Dictionary of American Book Collectors.

'œBook collectors are well known to library administrators who cultivate their benefactions, and to library historians who recognize their contributions to our scholarly resources.... Dickinson treats 359 major collectors who died prior to 1987.... The biographical sketches average about 500 words each, include major bibliographical sources, and are complemented by subject specialty and general indexes, and a chronological list of major book auctions. The sketches bring the history into perspective; only eight of the collectors date from colonial and early federal times, and 35 more were active before the Civil War. Most were wealthy businessmen; as far as their collections were concerned, scholars more than speculators; and committed to cultural institutions--Yale(37), Harvard (27), New York Public Library (23), Princeton (16), the Library of Congress (15), and the American Antiquarian Society (11) being the major recipients of their benefactions.... It will be a valuable asset in all academic libraries, perhaps best located on the reference shelf next to Lee Ash's Subject Collections as a gentle hint to students.'' ChoiceDonald C. Dickinson is the author of 'Dictionary of American Book Collectors.' with ISBN 9780313225444 and ISBN 0313225443.