College and Research Libraries 474 I College & Research Libraries • September1980 cliques-cultivated orchids in a literary greenhouse. They believe in the mystique of the book and the inspired genius of the author. Preferring to look back to the gold- en age of publishing from World War I to the 1950s, they view the radical cultural and economic changes of the present and future with abhorrence. While all this is changing, the image is persistent. The modern publisher, on the other hand, stems from a much wider social back- ground, works for a large firm, generally the result of mergers , and has sacrificed most of his autonomy to technical efficiency and the profit motive . The publishing deci- sion is based less on the quality of the book than on the probable quantity of sales. At its most Orwellian, the book becomes indis- tinguishable from a bar of soap, and the au- thor is paid to write the books needed to balance the list. There is, of course, nothing new in all of this. The situation is much the same in this country, and librarians and teachers of pub- lishing courses in library schools have long been concerned over these trends. The dif- ference between this book and the typical book on publishing is mainly that this book is written by a sociologist rather than a pub- lisher. The author is currently writing a book on British culture since 1930, and as publishing is an important gateway for the culture available to the public, he is greatly involved with this topic. One of the problems of a book in sociolo- gy is the sometimes curiously circumlocu- tory prose style, which makes the uninitiated reader feel like a UN interpreter simul- taneously translating the printed page into standard English usage. Regrettably, exam- ples of this style are by their very nature too long to include here, but the style makes the brief, 129-page text seem much longer. Another stylistic peculiarity is the use of the feminine wherever the text re- quires the use of the impersonal pronouns "he, his, him." The author uses "she, her" as if sexism were all right in reverse. Nevertheless the book presents a thoughtful and worthwhile study by a con- cerned and informed researcher. The author concludes that "the picture of modem pub- lishing is grim" (p.128) and indeed "British publishing is gravely ill". (p .128). Traditional publishers wallow like dinosaurs in the sloughs of their own inadequacies, while their modem gotta-sell-soap successors have shortcomings equally grave. As the author offers no alternatives, the book should be an excellent springboard to discussions of the problem by sociologists, librarians, and pub- lishers as to the future of book publishing. By the same token it should be of value to libraries serving the same groups.-Budd L. Gambee, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Stokes, Roy. Michael Sadleir, 1888-1957. The Great Bibliographer Series, no.5. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow, 1980. 154p. $8.50. LC 80-11419. ISBN 0-8108-1292-4. Books are tools that mediate our experi- ence with reality. For example, reading books on the history of our profession may effectively balance the narrowness of our day-to-day scrutiny of library operations. In this instance, we have the opportunity to understand the role Michael Sadleir, best known as Trollope's bibliographer, played in influencing the direction of descriptive and analytical bibliography. Following a format similar to the earlier four titles in this series, Roy Stokes, direc- tor of the Schbol of Librarianship at the University of British Columbia, introduces Sadleir by way of some pithy biographical information and then fifteen excerpts from Sadleir' s own writing, each with a thought- ful but brief preface setting the context. One gets the feeling that Stokes truly admires his biographee and we should, too, for he opened the door to and legitimized the bibliographical study of the nineteenth century, particularly its popular inexpensive fiction. Several of the excerpts also reflect Sadleir' s early but strong interest in writing his own novels of Victorian low-life, perhaps his best being Fanny by Gaslight (1940). Other excerpts are from his scholarly con- tributions-such pioneering works as Excur- sions in Victorian Bibliography (1922) and XIX Century Fiction (1951), as well as his investigations into publishers' bindings. These have earned him the appelation "great." Readers interested in delving further into Sadleir will benefit from the last section, a chronological checklist of his work. More Will You Get the Grant You Deserve? Each year countless grant seekers fail to receive the funds they deserve, often because they omit key information from their proposals or because they fail to contact every appropriate anrzation. You can avoid these costly errors by consulting the 1980-81 Annual Register of Grant Support "A standard reference that belongs in the reference department of all libraries." Reference Book Review Grants individuals and organizations alike: Find more than 2,300 programs offered by govern- ment agencies, private foundations, corporations, and more - including more than 95 new oppor- tunities - all in the 1980-81 Annual Register of Grant Support. Construction funds, travel/exchange programs, competitive awards, professional con- sultative services, and publication support are among those identified in this edition. Billions of dollars are available this year! Tailor your propoaal to each organization's needs. Each entry provides you with: 1. Organization's name, address and tele- phone number 2. Field(s) of interest 3. Name(s) of grant program(s) 4. Purpose of each program 5. Nature of support 6. Total organization funding 7 . Amount of support per award 8. Number of applicants and recipients in most recent year for which figures are available 9. Legal basis for program 10. Eligibility requirements 11. Application instructions 12. Name and title of person to whom proposals are submitted ... and additional pertinent data MARQUIS ACADEMIC MEDIA is a division of MARQUIS WndsWao 200 East Ohio Street, Room 145 Chicago, lllinoi's 60611 U.S.A. Identifies Grants In 11 Areas: (1) Multiple special purpose; (2) Humanities; (3) Inter- national affairs and area studies; (4) Spe- cial populations; (5) Urban and regional af- fairs; (6) Education; (7) Sciences (all dis- ciplines); (8) Social sciences; (9) Physical sciences ; (1 0) Life sciences; (11) Technol- ogy and industry . PLUS: The Grantsmanship Center's Respected 7-Step Proposal Writing Guide © LC 69-18307 • ISBN 0-8379-1907-X Pub. Sept. 1980 • Approx. 750 pages $57.50 • Hardbound MARQUIS ACADEMIC MEDIA 200 East Ohio Street, Room 145 Chicago, Illinois 60611 U.S.A. Please send me copy(ies) of the 1980-81 Annual Register of Grant Support at $57.50 each plus $2.50 for postage and hand- ling. (Add state sales tax where applicable.) 11031096 0 Please bill me 0 Payment enclosed 1 Signature ___________ _ Name (print) __________ _ Institution ___________ _ Address, ____________ _ City State Zip 476 I College & Research Libraries • September 1980 than 225 entries appear, beginning in 1907 and ending in 1962 with two posthumous works. Those wishing to confront him more directly might enjoy examining his personal collection of nineteenth-century fiction, purchased by UCLA's Regents in 1951. A typical initial reaction is to marvel at the matchless condition of his 10,000 volumes, mostly three-deckers; following a deeper in- vestigation one begins to comprehend the amazing completeness, especially the many minor women authors. The late Professor Bradford A. Booth was right about Sadleir' s "matchless knowledge and tireless perser- verance." Finally, the development of this particu- lar series should be followed , noting who else will be honored for their contributions. In a way these individuals reaffirm our own ability to shape and guide the destiny of our profession. We would all benefit if our historians adopted as their motto: "Our fu- ture is the past in service of the present."- John Richardson, Jr., University of Califor- nia, Los Angeles. Annual Report of the American Rare, Anti- quarian and Out-of-Print Book Trade, 1978/1979. Edited by Denis Carbonneau. New York: BCAR Publications, 1979. 233p. $15.95 cloth, $9.95 paper (plus $1 postage and handling). ISBN 0-930986-02- 4 cloth; 0-930986-03-2 paper. Covering auctions, specialized areas, libraries and librarianship, professional asso- ciations, conservation, trends in bibliogra- phy, and many other facts, this volume pre- sents a thorough look at a year's activities in the book trade. There is far more here than a brief re- view can hope to cover. Editor Carbonneau has pulled out all the stops to present a firsthand look at the entire field. Some forty contributors give their views on various phases of rare books and manuscripts, and one wonders if the project has not been overdone. Certain questions come to mind: What is left for next year? Can he top this? The reader is provided an important channel of communication to many areas. In a "Review of Specialized Areas," seventeen What do Hubcaps, Weather Vanes, Buttons, and Baseball Cards have in common? They are all popular collectible items. The Collector's Index, by Pearl Turner, provides information on how to collect, identify, main- tain, and display these and several hundred other collectible items. Items of long-standing interest as well as more recently popular collectible items, such as beer cans, corkscrews, and insulators, are included. More than 300 in-print books published between 1972-1978 have been indexed. Also included are some older, classic sources that are of continuing importance to collectors. Reference librarians will find that the Collector's Index provides quick access to many of the sources in this popular subject area. The Index is alphabetically arranged by type of collectible. Grade level for juvenile books and full cross-references are provided. In the Useful Reference Series of Library Books. ISBN 0·87305·119-X. Forthcoming Fall1980. (00 F.W. FAXOn COmPAnY, InC. Publications Division 15 Southwest Park, Westwood, Massachusetts 02090