The Fascinating History of Notebooks and Note-Taking

In this podcast episode, Jillian Hess, an English professor at City University of New York, discusses her fascination with notebooks and note-taking. She explains how she became interested in this topic and shares her personal experience of relying on notebooks to preserve quotations and organize information. Hess also explores the tradition of commonplace books, which involves collecting and organizing quotations, and the benefits of handwriting and personalizing the writing process. She mentions examples of intriguing notebooks, such as Leigh Hunt's collection of famous people's hair and chemist Humphry Davy documenting the sensation of being on nitrous oxide. Overall, the episode highlights the role of notebooks as companions, therapists, and support systems for writers and thinkers.