The Yellowback Revolution

While today railway bookstalls may seem commonplace, even unfashionable, they were once in the vanguard of a thoroughly modern revolution. As the chief retailers of yellow-backs, the cheap, often sensational page-turners that became a mainstay of nineteenth century publishing, railway libraries became enablers of the Victorian craze for stories of mystery, skulduggery, melodrama, and adventure. Professor John Spiers, co-founder of Edward Everett Root publishers, uncovers this surprising tale of brazen best-sellers.

We are delighted to bring this illustrated talk to the Curious Histories lecture programme. There will be a charity bar running during the event.