A Companion to British Literature is a comprehensive guide to British literature and the contexts and ideas that have shaped and transformed it over the past thirteen centuries. Its four volumes cover literature from all periods and places in Britain and demonstrate the wide variety of approaches to studying the subject. Featuring a broad range of expert contributors, including distinguished academics and rising stars, the Companion examines the historical, social, political, domestic, linguistic, institutional and material contexts in which British literature has been produced.

Essays in the Companion discuss the real and imaginary geography in which British literature plays out, as well as the importance of technological contexts of literature, including transformations in book production and circulation. With special attention to individual genres, in historical context, the Companion discusses both formal and technical aspects of the subject. Throughout the volumes, essays take a highly contextual approach, joining readings across geographical, cultural, institutional, economic and mediological contexts in a unique way. The Companion has been carefully organized to support readers and, it includes a general index, and a thematic table of contents, enabling e-readers to follow numerous discursive threads across various chapters of the book.