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Books For Bibliophiles
10 books about books for book lovers include a history of reading, the inside scoop on the publishing industry and a novels about a magical librarian / BY Nathalie Atkinson / December 14th, 2023
If your idea of sightseeing is mapping out a vacation destination’s bookshops, any of these 10 books will please. Books about books for book lovers: All that’s missing to complete the well-worn cliché of avid readers is the watchful, softly purring cat.
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1Among Friends The co-founder of Running Press and his wife have assembled a lively illustrated oral history of the American publishing industry. There are musings from retired editor Nan Talese of Doubleday, triumphant tales of revitalization from Robert Gottlieb at Knopf, and insider dish from Woodward and Bernstein’s publisher, claiming the first draft of All the President’s Men was “an unreadable disaster.”
The co-founder of Running Press and his wife have assembled a lively illustrated oral history of the American publishing industry. There are musings from retired editor Nan Talese of Doubleday, triumphant tales of revitalization from Robert Gottlieb at Knopf, and insider dish from Woodward and Bernstein’s publisher, claiming the first draft of All the President’s Men was “an unreadable disaster.”
2The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts In this groundbreaking study, Hecimovich pieces together the identity of the first Black female author, who fled slavery and whose manuscript, The Bondwoman’s Narrative, was lost for more than 150 years before resurfacing about 20 years ago. It’s a literary detective story about both “the era that defined her life and erased her work.”
In this groundbreaking study, Hecimovich pieces together the identity of the first Black female author, who fled slavery and whose manuscript, The Bondwoman’s Narrative, was lost for more than 150 years before resurfacing about 20 years ago. It’s a literary detective story about both “the era that defined her life and erased her work.”
3Once Upon a Tome Adding to the already overstuffed shelves of books about bookshops, and subtitled “The Misadventures of a Rare Bookseller,” this volume takes readers into the inner workings, vintage volumes and quirky customers of Henry Sotheran, the London antiquarian bookshop established in 1761, and the daily travails of “the ugly stepchild of the antiques business or the art world.”
Adding to the already overstuffed shelves of books about bookshops, and subtitled “The Misadventures of a Rare Bookseller,” this volume takes readers into the inner workings, vintage volumes and quirky customers of Henry Sotheran, the London antiquarian bookshop established in 1761, and the daily travails of “the ugly stepchild of the antiques business or the art world.”
4100 Novels that Changed the World The literary historian considers the evolution of fiction and 100 works from the Middle Ages up to the present, from Atwood to Rushdie, that have made an indelible mark on literature, as well as the world at large, through shifting pop culture – just as the title says.
The literary historian considers the evolution of fiction and 100 works from the Middle Ages up to the present, from Atwood to Rushdie, that have made an indelible mark on literature, as well as the world at large, through shifting pop culture – just as the title says.
5The Chapter Expanded from an essay in the New Yorker, in which he considers the subjective division of chapters, and the way they act as an organizing principle not only in books but also in walks of life, the writer extends his exploration to how chapters are also a historical construct, metaphor, and way of understanding the passage of time.
Expanded from an essay in the New Yorker, in which he considers the subjective division of chapters, and the way they act as an organizing principle not only in books but also in walks of life, the writer extends his exploration to how chapters are also a historical construct, metaphor, and way of understanding the passage of time.
6Big Fiction Earlier this year, a publishing behemoth was going to absorb venerable Simon & Schuster, which instead got gobbled up by private equity giant KKR. Consolidation seems the order of the day; and when “corporatization” dramatically alters what gets published, Sinykin asks whether we need to save literature from the fate of profit-driven conglomerates. Look away, if you don’t want to know how the sausage is made.
Earlier this year, a publishing behemoth was going to absorb venerable Simon & Schuster, which instead got gobbled up by private equity giant KKR. Consolidation seems the order of the day; and when “corporatization” dramatically alters what gets published, Sinykin asks whether we need to save literature from the fate of profit-driven conglomerates. Look away, if you don’t want to know how the sausage is made.
7A Book Lover’s Guide to the Zodiac If you check your horoscope every day and love reading, this handsome pocket-sized book is for you (or anyone who does), because it collects writers and fictional characters and matches them to their star signs.
If you check your horoscope every day and love reading, this handsome pocket-sized book is for you (or anyone who does), because it collects writers and fictional characters and matches them to their star signs.
8Stories of Books and Libraries For enthusiastic bibliophiles who want to read on that exact trope, this anthology assembles book-themed stories by the likes of Montaigne, Umberto Eco, Ray Bradbury, Helen Oyeyemi and Lorrie Moore.
For enthusiastic bibliophiles who want to read on that exact trope, this anthology assembles book-themed stories by the likes of Montaigne, Umberto Eco, Ray Bradbury, Helen Oyeyemi and Lorrie Moore.
9The Science of Reading The science of reading, studied in earnest beginning in 1900, noted how a good reader’s eyes moved across a page of printed characters and what happened to their mind as they understood their meaning. This book looks at how the “geography of information” and informational inequities continue to shape society (including the ongoing reading wars in school libraries), and why the issue still matters today.
The science of reading, studied in earnest beginning in 1900, noted how a good reader’s eyes moved across a page of printed characters and what happened to their mind as they understood their meaning. This book looks at how the “geography of information” and informational inequities continue to shape society (including the ongoing reading wars in school libraries), and why the issue still matters today.
10What You Are Looking For Is in the Library This Japanese novel follows five Tokyo borrowers who each get life-changing book recommendations from their intuitive local librarian, Mrs. Komachi. It’s an object lesson in how reading the right book at the right time can change the course of a day, week or life, and the charming kindness the novel contains has helped it become nothing short of a sensation.
This Japanese novel follows five Tokyo borrowers who each get life-changing book recommendations from their intuitive local librarian, Mrs. Komachi. It’s an object lesson in how reading the right book at the right time can change the course of a day, week or life, and the charming kindness the novel contains has helped it become nothing short of a sensation.