When a research library announces the acquisition of the archive of a major literary figure, the story behind the acquisition – how the author and library met and developed their relationship, why the author decided to entrust his/her papers to the library, and what setbacks might have occurred in the process is unknown. The speaker will tell some of these hidden tales from behind the scenes, focusing on her acquisition of the archives of Charles Bukowski, Hilary Mantel, Octavia E. Butler, Christopher Isherwood, and Paul Theroux. She will also discuss another kind of secret from the stacks: the handling of private or confidential documents contained in the archives of modern authors. This lecture will relate some of the challenges faced by the curator in handling sensitive personal papers.
Presented By: Sara S. “Sue” Hodson retired in August, 2017, as the curator of literary collections for The Huntington Library, where she oversaw all British and American literary manuscripts, from the Renaissance to the present, and all modern literary rare books.
Sue earned her B.A. (with honors) and M.A. degrees in English from Whittier College and her M.L.S. from UCLA. She has spoken and published widely on literary and archival topics, especially privacy and confidentiality in modern manuscript collections. Her articles have appeared in The American Archivist, California History, the Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science, and numerous other publications.
