Books: A Living History [Hardcover]

Martyn Lyons (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 11, 2011

From the first scribbling on papyrus to the emergence of the e-book, this wide-ranging overview of the history of the book provides a fascinating look at one of the most efficient, versatile, and enduring technologies ever developed. The author traces the evolution of the book from the rarefied world of the hand-copied and illuminated volume in ancient and medieval times, through the revolutionary impact of Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press, to the rise of a publishing culture in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and the subsequent impact of new technologies on this culture.  

Many of the great individual titles of the past two millennia are discussed as well as the range of book types and formats that have emerged in the last few hundred years, from serial and dime novels to paperbacks, children’s books, and Japanese manga. The volume ends with a discussion of the digital revolution in book production and distribution and the ramifications for book lovers, who can’t help but wonder whether the book will thrive—or even survive—in a form they recognize.

 

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In this sumptuously illustrated history of the book, Lyons covers a millennia of changes, from ancient Mesopotamian carvings to Gutenberg's innovations in printing, through the computer age and the advent of the Internet and e-readers."—Publishers Weekly 

"Besides giving us a visual journey of the book as a beautiful, aesthetic object, Lyons also shows how influential the book has been in shaping human history for 2,500 years."—Shelf Awareness

“An excellent introduction to the history, terminology, and trends in writing and reading books.”—Fine Books & Collections

“An ambitious, beautifully illustrated work.”—Choice

“A profusion of bibliophilic eye-candy.”—College & Research Library News

About the Author

Martyn Lyons is professor of history at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and the author of A History of Reading and Writing in the Western World (Palgrave Macmillan, 2009) and Reading Culture and Writing Practices in Nineteenth-Century France (University of Toronto Press, 2008).

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: J. Paul Getty Museum; 1 edition (October 11, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 160606083X
• ISBN-13: 978-1606060834
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #498,964 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Booking a place in history November 12, 2011

By Hande Z

Format:Hardcover

This is a 217-page book which includes two pages of glossary and two pages of suggested further reading. It is not a small book but is handy and not very heavy although it is a hard cover book with good quality glossy pages. It is therefore portable although published in a coffee-table style, that is, it has lovely photgraphs, prints and drawings. The text accompanying each topic is short but fascinating and informative, for example, the difference between the papyrus and parchment. We see, for instance, beautiful ancient Chinese writing on strips of bamboo, a book form known as "jiance". The book goes beyond the history of books and informs us about early libraries, and has interesting pictures such as monastic libraries, the Great Library of Alexandria, and book stalls in places such as Bangladesh. The history segment includes brief accounts of children's books and Japanese "Manga", complete with picture samples. Equally useful are the accounts on copyright and the rise of book stores - nothing is said about their decline (except the reminder that "books don't need batteries") - even though the book conluded with two articles on the virtual book and the rise of digitization. The history of the book promises to be long and glorious.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Light but with Insight January 1, 2012

By James Patrick Pope

Format:Hardcover

I bought this book as Christmas present to myself because it looked good & I found it read well & gave me access to ideas & some history of which I was unaware.

Part of the joy of books for me is the feel, the smell & intimacy of reading a book. I have a Kindle App on my iPad & iPhone & I love reading on these devices too...but a book is special. I enjoyed the reading experience for all the intangible reasons that mean books will be with us for the foreseeable future. Great proportions, colour, paper and fine writing. It was a good guest during these holidays.

The book is well presented with great illustrations & production values. The author writes well & delivers insight. Clearly the author has researched deeply & thought about what needed to be said & how to say it. The feeling I have is that the text has been edited down to fit the required space. I think the author has much more to say.

This title has all the elements of a book to be read, enjoyed & merits a in my library. That's all I can ever ask

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Handy reference with lots of photos February 5, 2012

By Hsiaoshuang

Format:Hardcover

A handy reference that tries to cover a huge subject; a book to dip into for bits of curious information about books; but not for serious research.

There are lots of interesting photos such as one showing Nazis burning books written by Jews and one showing British Muslims burning Salman Rushdie's book; see also the picture of a poster exhorting workers to read that I posted in the picture gallery; the author remarked that the pious hope of public librarians was that workers could develop themselves through reading serious literature, but alas all that the workers were interested in was reading light stuff.

What I like were photos of book covers when the books were first printed. (See example of The Three Musketeers in the picture gallery that I posted.)