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To the Last Scratch of Ink

13th March, 2026

Just in time for International Women’s Month, Peter Harrington have published “To the last scratch of ink”: The Lives and Literature of Women. This catalogue is the third in a series focusing on women, by Emma Walshe and Theo Robinson. You can read an interview with them here…

Emma explains the title quotation, ‘To the last scratch of ink’: ‘[it] is from Madge Jenison’s book, The Sunwise Turn: A Human Comedy of Bookselling. Jenison co-founded one of the first bookshops in the United States run by women. Her memoir is full of wonderfully honest and sharp observations about books and bookselling; it’s a quick, funny read. Speaking about how they stocked their shop, Jenison wrote: “My partner and I could see ourselves selling this book hand over hand – it delighted us to the last scratch of ink.” That sense of enthusiasm for books, and for their material form, felt like a nice fit for the catalogue.’

While Theo focuses on literature, Emma’s speciality is the sciences and social history. Between them they are offering a wide range of manuscripts, diaries, photograph albums and other firsthand materials that offer an amazing insight into the lives of these women and are a great contrast to the published books included in the catalogue.