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chapbook

chapbook

2 7.8
A small, inexpensive book of poems or short stories often self-published
  • noun
  • /ˈtʃæpˌbʊk/
  • Literature
translation icon : librito
  • The author proudly showcased her latest chapbook, filled with original poems about nature.
  • a new chapbook
  • chapbook titled

Examples

  • Girl Erases Girl, her first chapbook, is due out this spring from Dancing Girl Press.

    Blog text (7)
  • I also like chapbooks, as nothing can sell a book like a sample of the writing.

    Blog text (20)
  • I'm going to start with and maybe not get past this new chapbook that came out recently.

  • Did you get those chapbooks for me?

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Her second chapbook, Gardening Where the Land Remembers War, will be published by Two Herons Press in August.

    Academic text (1992)
  • I also read a bunch of great chapbooks from friends and acquaintances.

    Blog text (20)
  • I've written "The Road to Seetee" for a new chapbook for Haffner Press.

    Blog text (13)
  • Also, a chapbook, The Endearment, is forthcoming in 1999 from Shortline Editions.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Her chapbook, Bright, Burning Fuse, was a finalist in the 2008 Keyhole Poetry Chapbook contest and was published by Etched Press.

    Academic text (2009)
  • No Girls No Telephones, a chapbook I co-wrote with Rebecca Hazelton, is forthcoming from Black Lawrence Press.

    Blog text (18)

Synonyms

booklet
vschapbook
40 1.9

A small book with information or instructions on a topic

focuses on poetry or short fiction and is often self published in limited runs

How Long

tome
  • Formal
22 8.4
book
1.0
chapbook
  • Literature
2 7.8
pamphlet
79 3.1
leaflet
31 2.7

Surface Forms

chapbook singular
chapbooks plural

Morphology

chapbook = chap + book (opaque) = chap + book

Although both elements are visible ('chap' + 'book'), 'chap' in this compound historically points to chapmen (peddlers) and the meaning 'small, inexpensive booklet' is specialized and not directly inferable by most learners.

Etymology

Chapbook comes from chapman ('seller') plus book, because small booklets were sold cheaply by street sellers; that's why a chapbook today is a small, often self-published or inexpensive book of poems, stories, or essays.