The London Fashionable and Polite Repository

Maker:

Lane, William

ID:

60.86

Production date:

1793

Location:

In Store

This pocket book was published by the bookseller William Lane. He founded the Minerva Press in 1790. Lane's innovation was to establish a network of circulating libraries in rural areas outside London to which he offered cheap books wholesale. He became wealthy publishing light romantic fiction, particularly fashionable Gothic novels, and eventually retired to Brighton.  < ...Read more

This pocket book was published by the bookseller William Lane. He founded the Minerva Press in 1790. Lane's innovation was to establish a network of circulating libraries in rural areas outside London to which he offered cheap books wholesale. He became wealthy publishing light romantic fiction, particularly fashionable Gothic novels, and eventually retired to Brighton.

Pocket books like this one were aimed at women, who made up the bulk of Lane's readership. It contains a short romantic story, poetry and tables for recording household expenditure. The words to songs sung at Vauxhall Gardens and instructions for popular dances are also printed. Inside the cover are prints of 'Ladies in Fashionable Dresses' and the 'most Elegant Head dresses for the Year'. The pocket book was designed to be both light reading and a lifestyle guide for socially aspirant women. < Hide

Measurements

H 120 mm; W 86 mm (overall)

Materials

leather; metal; paper; ink

Last Updated

2024-03-14