An Honest Trade: Booksellers and Bookselling in Scotland

Abstract

Bookselling in Scotland went through radical changes during the course of the twentieth century: the creation of more attractive shop interiors to replace the gloomy cathedrals of the pre-Second World War Era; increasing specialisation of outlets, including the development of paperback bookshops; the growth of chains and the dogged persistence of independents; the abolition of the net book agreement; and the importance of the mass media in the promotion of books. This book provides a lively account of bookselling and booksellers through the life histories of key and representative figures in the Scottish trade, told in their own words. A balanced blend of anecdote and analysis, this is the first comprehensive insight into the nature of the trade and the radical changes it has been through in the past eighty years.