Chances are you’ve probably used an index at the back of the book at some point in your life. But how much thought have you given to their creation, their function, and their history?

Our guest this hour has written a whole book on the topic. Dennis Duncan, author of Index, A History of the: A Bookish Adventure from Medieval Manuscripts to the Digital Age, joins us, along with a professional indexer, to tell you more than you ever thought to wonder about the role of indexes in our world.

Plus, we get mixed up in the world of cookbook indexes.

GUESTS:

• Dennis Duncan: Author of Index, A History of the: A Bookish Adventure from Medieval Manuscripts to the Digital Age and a lecturer in English at University College London
• Paula Clarke Bain: Professional indexer
• Elizabeth Parson: Professional indexer

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Colin McEnroe, Eugene Amatruda, and Jonathan McNicol contributed to this show.

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