New St Andrews book from Scottish Universities Press
In 2024, Scottish Universities Press, a publisher built out of the collaboration of 20 academic libraries across Scotland, began publishing open access books by Scotland-based academics. The remit for proposals was soon expanded to accept submissions from authors at all UK higher education institutions.
Their third book, The vow of stability: an ethnography of monastic life, comes from Dr Richard Irvine, a Senior Lecturer in Social Anthropology at the University of St Andrews. Irvine’s book looks at the daily rhythms and rituals of monks in a Catholic English Benedictine monastery, while also examining this in relation to the broader history of monasticism and its corresponding institutions.
Irvine’s research into Catholic monastic life first began when he was doing his PhD at the University of Cambridge. ‘The fundamental theme that drew me in from the start,’ Irvine says, ‘was this: what does it mean to withdraw from the world?’
Soon, he was enmeshing himself in day-to-day monastic life. ‘Initially,’ he notes, ‘I was very drawn to the fact that in a world of fleeting interactions where people feel uncertain, the rootedness of monastic stability—the commitment to spend a lifetime in one place, in one community—had the capacity to inspire us. I still believe that. But I think I underestimated just how much hard work that stability takes.’
The book engages these rhythms and the social interaction inherent in monastic life, but also some of the horrors and harms that have come along the way, particularly around sexual abuse in both the broader church and in this specific community. For this reason and many others, it was important for the book to be easy to find and discover.
‘Reading ethnographies is a very important part of learning about anthropology,’ Irvine says. ‘But there’s very uneven access to those books. I want people to have the opportunity to read this book and potentially to teach with, without having that barrier.’
Scottish Universities Press, an open access, library-led publisher, was therefore a big draw for Irvine.
‘I’m a huge fan of libraries,’ Irvine says. Much of the work of the book took place in libraries, whether the library Irvine was taken to as a child and still visits as an adult, or the monastery’s own library, in which he spent a lot of time during his fieldwork. Furthermore, the University of St Andrews’ own Library has contributed to the book and its publishing, through funding, coordination, and cataloguing.
The discoverability aspect is obviously important for the press and the libraries involved, and St Andrews is pleased to be providing the expert catalogue records for all titles so they can be easily incorporated into library search.
‘I’m very proud that this is one of the first books from this new press,’ Irvine says, ‘and if the release of this book helps SUP to establish itself that makes me happy, because I think it has an enormous amount of potential.’
One of the most compelling elements for Irvine was the fact that SUP books are available as both a free, downloadable, high quality open access copy online, and a print copy available for purchase.
‘As someone who loves books,’ he says, ‘I’m glad that people can get hold of a physical copy because there’s still a lot to be gained from the tactile experience of turning the pages of a book.’
The vow of stability: An ethnography of monastic life is available now for download or print purchase from Scottish Universities Press. You can hear more about Richard’s book on 22 May, when SUP’s Hannah Whaley and Gillian Daly will host a fireside chat with the author to discuss monastic life and more.
Book proposals welcome at SUP
Scottish Universities Press (SUP) is open to proposals for monographs, edited collections, and, most recently, textbooks!
If you have a book project in mind, take a look at the guidance on SUP’s own site.