The last edition of Thornton and Tully came out in 1971, and was followed by a supplement in 1978 which covered the period from 1969 to 1975. The original three editions were written by John Thornton and R.I.J. Tully who were librarians in higher education establishments. The new edition is edited by Andrew Hunter, a specialist book dealer, and the chapters are authored by a mixture of historians of science and librarians. This leads to a variety of approaches, some being closer to history of science than to bibliography. This is most noticeable in the chapter on Islamic science; probably because this area was not covered and an overview is more important at this stage than a detailed account. Reference is made to a number of more complete studies. Jack Meadows’ chapter on “Science publishing in the 20th century” also stands out as more discursive. The other chapters cover the same ground as previous editions, but the style and the choice of examples vary. There are eight plates, seven courtesy of the editor’s employer, Bernard Quaritch Ltd. The book has end notes and bibliographies to each chapter, rather than footnotes and a general bibliography. The various authors have slightly varying definitions of science (a term which, as the writers point out, is an anachronism before the time of Hooke and Newton). Generally the definition is the exact sciences, mathematics, logic, physics and chemistry; some descriptive sciences, biology and geology; medicine and brief mention of applied sciences. My particular interest as a bibliophile, agricultural science, only gets full treatment in the chapter on bibliographies. However, it is a book about science, and not technology.
As readers of this review may have guessed, I have a copy of the third edition with me as I write. I intend to keep it as well as the fourth edition. No book of around 400 pages can completely cover as vast a field as this. Originally Thornton and Tully was published by the Library Association; its current publisher, Ashgate, lists on the back cover other books from their imprint on antiquarian books, museums and the history of science. In a way this reflects a small aspect of the history of books and ideas. The problems in librarianship have changed and the LA would probably not now consider a title like this of particular importance to their readers. However, there is readership that is wider than librarians and the work has been taken up by a specialist publisher which serves that market. The story of Blunt and Stearn’s The Art of Botanical Illustration (cf. review in Library Review, 1995, Vol. 44 No. 7, pp. 64‐5), originally in the New Naturalist series and now enjoying a life of its own with the Antique Collectors’ Club, is another example of a book changing its market over time. The new market for this book is historians of science and book collectors and dealers. It is still of use to librarians who have collections containing historic books or whose customers include historians of science.
Although I have read the edition under review from cover to cover, I have to admit that I had not done so with the previous edition. Probably only a reviewer would read either at one go, but if one is to read it for pleasure then the new edition is a very pleasant book to read and handle. The third edition looks dense on the page and the supplement was printed on acid paper which is yellowing. The new edition looks clear and light. The typeface is Sabon which looks seventeenth century but is in fact modern, designed by Jan Tschichold in 1964, based on a face by Robert Granjon, a contemporary of Garamond, and named after Jacques Sabon, a pupil of Garamond. I found out about the typeface from the Internet, a medium that will be a challenge to collectors of scientific literature and to those writing future editions of this book.
