Background
Zboray, Ronald John was born on June 23, 1953 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States. Son of Julius Anthony and Margaret Magdalen (Misko) Zboray.
(Preface by John Cole. Arranged in three major sections: I...)
Preface by John Cole. Arranged in three major sections: Introduction on the field of book history; How to Locate and Use Sources including information on publishers, writers, printers, booksellers, distributors, consumers, etc.; and Conclusion giving thoughts on the future of book history. With appendices giving important periodicals in the field and suggested reading. ix, 3 , 155+ 1 pages. stiff paper wrappers.. small 8vo..
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0844410152/?tag=2022091-20
(This book explores an important boundary between history ...)
This book explores an important boundary between history and literature: the antebellum reading public for books written by Americans. Zboray describes how fiction took root in the United States and what literature contributed to the readers' sense of themselves. He traces the rise of fiction as a social history centered on the book trade and chronicles the large societal changes shaping, circumscribing, and sometimes defining the limits of the antebellum reading public. A Fictive People explodes two notions that are commonplace in cultural histories of the nineteenth century: first, that the spread of literature was a simple force for the democratization of taste, and, second, that there was a body of nineteenth-century literature that reflected a "nation of readers." Zboray shows that the output of the press was so diverse and the public so indiscriminate in what it would read that we must rethink these conclusions. The essential elements for the rise of publishing turn out not to be the usual suspects of rising literacy and increased schooling. Zboray turns our attention to the railroad as well as private letter writing to see the creation of a national taste for literature. He points out the ambiguous role of the nineteenth-century school in encouraging reading and convincingly demonstrates that we must look more deeply to see why the nation turned to literature. He uses such data as sales figures and library borrowing to reveal that women read as widely as men and that the regional breakdown of sales focused the power of print.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/019507582X/?tag=2022091-20
Zboray, Ronald John was born on June 23, 1953 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States. Son of Julius Anthony and Margaret Magdalen (Misko) Zboray.
Bachelor in History summa cum laude, University Bridgeport, 1975. Master of Arts in American Civilization, New York University, 1977. Doctor of Philosophy, New York University, 1984.
Microfilm editor Goldman Papers, University of California, Berkeley, 1984-1989; assistant professor History, University Texas, Arlington, 1989-1992; assistant professor History, Georgia State University, Atlanta, since 1992. Member of advisory board American Antique Society, since 1994.
(This book explores an important boundary between history ...)
(Preface by John Cole. Arranged in three major sections: I...)
Member Organization of America Historians, American Studies Association, American Culture Association, American History Association, American Antiquarian Society.
Married Mary Elizabeth Saracino, December 4, 1984.