From School Library Journal
Grade 10 Up–This massive work contains more than 500 alphabetically arranged, signed articles covering 1400 years of British literature. While many entries examine fiction and nonfiction writers from the seventh century to the present, related articles describe themes, institutions, movements, literary terms, genres, and an occasional literary work or poem (
Beowulf,
Piers Plowman, etc.). The editors have used the term British to denote authors from England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland. Most of the entries, which run four to eight pages, have subheadings unique to the subject (Marriage and the Body under Jane Austen, The Hypochondriack under James Boswell, etc.). Many are followed by a list of works, editions, and annotated further-reading suggestions. Examples of the topical articles offered are Abbey Theatre, Arthurian Literature, Black British Literature, Book Illustration, Bluestockings, Chapbooks, Mystery Plays, and Utopianism. Interestingly, an entry on the Beatles is included, noting the porous and contested line between literature and music, between poetry and pop songs. A limited number of small, average-quality black-and-white photos and reproductions illustrate the text. The book opens with a chronology and list of topical entries and closes with a comprehensive index. A vast and valuable resource.
–Pat Bender, The Shipley School, Bryn Mawr, PA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
*Starred Review* By defining
British literature as the literature of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, this compendium excludes English-language literatures published in Commonwealth countries and thus focuses on writings that originated in England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Kastan, an English professor at Columbia University, coordinated a five-member editorial board and a team of 371 contributors from academic institutions in the U.S., Canada, Britain, and Australia to bring together this scholarly and well-written encyclopedia.
The 509 alphabetically arranged essays range in length from 2 to 11 pages. (Because Shakespeare is the subject of five separate articles, his total treatment is considerably longer.) About 385 of the entries are devoted to individuals, who range chronologically from Caedmon to J. K. Rowling and include an intriguing selection of major and minor authors as well as such diverse figures as the Beatles, Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, and Queen Victoria. The remaining essays treat institutions (Abbey Theatre, Poet laureate, Stationers' Company); genres (Anglo-Saxon riddles, Detective fiction, Restoration drama); movements and groups (Angry Young Men, Bluestockings, Pre-Raphaelites); titles (The Mabinogion, Oxford English Dictionary, Piers Plowman); and general topics (Censorship, Literary theory, Narrative). Each entry concludes with a list of major primary works and a selective secondary bibliography accompanied by brief but helpful annotations. Many entries also include cross-references to other articles and small black-and-white illustrations. Volume 1 contains a list of the articles in all five volumes and a chronological chart that links the subjects of entries with major historical events, while volume 5 provides a directory of contributors and an extensive and detailed 151-page index.
The editor's decisions regarding writers and works for inclusion reflect an academic focus and a penchant for the esoteric. While eschewing entries for Anita Brookner, Winston Churchill, P. D. James, Thomas Kyd, William Trevor, and other well-known authors, he includes essays on a number of lesser-known, even obscure writers, such as Osbern Bokenham, John Capgrave, and Ann Vaughan Lock. In addition, most of the title entries feature early manuscript texts that generally are studied only at the college level.
Containing more than 1,200 entries, the Continuum Encyclopedia of British Literature (2003) provides greater breadth of coverage--particularly of recent writers--but not as much depth. About 60 percent of the individuals accorded entries in the Oxford encyclopedia are also covered in Scribner's British Writers series, and almost all of them are featured in Gale's Dictionary of Literary Biography. For those with access to these sources, the most valuable aspect of the new Oxford offering may well be its substantive coverage of topics and themes related to British literature. Although some essays appear to be aimed at graduate students and scholars, much of the content is appropriate for lower-level college students and general readers. Highly recommended for academic libraries and could also be a useful addition to larger public libraries. Marie Ellis
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