An unorthodox request from MEDFEM-L

Unorthodox, but an excellent point – and leading one to ponder the point of print publication.
Speaking also as a tree-hugger.

MEDFEM-L is an unmoderated forum for the discussion of feminist approaches to medieval studies sponsored jointly by the Society for Medieval Feminist
Scholarship (SMFS, http://hosted.lib.uiowa.edu/smfs/mff/index.html) and the Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies (ACMRS, www.asu.edu/clas/acmrs/).

This may seem an unorthodox request, but here goes.  Last year, Oxford
University Press published my book, Making Womenąs Medicine Masculine:  The
Rise of Male Authority in Pre-Modern Gynaecology.  As is customary practice
(I take it), the press priced the book without consulting me:  it costs a
whopping $120/Ł66.  Even I wouldnąt shell out this kind of money!  Needless
to say, sales seem to be mostly going to libraries, and with the global
economy in its present state, I doubt any future sales are likely.  Theyąve
done next to no marketing.

Whatąs more surprising, however, is that so few people seem to have taken
advantage of the FREE (yes, you read that right) downloadable copy of the
complete Conclusion to the book available at Oxfordąs U.K. website:
http://www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780199211494.  (It is only available at
the U.K. website, not the U.S.‹donąt know why.  I get no royalties from
downloads, so I’m not trying to generate income.)  The Conclusion is
actually quite substantial, and summarizes the wide-ranging implications of
my findings for post-medieval history.  In short, itąs potentially of
relevance to medievalists and non-medievalists alike.  (Cf. Joan Scottąs
recent call for historicizing the category of łwomen˛‹a point just repeated
in a recent posting here on MEDFEM-L.)

I would greatly appreciate it if you could alert students and colleagues to
the availability of this portion of my work.  Should web traffic increase,
that might finally signal to OUP that there is a market for this book and
that it would be worth considering a paperback (i.e., affordable!) edition.

Thanks for your help!

Monica Green
Professor of History
Arizona State University
http://www.asu.edu/clas/asuhistory/faculty/green.html

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