Reading on the middle border
Subtitle: the culture of print in late nineteenth-century Osage, Iowa
By: Christine Pawley.
Series: Studies in print culture and the history of the book
Publisher: University of Massachusetts Press
Published: 2001
Place of publication: Amherst
Language: eng
Number of pages: 265
Subjects: Books and reading -- Iowa -- Osage -- History -- 19th century.; Libraries -- Iowa -- Osage -- History -- 19th century.; Osage (Iowa) -- Social life and customs.
Description: "Reading is an everyday activity so taken for granted that it seems virtually invisible. In site of its ubiquity in modern life (or perhaps because of its familiarity), scholars have only recently begun paying attention to its development as a social practice. During the nineteenth century, an evolving print culture made reading an essential part of Americans' daily routines. To date, the history of American reading practices has tended to focus on middle-class white people living in northeastern cities before 1876. Reading on the Middle Border shifts the focus to the Midwest and broadens the base of economic classes studied."--Jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 235-243) and index.