The Devil's Details: A History of Footnotes

by Chuck Zerby

Book Overview

Footnotes have not had it easy. Their dominance of eighteenth- and nineteenth- century literature and scholarship was both hard-won -- following many years of struggle -- and doomed, as it led to belittlement in the twentieth century. In The Devil's Details, Chuck Zerby playfully explores footnotes' long and illustrious history and makes a clarion call to save them from the new world of the Internet and hypertext.
In a story that...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743241754
• ISBN13: 9780743241755
• Release Date: March 2003
• Publisher: Touchstone Books
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

My footnote to the 1-star review

Don't listen to the reviewer who purports to give Zerby 0 stars, that review isn't worth your while. Try this, instead: I'm trying to delve into the study of footnotes (non-scholarly). Grafton's work relies too heavily on scholarly use. Kevin Jackson's Invisible Forms only lends the footnote a chapter. So Zerby, as of now, is the happy medium. And yes, he rambles. Yes, the book weaves in and out of direction. But that's the point, and assuming you'd encounter otherwise is somewhat deluded. If you accept Zerby's offering for what it is, and roll with the punches the book provides, you might learn a thing or two about how the footnote has evolved (AND discover a few interesting original sources to peruse later)!

book critic in love

You will laugh, you will cry, you will beg for more from this mercurial clown of literary criticism and history! For those of you who are refreshed by sets of ten point text at the bottom of your current volume, or for those who are wondering just what good are they. Timely, appropriate, and altogether brilliant. Charles Zerby, we love you and your precious, precious footnotes.

Superbly presented study on an important aspect of writing.

The Devil's Details: A History Of Footnotes is a carefully researched and superbly presented study of the footnote -- an editorial convention most often seen in academic texts yet fast becoming more widespread than ever, particularly in the world of the Internet where a "footnote" can in fact be a hyperlinked note. Fascinating and informative with its close attention to minute matters, The Devil's Details is an enjoyable and even slightly whimsical study of an oft-overlooked aspect of writing and recommended reading for anyone wanting to improve the professionalism of their writings in print or on the Internet.

A delightful read!

What a joy this book is. Funny, insightful, daring. Who is Chuck Zerby? Where in the world did he come from, and how did he learn so much? He does what no traditional scholar has been able to do--capture what is so rich and, yes, silly about getting caught up in minutiae about books, and reminding us bibliophiles why we love to read so much. Get this gorgeous little book for everyone you know who still appreciates the beauty of the word on the page.