Conrad's Reading

Helen Chambers is an Honorary Associate in English at The Open University, UK. As well as specialist medical qualifications she has a recent (2014) PhD in Literature and has published on Conrad and Ford Madox Ford. Based in France, she is a member of the History of the Book and Reading Research Collaboration (HOBAR) at the Open University and an active contributor and editor for the Reading Experience Database (UKRED).

• 1. ​Introduction.- 2. ‘Books are an integral part of one’s life: evaluating the evidence of Conrad's reading.- 3. 'Read by chance on the Indian Ocean’: reconstructing Conrad’s maritime reading.- 4. ‘A book, not bemused by the cleverness of the day’: Marlow as a reader .- 5. ‘A Conrad archipelago replete with islands’: Edwardian reading communities.- 6. ‘Gifted with tenderness and intelligence’: Conrad’s reading women.- 7. Conclusion.

“With Conrad’s Reading: Space, Time, Networks, Helen Chambers makes a very valuable contribution to this field. … Chambers paints an interesting, rich, and variegated picture of Conrad’s reading. … Richly researched, Conrad’s Reading will not only be of interest to Conrad scholars.” (Wim Van Mierlo, Library & Information History, Vol. 35 (1), 2019)