The 'Du Shu Min Qiu Ji' (《讀書敏求記》) is a four-volume bibliographic work written by Qian Zeng of the Guochao. The courtesy name of Qian Zeng, who styled himself Yeshi Weng, was Zunwang. A native of Changshu, he came from a family renowned for its extensive collection of ancient texts. The 'Du Shu Min Qou Ji' documents the finest copies of books in his possession, annotated by hand and inspired by the format of Ouyang Xiu's 'Jigu Lu'. The work is organized into four main categories: 'Jing' (Classics), 'Shi' (Histories), 'Zi' (Philosophy and Practical Arts), and 'Ji' (Collections of Writings).

The 'Jing' section includes six subdivisions: 'Li Yue', 'Zixue', 'Yunshu', 'Shu', 'Shushu', and 'Xiaoxue'. The 'Shi' section comprises ten branches, such as 'Shiling', 'Qiyong', and 'Dili Yutu'. The 'Zi' category is further divided into twenty subgenres, including 'Nongjia' (agricultural works), 'Tianshi' (astronomy), 'Lishi' (calendar systems), and 'Yishu' (artistic practices). The 'Ji' section contains four subsections: poetry collections ('Shiji'), total anthologies ('Zongji'), literary criticism ('Shiwen Ping'), and lyrics for ci songs. Critics have noted inconsistencies in the classification system, such as grouping all Confucian classics under a single category while separating related fields like 'Zixue', 'Yunshu', and 'Xiaoxuel'. Similarly, histories (including annals and mixed chronicles) are consolidated into one broad group, yet practical manuals on tools ('Qiyong') or cuisine ('Shijing') receive distinct subcategories. The categorization of philosophical schools also lacks clarity; for example, 'Rujia', 'Daojia', and 'Zonghengjia' are grouped together, while other schools like 'Mojia' and 'Nongjia' are subdivided further.

The work's organization has drawn criticism for arbitrary placement of topics. For instance, calligraphy ('Shufa') and mathematical texts ('Shushu'), typically falling under artistic or technical disciplines, are classified within the 'Jing' section. Meanwhile, agricultural works like 'Zhongyi' (cultivation) and 'Huanyang' (breeding) appear in the 'Shi' category despite their natural association with 'Nongjia'. Such inconsistencies extend to other areas: Li Shangyin's poem is misattributed, and works like 'Shenghua Ji' are incorrectly credited to anonymous authors. The 'Du Shu Min Qiu Ji' also includes erroneous judgments on texts, such as falsely attributing authenticity to the forged 'Huang Di Nei Jing' or dismissing corrections made by scholars like Xiao Chang regarding historical inaccuracies in 'Xushou Han Shu'.

Despite these flaws, the work reflects Qian Zeng's extensive knowledge of manuscript lineages and printing techniques. His annotations emphasize aesthetic judgments on calligraphy and woodblock quality rather than rigorous scholarly verification. While he occasionally misidentifies sources—such as crediting 'Shenghua Ji' to Sun Shaoyuan instead of the correct author—or overlooks errors in historical records (e.g., the spurious claim that Yuan Shunzhi was the son of Yinguo Gongzi), his detailed observations on textual provenance and variant editions have earned him recognition as a connoisseur. The 'Du Shu Min Qiu Ji' thus stands as both a valuable catalog of rare books and a testament to the challenges of bibliographic classification during its era, with particular insights into Guochao-period scholarship and collecting practices.

References

• 《四庫全書總目提要·卷87 史部·目錄類存目》

讀書敏求記，又稱述古堂藏書目錄題詞，是清初學者錢曾撰寫的一部重要的版本目錄學著作。其于每條題目後附解題，嘉慶朝以後尤其為人看重，被人拿來與《郡齋讀書志》和《直齋書錄解題》相提並論。該書也與錢曽族曾祖錢謙益的《絳雲樓書目》有很大聯繫，蓋因絳雲樓大火後所有劫餘書籍都被贈予錢曽。

本書共四卷，分經、史、子、集四目，每一目下有各分多個支目。它大約將錢曽《也是園書目》中六分之一的藏書做了解題。校讐此書的學者有吳騫、朱文藻、黃丕烈、管庭芬、汪士驤、章鈺等，其中章鈺的《讀書敏求記校証》最為用功，三易其稿，較原書擴充了三倍之多。傅增湘稱讚章校本「此本一出，舊本可廢。」

此書的流傳，先由朱彞尊從虞山錢氏處抄出，隨後以較小程度流傳于江南士人間，是為曝書亭本。吳興趙氏于雍正四年刊刻。最早還有一手抄本被稱為題詞本，名稱並非讀書敏求記而是述古堂藏書目錄題詞，章鈺對此無法解釋，也不確定讀書敏求記這一書名是否是錢曽原署。

限于作者識見，讀書敏求記不乏錯漏，四庫總目言之甚祥。歷代校書者也訂補了許多與事實相違之處。作者錢曽的題解也並非完全是學術性的，其中時而會出現作者的個人感想和評論，因此被總目稱為「賞鑒家」，中華書局書目題跋叢書本《讀書敏求記》的整理者馮惠民將該書稱為「賞鑒派目錄學著作」。

Read more...: 參考來源   參考資料