Script and Scribble: The Rise and Fall of Handwriting

Brooklyn, NY: Melville House, 2008. 190 pages, illustrations; 22 cm. Tight, clean copy. Dust jacket protected in a mylar cover. "Steeped in the Palmer Method of handwriting she learned in Catholic school, Kitty Burns Florey is a self-confessed 'penmanship nut' who loves the act of taking pen to paper. So when she discovered that some schools today forego handwriting drills in favor of teaching something called keyboarding, she was shocked. The idea that such a vital, simple, and frequently beautiful skill could be lost to future generations inspired her to investigate the history of writing by hand and its place in our increasingly electronic society. The result is Script & Scribble - a charming, fascinating exploration of the many facets of handwriting. Weaving together the history of writing implements and scripts, pen collecting societies, the golden age of American penmanship, the growth in popularity of "graphology"--Handwriting analysis - and the pockets of aficionados who still prefer scribbling on paper to tapping on keys, Florey poses the question: Is it true that writing by hand is no longer necessary in today's busy world? / Kitty Burns Florey is the author of Sister Bernadette’s Barking Dog: The Quirky History and Lost Art of Diagramming, Sentences. A veteran copy editor, she has also written nine novels and many short stories and essays. She lives in central Connecticut." - Publisher. CONTENTS: A handwritten life; Pen, paper, ink: a stroll through handwriting history; The golden age of penmanship; Father Michon and my Aunt Fanny; Writing by hand in a digital age; Is handwriting important?. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. 8vo.