Our Befriend a Book 2024 fundraising campaign has now ended and thanks to the generous support of fourteen donors we are delighted to say that we are now able to conserve thirteen of the twenty books that were available, which will help to safeguard them for future readers, writers and researchers.
The Befriended books are:
- Areopagitica by John Milton
- De imitatione Christi, libri quator by Thomas a Kempis
- Derry and Enniskillen by Thomas Witherow
- Diamonds and precious stones: their history, value, and distinguishing characteristics by Harry Emanuel
- Liverpool: history of the Mersey, ancient and modern by Benjamin Blower & The streets of Liverpool by James Stonehouse
- Mysteries of the ocean by Arthur Mangin; translated by W.H. Davenport Adams
- Smaller British birds, with descriptions of their nests, eggs, habits etc. by H.G. and H.B. Adams
- The Climate of Llandudno by James Nicol
- The illustrated book of poultry by Lewis Wright
- The official illustrated guide to the London and North-Western railway by George Measom
- The practical poultry keeper by Lewis Wright
- Woman’s work and woman’s culture Edited by Josephine Butler
- Eton of old: or, 80 years since 1811-1822 by an old Colleger [William E. Tucker] – Befriended thanks to support from gift aid donations.
Running from November 2024 to March 2025, the Befriend a Book 2024 fundraising campaign at Gladstone’s Library offered the unique chance to support the conservation of one of the UK’s most significant nineteenth-century collections. Based around the personal library of prime minister William Ewart Gladstone, our collection of books, manuscripts, images and illustrations was first brought together in the 1880s. The average book in our collections is 150 years old, so it is understandable that some of them need a little TLC.
All thirteen of the befriended books have been taken to a specialist historic bookbinder to be repaired and restored, and our supporters’ chosen names will be included in the Library’s digital catalogue.
We will keep you updated on the project’s progress via our blog and will let you know as soon as the befriended books are back at the Library in early summer 2025.
