Between 1840 and 1869 Augustus De Morgan - Professor of Mathematics at University College in London, author, bibliographer, sometime secretary of the Royal Astronomical Society, first president of the London Mathematical Society, prolific contributor to the publications of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, consulting actuary, formulator of De Morgan's Laws, etc. etc. - contributed reviews of over a thousand books to The Athenaeum, "Journal of English and Foreign Literature, Science, and the Fine Arts".

Volume One covers the period of 1840 - 1860, and contains the text of 425 reviews. The Athenaeum was notable for the comprehensiveness of its coverage of the cultural interests of its time, De Morgan's reviews cover mathematics, astronomy, engineering, statistics, philosophy, religion, the history of science, and even spiritualism.


The Athenaeum was published weekly at a low price in an attempt to reach a large market. They succeeded in this, and managed to last through the entire Victorian era. The variety and depth of coverage they provided to their readers is impressive - both for the magazine and for what it says about their readership. De Morgan's reviews range from brief notices of textbooks and advances in mathematics "too deep" for a general readership to nearly ten thousand word critiques of works in philosophy and religion.