The contributors are also an international group, with authors from more than 20 countries represented. In addition to geographical chapters, there are also 34 essays considering key topics in publishing - from book marketing and bookselling to small presses and university press publishing. This volume, more than 700 double-columned pages in length, is a key resource for understanding book publishing worldwide. Indeed, it is the only comprehensive reference book on the topic. The encyclopedia is also unique because we chose to ask authors to write substantive chapters on carefully selected topics and countries rather than to include short entries on a wider array of subjects.
Longer chapters allow more comprehensive coverage, deeper analysis, and a broader perspective.
We are convinced that a selective encyclopedia of this kind will be a valuable and long- lasting reference volume. We chose to focus on the major publishing countries rather than to provide brief surveys of every nation, and most of the world's major publishing nations are included. In addition, comprehensive regional essays cover all of the major world regions and provide some coverage of countries not discussed in the individual essays. Authors have provided analysis as well as description. The topical essays have also been chosen to stress the major issues in publishing today.