure everyone gets a chance to see everything. Sometimes the lights dimmed for slides and materials were removed before everyone had a chance to see everything. 6: I am at a loss to suggest improvements to a perfect course. 7: More examples of the post-1900 period would be useful. The pre- and post-tests should be individual if each person is going to find out how much he/she learned. 8: At the moment, I would say it doesn't need to be improved, but I know that the ever-expanding collection of the Book Arts Press will only help this course. 9: The sample grains boxes are so extremely helpful and wonderful; I hesitate to speak only of the need for more examples. I realize that they are so very difficult to assemble. The existing boxes helped me immensely. They are so very much better than pictures of grains.

8) We are always concerned about the physical well-being of our teaching collections. What suggestions to you have for the improved classroom handling of materials used in your course?

1: None. 2: I wish we could touch at least some of the books. 3: None other than multiple copies, or rotating the material. 4: I thought that the baskets worked well. 5: Make sure no one brings pens; enforce the no-touching rule where it applies. 6: I believe that the boxes containing the well-documented samples of binding styles/cloths is a real asset for the hands-on feel, and the placement of teaching collection books in the felt-lined trays (no handling) is an excellent way to preserve the collection for future students. 7: The baskets are a great idea; wear gloves when handling the Rotunda books. 8: I thought the Allen baskets were a great idea. I have no problem with the restriction on handling the books. I just wish that one of the students had been able to comply with this instruction and refrain from touching/opening/picking up every item that passed in front of him.

9) Please comment on the quality/enjoyability of the various RBS activities in which you took part outside of class, eg Sunday afternoon tour, Sunday night dinner and videos, evening lectures, Bookseller Night, tour of the Alderman digital/electronic centers, printing demonstrations, &c.

1: The evening lectures were both enjoyable. Some booksellers seemed unaware of the presence of RBS students during the winter, and the lack of transportation to and from downtown made the Bookseller Night a bit more problematic than during the summer (but still enjoyable). 2: Dinner at Cal Otto's house was a treat - very considerate of him and his wife Pat to host us there. 3: The evening lectures were fine. TB's lecture on RBS was very interesting since I had not been to RBS before. Enjoyed our dinner at CO's house. It's wonderful to visit a collector's collections and let him/her show off favorites. He allowed us to browse at will. I enjoyed Booksellers Night, met some interesting dealers and made some new contacts. 4: I am extremely grateful for CO's invitation and hospitality on Wednesday evening. It was very enjoyable and educational and stimulating. "Oh, to be a collector," I thought. Wow. 5: Sunday night dinner was a very nice beginning and ice-breaker. The evening lectures were a good extension of the courses. Bookseller Night was a good opportunity, since free time was otherwise at a premium for browsing. The evening at CO's was a very nice bonus opportunity! 6: Sunday night dinner was an excellent way to get to know the staff and fellow students, as well as the other activities. The amount of structured activities was just right. 7: All were good; we were particularly fortunate to see an outstanding private collection. 8: Both Greer Allen's and TB's talks were enjoyable: entertaining and informative. Bookseller Night was much better than in January. CO had our entire class to his home Wednesday evening for dinner and a browse through his personal library - this really provided a good opportunity for the whole class to bond. 9: As always, all was truly wonderful.

10) Any final thoughts? Did you get your money's worth?

1: I always feel that I "get my money's worth" from RBS courses, both in terms of the course content and in terms of the connections made with others in the field. 2: Yes, a wonderful course overall. The material is interesting, useful, much more to it than I thought - but the main draw of the course is SA and her wonderful ways - with people, with design, with photographing the books, and with the books themselves! 3: Yes, very much so. I won't be able to look at a c19 American book the same again. Much information and knowledge to take back to my library and personal collection. 4: Yes. I recommend it highly. Thank you. 6: I enjoyed every minute, and would highly recommend the course to anyone interested in learning more about publishers bindings in the 1830-1910 period. I definitely got my money's worth. 7: Absolutely! 8: Another superlative week at TB's Book Camp. 9: These are great courses and always worth it.

Number of respondents: 9

The following statistical summary is derived from the responses of the eight students with institutional affiliations.

There were nine students: four (45%) were rare book librarians, two (22%) were general librarians with some rare book duties, and one each (11% each) was an archivist/manuscript librarian, a book collector, and a conservator/binder/preservation librarian.