Books and Their Creators. Printers, Publishers, and Dreamers Who Opened the Book Business

The story of how people made books over the course of 530 years, in biographical sketches of 18 significant figures. Under the cover - both majestic Bibles in folio format and xeroxed samizdat magazines of the 2020s. It tells about the lives of those thanks to whom numerous book forms - strange and amazing in their own way, familiar and new - came to light.

We will talk about paper production, bindings and fonts, about libraries and printing houses, about insatiable collectors and publishers releasing a book a week. Our journey will take us through England, France, and North America, and we will visit 2nd century China and 8th century Islamic countries. The narrative brims with life, filled with unforeseen circumstances and whims, successes and failures.

You will learn about the Dutchman Winking de Worde, whose books are still with us - five centuries later. You will get acquainted with the scandalous story of the sale of Shakespeare's 'First Folio' and the typesetter who bequeathed his font to the River Thames.