Ben Waber reviewed Too Much to Know by Ann Blair
A Fascinating Dive into Medieval Information Management
4 stars
We've come to accept certain kinds of information organization as normal - whether that's the Dewey Decimal System, alphabetization, or Google. But for so long this simply wasn't done due to a variety of complex factors, and here Blair explores the different techniques of information management deployed throughout pre-Enlightenment Europe. There is a bit of time spent on Chinese and Islamic-world organizational methods, but that's not where Blair centers her attention. I would've liked more time spent on why particular methods were used (I found alphabetization by final letter in Islamic indices since it facilitating rhyming fascinating, as well as the fact that textual citations were eschewed in renaissance texts since it was viewed as treating the reader like an idiot for not knowing the source themselves). Highly recommend
We've come to accept certain kinds of information organization as normal - whether that's the Dewey Decimal System, alphabetization, or Google. But for so long this simply wasn't done due to a variety of complex factors, and here Blair explores the different techniques of information management deployed throughout pre-Enlightenment Europe. There is a bit of time spent on Chinese and Islamic-world organizational methods, but that's not where Blair centers her attention. I would've liked more time spent on why particular methods were used (I found alphabetization by final letter in Islamic indices since it facilitating rhyming fascinating, as well as the fact that textual citations were eschewed in renaissance texts since it was viewed as treating the reader like an idiot for not knowing the source themselves). Highly recommend