Location: Link Gallery, Murray Library
Curator: Amy Putnam
As a Special Collections library, we find value in collecting not just one copy of a book, the multiple editions of books. Sometimes the text can change due to different edits, translations, author updates, or mistakes. There can be different prefaces or introductions, and even just the method of printing and binding a book can teach us something about the history of the book.
But this exhibit focuses on a different reason to collect multiple editions of a work, and that is the changing covers. The cover art of a book speaks to the style, sensibilities, and trends of the period in which the book was published. It also speaks to the publisher - the same book published in the same year can have wildly different covers depending on the target audience. A book published by an academic publisher intended for a student of literature might be a more somber or symbolic cover. It doesn't necessarily need to be eye-catching the student needs to buy it anyways. Where-as the mass market cover likely needs to be brighter, more compelling, possibly more straight forward to grab the eye of someone browsing a bookstore.
The University Archives and Special Collections holds these and many other titles. Please contact ua.sc@usask.ca for more information and to access the collection.
