Women formed a large and increasing part of the new novel-reading public. The traditional discrepancy between male and female literacy rates was narrowed, and finally eliminated by the end of the 19th century. The gap had always been the widest at the lowest end of the social scale. Perhaps more women than we realize couldContinue reading “40 Wonderful Portrait Photos of Women Posing With Their Books From the Mid-19th Century”
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Victorian Readers: 40 Vintage Portraits of People Posing With Their Books From 19th Century
Victorians were great readers of the novel, and the number of novels available for them to read increased enormously during Victoria’s reign. The activity of reading benefited hugely from wider schooling and increased literacy rates, from the cheapening costs of publication, from improved distribution that resulted from better transportation, and, towards the end of theContinue reading “Victorian Readers: 40 Vintage Portraits of People Posing With Their Books From 19th Century”
40 Wonderful Portrait Photos of Women Posing With Their Books From the Mid-19th Century
Women formed a large and increasing part of the new novel-reading public. The traditional discrepancy between male and female literacy rates was narrowed, and finally eliminated by the end of the 19th century. The gap had always been the widest at the lowest end of the social scale. Perhaps more women than we realize couldContinue reading “40 Wonderful Portrait Photos of Women Posing With Their Books From the Mid-19th Century”
Victorian Readers: 40 Vintage Portraits of People Posing With Their Books From 19th Century
Victorians were great readers of the novel, and the number of novels available for them to read increased enormously during Victoria’s reign. The activity of reading benefited hugely from wider schooling and increased literacy rates, from the cheapening costs of publication, from improved distribution that resulted from better transportation, and, towards the end of theContinue reading “Victorian Readers: 40 Vintage Portraits of People Posing With Their Books From 19th Century”
Marilyn Monroe Reads Joyce’s Ulysses at the Playground, 1955
During the 1950s, the pioneering photojournalist Eve Arnold took a series of portraits of Marilyn Monroe. The now iconic photos generally present Monroe as a larger-than-life celebrity and sex symbol. Except for one. In 1955, Arnold photographed Monroe reading a worn copy of James Joyce’s modernist classic, Ulysses. It’s still debated whether this was simplyContinue reading “Marilyn Monroe Reads Joyce’s Ulysses at the Playground, 1955”
35 Pages From a 1902 Weird Phrenology Book That Can Help You Ascertain a Person’s Character by the Shape of Their Features
Illustrations from Vaught’s Practical Character Reader, a book on phrenology by L. A. Vaught published in 1902. As he confidently states in his Preface:The purpose of this book is to acquaint all with the elements of human nature and enable them to read these elements in all men, women and children in all countries. AtContinue reading “35 Pages From a 1902 Weird Phrenology Book That Can Help You Ascertain a Person’s Character by the Shape of Their Features”
The Prince George’s County Memorial Library Bookmobile in Woodmore, Maryland, 1951
In the early 1900s, a librarian could purchase a bookmobile for as little as $1,000. By the late 1930s, there were as many as 60 bookmobiles nationwide. The Great Depression and two World Wars then sharply curtailed services and bookmobile production around the country. During the boom years of the 1950s, bookmobile production resurged. ManyContinue reading “The Prince George’s County Memorial Library Bookmobile in Woodmore, Maryland, 1951”
