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This page last updated
June 2022
© G. Peter Winnington 2022

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Peake STUDIES ceased publication in 2015 (issue 14:iii).
This site is maintained with information about

the contents of the journal,
what the press thought of Peake STUDIES,
the availability of back issues of PS
and of the old Mervyn Peake Review,
an essential primary and secondary bibliography,
Peake in Print,
a timeline of his life,
and a page of answers to
frequently asked questions about Peake.

Peake in Print lists all known editions and impressions of books by Peake and illustrated by Peake, plus his contributions to books and periodicals. Then it goes on to list books (and parts of books) and articles about Peake, dissertations and theses on Peake, and even a first-line and title index to Peake’s poetry.

You will also find pages about Mervyn Peake’s Vast Alchemies (2009), Peter Winnington’s biography of Peake, and The Voice of the Heart (2006), his study of the working of Peake’s imagination.

There’s a page of corrections and additions to Collected Poems, and to Complete Nonsense plus (below) links to other relevant sites.

Most recently added is a collection of articles about Peake by Peter Winnington.

What was in Peake STUDIES?

Peake STUDIES constituted a unique independent forum for criticism and debate for all those interested in Mervyn Peake’s life and work as a writer of novels and short stories, poet, playwright, painter and illustrator.

It contained informed articles, critical reviews, reliable news, and controversial views on all aspects of Peake’s work, including his impact on other writers and artists. It regularly reproduced previously unpublished or little-known works by Peake – drawings, paintings (often in colour), poems, plays and letters – and just occasionally works by other artists who had been inspired by him.

Peake STUDIES came out twice a year, in spring and autumn, between November 1988 and November 2015. After five years, there was a special anniversary issue (Volume 3, No. 3, November 1993) assessing some of the impact of Mervyn Peake’s oeuvre on his readers. A quality, typeset publication, with pages in colour in the later issues, it averaged 48 pages per issue.

Articles from Peake STUDIES are now available on JStor.
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Where to find it

From October 2013, Peake STUDIES was no longer a subscriber periodical; instead it was published free on the web: view the full issue as complete openings (= two-page spreads) on this site – see the back issues page for details.

Libraries and other institutions wanting to make Peake STUDIES available on local sites should contact Jstor.

Previously, this site was paid for by subscriptions to Peake Studies. The journal having ceased publication, I must cover the expenses myself. Your support through a donation, however small, is greatly appreciated.

What the press thought of Peake STUDIES

The few reviews of Peake STUDIES that appeared were full of praise.
In volume 3, number 4, of the Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, Brian Attebery wrote on PS volume 1, issues two and three:
‘This journal is both a sourcebook of materials and a guide to further reading. The production values and editorial standards are remarkably high for a publication that must necessarily have a limited audience’ (pp.151–2).
Volume 2, No. 3, for November 1991, was noticed in the SFRA Review; Neil Barron observed that ‘it maintains high standards in both contents and desktop publishing.’

When Science Fiction Studies noticed Peake STUDIES, it called it ‘a very handsome journal.’ And the summer 1997 issue of Extrapolation (Vol.38, No.2) gave it favourable notice too.

On 12 April 2011, Wormwood’s blog called Peake STUDIES ‘one of the most consistently interesting and resourceful journals devoted to a single author in the fantasy field.’ This praise was repeated verbatim by the British Fantasy Society on June 5th.
Two years later, when the 50th issue came out, Wormwoodiana referred to PS as ‘the most informative – and often under-recognised – periodical.’

A recent correspondent commented that ‘the editing style is refreshing, full of common sense and in no way ponderous (unlike so many journals).’

Back copies of all issues to volume 13 issue iii are available, listed here.
As two issues appeared each year, and each volume (except the last) contained four issues, the last (the 55th) was Vol. 14, No. 3, for October 2015. As usual, it was published on schedule.
Details of prices of back issues on paper and quantity discounts will be found at the head of the list of contents of back issues.
Additionally, the contents of the old Mervyn Peake Peake Review (1975–1982) are listed on this site, along with details of how to buy scans of them.

Contributing to Peake STUDIES

Articles are no longer solicited, but students completing a dissertation on Peake are encouraged to send in details of it for inclusion in the bibliography on this site.
Similarly, if you come across an article on Peake or a discussion of his work in a book (more than just a passing mention), please send details so that the information can be added to parts G or H of Peake in Print.
Please submit your contribution by e-mail for consideration.
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The Editor

Peake STUDIES  was edited by G. Peter Winnington who can be contacted by e-mail. He is the author of Vast Alchemies: the life and work of Mervyn Peake which was published in 2000; it was replaced by Mervyn Peake’s Vast Alchemies in 2009, with updated information and more than 60 new illustrations. It is now available as an ebook, with fresh information and some new illustrations.
His The Voice of the Heart: the working of Mervyn Peake’s imagination, the first critical study to discuss all of Peake’s work – novels, short stories, poems, illustrations, and plays – was published in 2006 in hardback and paperback by Liverpool University Press (in the UK) and distributed in the USA by Chicago University Press.
He also edited Mervyn Peake: the man and his art, a much sought-after book which was published by Peter Owen in 2006, and the volume of papers from the 2011 Chichester Centenary Conference, Miracle Enough: papers on the papers of Mervyn Peake.

A collection of Peter’s articles about Peake is available.

Links

There is a site originated by Peake’s son Sebastian, which contained news of forthcoming publications and exhibitions. It does not seem to be updated now.
If you are wanting to buy secondhand copies of items by Peake, you should visit the sites of
Mr Pye Books and Cameron House.
For paintings and drawings by Peake, contact Chris Beetles who has a London gallery.
Works by Peake regularly come up for sale at major auction houses such as Christies and Bonham’s.
If you simply want brief (and reliable) information about Mervyn Peake’s life and work, go to The Literary Encyclopedia and Literary Dictionary. Beware – some sites indulge in fantastical nonsense, like listing The Craft of the Lead Pencil and The Glassblowers as novels! A rational and balanced assessment of the Titus books can be found on the Great Science-Fiction and Fantasy site.
For articles on illustrators and the art of illustration, see Illustration magazine.

Peake STUDIES is listed on the site of the Alliance of Literary Societies.
All images by Mervyn Peake on this website are © the Mervyn Peake Estate.

Thank you for visiting this site. Come back another day: it’s updated frequently!

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