30 July - 3 Aug 2007 in Charlottesville

1) How useful were the pre-course readings?

1: I found the readings extraordinarily useful, both to get “in the spirit” of what we would be discussing, but also to serve as framework. I felt very prepared coming in, which was a boon. 2: Having read about half and skimmed the other half, they were in fact useful to obtain a basic working knowledge and vocabulary to understand the concepts presented in class. 3: Useful – the readings helped develop vocabulary and gave a useful starting point for general comprehension. 4: Readings were very helpful. Though not directly alluded to in class, the readings gave a strong base of knowledge without which I think the class would be overwhelming. The Elizabeth Eisenstein book [The Printing Revolution in Early Modern Europe], while I understood its significance culturally and academically, was almost unreadable. I did not get to some of the recommended reading which I would have liked to read because I could not get through Eisenstein. 5: Pre-course reading were very useful – opened up concepts I’d never before considered. 6: Very useful – would have preferred a more basic book on typography though. 7: They were very useful. The readings especially helped me understand complicated topics like electrotyping, or lithography. 8: Excellent choice for summary course – all easily found in my collection. 9: All very applicable, will also re-read.

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

1: All materials have a wonderful two-part function – grounding the discussion as it happens with bibliographic information, and also enabling us to attend to the lecture rather than scribbling bibliographic information down madly. I have every intention of mining these materials frequently. The three-hold punching of all items was an unexpected and thoroughly appreciated bonus! 2: Yes. Thank you for the take-away’s and tools you have given us, which underline the purpose of this course, as a great starting point. 3: The binder is a fabulous tool, and something I expect to refer to often in the future. 4: Yes – especially the reference book descriptions, examples, and citations. I will turn to these for guidance in the future, I’m sure. Also appreciated the lists of rare book displays – it helps to remember items down the line. 5: All materials appropriate and useful. I’m going home with a full set of reference materials, to be consulted as needed, having been introduced to all of them. 6: Yes and yes. 7: Yes. 8: Fine – left flexibility to make choices and annotations during course week – will use bibliographies and suggested reference sources to upgrade and check against our collections. 9: Excellent.

3) What aspects of the course content were of the greatest interest or relevance for your purposes? Was the intellectual level of the course appropriate?

1: It’s extraordinarily difficult to identify any one aspect, because all periods and topics covered are truly of interest and relevance, working as I do in a rare book library. I found it challenging and exciting all periods, all days. 2: Blown away by William Hunt and Eric Gill. Yes – it was a treat to explore this course with professionals with working collections experience. 3: The history of the printed book was more relevant to me because I had more experience with manuscripts, but I found it all interesting. I was never bored, and while it was impossible to go too in-depth with so much to cover, the instructors managed to get a great deal of information across. 4: While I found the whole course relevant, I find myself most interested in scribal culture and early bindings. I’m fascinated by manuscripts, but also by early printing processes – and I’d never had printing processes so plainly explained. (Thanks!) We had such a range of knowledge in our group, and I found the intellectual level was always appropriate. 5: As a survey course, it covered all aspects in amazing depth for such a limited time – what a success! Intellectual level quite appropriate. 6: Learning about the production of manuscripts and the shift to printing. The level intellectually was engaging and avoided being overwhelming. 7: I was the most fascinated when we were taught how binding really happens. I’d never really understood what bound truly referred to. 8: Not a minute was wasted – will use to good effect in our standard history of the book talk for visitors and classes. 9: Better understanding and appreciation of personal items.

4) If your course left its classroom to visit Special Collections (SC) or to make other field trips away from your classroom, was the time devoted to this purpose well spent?

1: In many ways, this was my favorite day – going to the Library of Congress and seeing the treasures. It felt like such a special treat to be behind the scenes with the Chief of the Rare Book Division. It was an incredible opportunity, and one I will cherish. 2: Absolutely. The daily trips to SC were welcomed changes in rhythm of presented course material. The LC trip was truly once in a lifetime. 3: It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to see an incredible collection of books up close – a real highlight of the week. 4: Absolutely! This course couldn’t be successful without viewing the books in UVa’s SC firsthand. Our trip to LC was also incredibly well-executed and stimulating. 5: Time was very well spent, and well managed. 6: Yes – visiting the Library of Congress – is a memorable way to do it. Thanks to everyone for the arrangements. 7: Absolutely. The SC trips were a lot of fun, and the trip to the Library of Congress was amazing. 8: Library of Congress – well worth the effort. 9: Well-planned and executed.

5) What did you like best about the course?

1: This course afforded a window into a world I couldn’t have imagined entering otherwise – seeing collections I had only dreamt of, hearing about them from two incredibly learned, and extraordinarily talented teachers. MD and JB are wonderful, funny, knowledgeable, and approachable: a perfect combination. 2: The teachers: their depth of expertise and ability to communicate the material in such an engaging format made this course intellectually stimulating, professionally relevant, and a lot of fun. 3: The constant exposure to materials demonstrated what reading texts cannot always get across. I had seen many iconic books and enjoyed them as objects, but this class helped me place them in context and to appreciate things I hadn’t noticed. 4: MD and JB did a fabulous job of working together, and off each other. A dynamic pair to say the least, but this course covers such a breath of material that without the levity and energy they bring to the classroom, I wouldn’t have had the enthusiasm throughout the week, or retained as much knowledge as I feel I did. 5: Exposure to a grand variety of materials, rich visual culture. 6: Going to LC, and the physical objects that we could view and/or examine, and sometimes see in operation. In particular, I loved the half-bound book [models]; would love to buy one to take back to my library to demonstrate how books were bound. 7: I liked the sense of humor our instructors had. They joked back-and-forth a lot, which made for a lively class, and a more personal feel to it. 8: Comedy – teaching style, I believe, kept the presentation lively and served to fix important ideas and concepts in my mind. 9: The way items were presented.

6) How could the course have been improved?

1: I truly can’t think of a thing. That is the very highest compliment. 2: Maybe a little more time with 19th and 20th century, but I suppose that’s a personal preference. 3: I don’t know how the course could be improved without an extra week or more. 5: The instructors took an impossible task and made it extremely accessible – how can you improve on that? 6: Maybe a bit at the close on the future of the book; why rare books are still relevant. Not a huge deal, but some reflections are interesting. 7: I really can’t think of much. 8: I don’t see what I would have changed. 9: Very difficult to do.

7) We are always concerned about the physical well-being both of the RBS teaching collections and of materials owned by UVa’s Special Collections. If relevant, what suggestions do you have for the improved classroom handling of such materials used in your course this week?

1: None – they are very well cared for by the instructors, and I saw no signs of misuse of mistreatment during the course. 2: None – instructions for student handling, when appropriate, were clear; instructor handling was always appropriate. 3: The instructors were very clear from the beginning on handling rules and the importance of caring for the materials. 4: I was surprised by how much we could handle, but everyone was made aware of rules and followed them. 5: No suggestions – I’m grateful that you have teaching editions that I can explore. 6: It would be nice if the binding display came with the strings. 7: We were all carefully instructed in packet and loupe hygiene before we got to touch either, so I doubt that could be improved much. As for the handling of actual books, I have nothing to complain about. 8: I think standard professional practices were followed throughout. 9: Job well done.

8) If you attended the Sunday and/or other evening lectures, were they worth attending?

1: Absolutely – it seems challenging to attend lectures after a full day, but very well worth your time. 2: Yes, as were the coffee breaks throughout the day – offered many opportunities to meet others. 3: I attended the Sunday and Monday lectures, and they were worth attending and helped set the tone for the week. 4: I was unable to attend most events, but enjoyed the Monday lecture quite a bit. 5: Definitely worth attending – they add additional dimension to the “classroom” experience. 6: Yes – I definitely enjoyed the series of films on calligraphy and Linotype. 7: Absolutely. 8: Monday lecture – a bit dry but informative and worth attending. Paper Museum fascinating. 9: Enjoyed all extra conferences and lectures.

9) Did you get your money’s worth? Any final or summary thoughts, or advice for other persons considering taking this course in a future year?

1: Definitely – I feel I got quite a bargain. I had thought TB’s comment about the real resource at RBS being the people you meet was perhaps overstated – I stand very corrected. I truly believe this experience will shape my outlook and career in deep, profound ways. I will be back. 2: Absolutely. I would highly recommend this course. I feel very fortunate to have met professionals working in rare books, and both instructors at this point so early on in my career. The content presented left me with so many more points of potential research and inquiry. 3: Definitely – I hope to come back often. 4: Thanks for everything – this course was outstanding. 5: Followers do an outstanding job. 6: Hopefully my institution did – I certainly feel more informed, better-trained professionally, and hope to convey this to my work and patrons. Advice – enjoy! Thanks to JB and MD. 7: I think I did get my money’s worth. I would definitely recommend doing the readings – I found that things I learned from the readings helped me keep up. This is a rapid course – 1800 years is not a small chunk. That being so, we weren’t able to address some topics in very much detail. If you want detail, don’t take this course. You will get tidbits, but nothing like a solid in-depth study of, say, book illustration processes. 8: Absolutely – I think of all my educational experiences, this course offered the highest percentage of quality learning time. 9: I am at a loss for words to express my appreciation and enjoyment of working with such enjoyable people.

Number of respondents: 9

Percentages

Leave Tuition Housing Travel

Institution Institution Institution Institution

gave me leave paid tuition paid housing paid travel

78% 67% 67% 67%

I took vaca- I paid tui- I paid for my I paid my own

tion time tion myself own housing travel

0% 0% 0% 22%

N/A: self- N/A: Self- N/A: stayed N/A: lived

employed, re- employed, with friends nearby

tired, or had retired, or or lived at

summers off scholarship home

22% 33% 33% 11%

There were 2 rare book librarians (22%); 2 librarians with some rare book duties (22%); 1 archivist (11%); 1 antiquarian bookseller (11%); 1 educational specialist for special collections (11%); 1 assistant librarian (11%); and 1 full-time student (11%).