The History of the Book in 100 Books: The Complete Story, From Egypt to e-book

A study of books through history is a study of human history. In The History of the Book in 100 Books , the author explores 100 books that have played a critical role in the creation and expansion of books and all that they bring -- literacy, numeracy, expansion of knowledge, religion, political theory, oppression, liberation, and much more. The book is ordered chronologically and divided thematically. Each of the 100 sections focuses on one book that represents a particular development in the evolution of books and in turn, world history and society. Abundant photographs inform and embellish. Here are some of the themes discussed: In the Beginning -- first human scratches on cave walls, cuneiform tablets, papyrus books, the oldest table of prime numbers Eastern Approaches -- 1,000 years before Europe, the Far East "publishes" books using paper and other writing surfaces in multiple -- in one case 11,000 -- volumes The Great Classics -- the emergence of Aesop's Fables over 2,000 years ago; the first cookbook, by Apicius, reveals the excesses of the Roman empire Medieval Worlds and the Book -- the illuminated Book of Kells survives Viking raids; Ptolemy puts the world on a map; the miraculous beauty of the Prayer Books and Books of Hours Light From the East -- the oldest printed book of all: Diamond Sutra ; the first novel, Tale of Genji (written by a woman no less); the first book of astronomy and the first book of anatomy Wheels of Change -- a period of firsts: Gutenberg invents moveable type; the first blockbuster; the first joke book; the first printing in Africa; printing in Arabic; first printed music Print and Steam -- technology puts photography in books; newspapers publish fiction in installments; enter Baedecker, the archetypical travel guide; celebrity cooking hits the page The Book in the Turbulent 20th Century -- public libraries spark an information explosion; the advent of mechanized copying; revolutionary book design; no topic is off limits; the publishing industry Digitization and the Future of the Book -- e-book publishing intersects with a return to handcrafted books; manga, redefining the book. This book takes a singular approach that will appeal to astute readers. It will have a wide and diverse readership. Cover Inside Flaps Back Cover Title Contents Foreword Introduction 1. In the Beginning ... 1. Cave Paintings: El Castillo Cave 2. Earliest Evidence of Mathematical Knowledge: Ishango Bone 3. Cuneiform Tablets: Epic of Gilgamesh 4. An Andean Mystery: Caral Khipu 5. Egyptian Books on Papyrus: Book of the Dead of Ani 2. Eastern Approaches 6. Chinese Developments in Bookmaking: Guodian Chu Slips 7. Mass Production in Japan: Shotoku's Dharani 8. Monumental Korean Undertaking: Tripitaka Koreana 9. Indian Palm-Leaf Manuscript: Nalanda Perfection of Wisdom Sutra 10. Ihe Biggest Books Ever Written: Yongle Dadian 11. Bone, Bamboo and Bark: Batak Pustaha 12. Burmese Folding Format: Parabaik 3. The Great Classics 13. Origins of a Childrens' Classic: Aesop’s Fables 14. A Timeless Epic: Homer’s Iliad 15. An Early Masterpiece of Ethiopian Art: Garima Gospels 16. The First Cookbooks: Apicius 17. A Mathematical Miracle: Archimedes Palimpsest 4. Medieval Worlds & the Book 18. Ireland's Greatest Treasure: Book of Kells 19. Schism and Discord: Chludov Psalter 21. A Masterpiece of Armenian Illumination: T’oros Roslin Gospels 22. The Father of Mapping: Ptolemy’s Geographia 23. A Sailor’s Guide to Byzantium: Cristoforo's Liber Insularum Archipelagi 24. Illumination by the Master of the Prayer Book: Bruges Roman de la Rose 25. A Giant Among Giants: Farnese Hours 5. Light from the East 26. The Oldest Printed Book of All: Dunhuang Diamond Sutra 27. A Literary and Artistic Masterpiece: Murasaki's The Tale of Genji 28. The "Indian Aesop": Panchatantra 29. The Standard Islamic Book of Astronomy: Al-Sufi’s Book of Fixed Stars 30. A Forgotten Precursor of Leonardo da Vinci: Al-Jazari's Compendium on the Mechanical Arts 31. The First Anatomical “Atlas": Mansur's Anatomy 32. An Early Islamic Book Produced in Java: Boke van Bonang 6. Wheels of Change 33. Gutenberg’s Revolution: Gutenberg’s 42-Line Bible 34. A Blockbuster Among Early Printed Books: Schedel's Nuremberg Chronicle 35. A Book From the First English Printer: Caxton's Chesse Mora lysed 36. The First Joke Book: Wynkyn’s Demaundes Joyous 37. The Earliest Scientific Texts: Euclid's Elementa Geometriae 38. A Model for Future Book Design: Aldine Virgil 39. Printing in Arabic: Gregorio's Book of Hours 40. The First Printing in Africa: Sefer Abudarham 41. Heavenly Voices: St. Gall Cantalorium 42. A Gutenberg Problem Solved: Constance Gradual 43. A Major Work of Biblical Scholarship: Complutensian Polyglot Bible 7. A Dangerous Invention 44. Developing the Swedish Language: Gustav Vasa Bible 45. Practical Censorship at Work: Erasmus' De ratione conscribendi epistolas 46. The First Printing in British America: Bay Psalm Book 47. An Aztec View of Pre-Columbian Life: Codex Mendoza 48. Searching for Pepper and Nutmeg: Linschoten’s Itinerario 49. The First Modern Study of Anatomy: Vesalius’ De humani corporis fabrica 50. An Amazing Amateur Astronomer: Brahe’s Astronomiae 51. A Foundation Stone of Modern Science: Newton’s Principia 52. Everyman His Own Expert: Markham's Cavelarice 53. Fashion in Clothing: Helm's Art and Industry 54. An Outstanding British Contribution to Botany: Blackwell’s Curious Herball 55. A Baroque Dance to the Music of Time: Tomlinson’s Art of Dancing 8. Printing & the Enlightenment 56. Rococo Dress for Classical Drama: Boucher’s Moliere 57. The Greatest Dictionary of the English Language: Johnson's Dictionary 58. A Very Early Book for Children: Newbery’s Little Pretty Pocket-Book 59. The Lodestone for the Enlightenment: Diderot's Encyclopedic 60. A Pioneer in Information Retrieval: Linnaeus’ Species Plantarum 61. Using Graphs to Convey Information: Playfair's Commercial and Political Atlas 62. Records of Crime and Punishment: Newgate Calendar 63. The Literary Oddity that Entranced Europe: Sterne’s Tristram Shandy 64. Mighty Lewd or Literary Classic?: Cleland's Fanny Hill 65. An African-American Work in an Ancient Field: Banneker's Almanack 66. The Master of Black and White: Bewick’s British Birds 67. Landscape Design at Its Best: Repton's Red Books 68. How Tactile Writing Began: Hauy's Education of the Blind 9. Print & Steam 69. Patently Brilliant Yankee Inventiveness: Perkins' Patent 70. The First Book Illustrated Photographically: Atkins' Photographs of British Algae 71. Photography Moves to the Third World: Duperly’s Daguerian Excursions in Jamaica 72. Missionary' Printing in Canada: Evans' Syllabic Hymnbook 73. The Development of Serial Publishing: Dickens' Pickwick Papers 74. Pulp Fiction, Victorian Style: Powell's Old Grizzly Adams 75. Innovative Books for Young Readers: Aikin s Robinson Crusoe in Words of One Syllable 76. Moral Education through Pictures: Hoffman’s Struwwelpeter 77. From Medieval Mysticism to Paper Engineering: Meggendorfer’s Grand Circus 78. Have Guidebook, Will Travel: Baedeker's Switzerland 79. The First Celebrity Chef: Soyer’s Modern Housewife 80. Marketing for the Colonies: Boldrewood's Robbery Under Arms 10. The Book in the Turbulent 20th Century 81. The Blind Seer of Buenos Aires: Borges' Garden of Forking Paths 82. A Major Advance in Document Production: Carlson's Lab Book 83. Printing as a Performing Art: Cranach-Presse’s Hamlet 84. A West-Coast Interpretation of an American Epic: Whitman’s Leaves of Grass 85. Tangoing Toward the Revolution: Kamensky's Tango with Cows 86. Time-Travel Surrealism: Ernst's Une Semaine de Bonte 87. Street Literature — The Voice of the People: Nnadozie's Beware of Harlots 88. Twentieth-Century Solutions to Publishing Needs; Lehmann's invitation to the Waltz 89. Never Surrender! Clandestine Presses in War: Kaminski’s Stones for the Rampart 90. The Greatest Samizdat Book: Bulgakov's Master and Margarita 91. Guidance in the Marital Home: Stopes' Married Love 92. The Limits of Political Propaganda: Frank's Diary of a Young Girl 11. Digitization & the Future of the Book 93. All His Own Work: Hunter's Old Papermaking 94. The Last of the Old, the First of the New: RAND's Million Random Digits 95. Modernizing Medieval Manuscripts: Electronic Beowulf 96. The First E-Book?: Ruiz's Mechanical Encyclopedia 97. Multum in Parvo — the Smallest Books: Technion Nano Bible 98. Modern Technology and iManga: Koyama-Richard’s One Thousand Years of Manga 99. Are "Artists’ Books" Books?: Prieto's Antibook 100. Is it a Book, or is it a Book?: Sulawesi Lontar Glossary Bibliography Acknowledgments Picture credits Index "The e-book age has taken 'the book' to a turning point, but in fact, casting off old technologies and taking on new ones has been part of the history of the book since Egyptian times. At this crucial time for the future of books as we know them, this volume tells their story from the very beginning. Each of the 100 books chosen has played a critical role in the development of books in all their forms and with all that they bring: literacy, numeracy, technological progress and the expansion of scientific knowledge, religion, political theory, entertainment, and more. Illustrated with more than 300 pictures of some of the most treasured artifacts from the world's historic collections, The History of the Book in 100 Books traces mankind's 5,000-year quest to communicate ideas and knowledge."-- Provided by publisher Each of the 100 books chosen has played a critical role in the development of books in all their forms and with all that they bring: literacy, numeracy, technological progress and the expansion of scientific knowledge, religion, political theory, entertainment, and more."--Book jacket