The view from here

The topic of archivists and related professionals in fiction seems endlessly fascinating. Thanks to French Panic for your comments on a previous post. They highlighted a link between my first two posts, namely how archivists/record keepers are viewed by us and the wider world. David Mattison’s website The Fictional World of Archives, Art Galleries and Museums is worth plenty of attention.

I wonder whether record keepers are making more frequent appearances in the world of fiction or whether I’m just noticing it more. As an example, not long ago I read Death at Windsor Castle: Her Majesty Investigates by C.C. Benson (published 1998). This is one of a series of 3 Her Majesty Investigates books. It’s a very good read. A person is found dead in the Throne Room at Windsor Castle, with a sword in his chest. This person is none other than an assistant curator in the Print Room of the Royal Library at the Castle! Turns out he was a nasty piece of work who had enemies enough with a motive to kill, but I was kinda pleased to see a fellow professional in the role of murder victim.