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caomhin's review against another edition
4.0
This is a book about a book. It's described as a biography of a book which seemed odd. Bios means life, and much as I view books as more than thinly sliced trees with some writing on can they really have a life? A biography often has a few pages on the early years of a life, focusing instead on the later years which the reader will more easily identify and understand. The story of a book is more typically before creation - the struggles of writing/producing. Perhaps something of the publicity tour these days.
Emma Smith proves that you can have a biography about a book. The early years are brief. This really is a life story. Not just of the First Folio, but of all the many unique and various copies of the First Folio. This isn't achieved by anthropomorphising the books, it's just telling how they grew and changed. The influences around them. Much like the plays within there are tragedies, histories, and even comedies. There's even some romance too.
Smith delivers many layers in this book. Each copy has been part of many lives. It is fascinating see how the world has changed, and the attitudes towards the book. From the early days when children used the margins to draw houses to the modern precautions for transportation and display that define things like the means of travel and the climatic requirements for preservation, not to mention the security concerns.
If you think calling it a biography might make this a light, easy read, you should realise that this is the one way the book really isn't a biography. The first of the five chapters runs to 97 pages, and contains 226 footnotes. This is a serious, well-researched, academic work. It's a dense, intense read too. Not a great choice to read after a long, hard day. But when you have the time and peace to read it properly it's very rewarding. Smith shows real passion for her subject, her writing is engaging and she conveys her enthusiasm well. It achieves that magical property of becoming hard to put down.
Much as a book is always judged by the reading, this is one that has a significance beyond then. I come away feeling more informed about both the main subject of the book and many ancillary aspects of society and history. It's a rich look at these broad topics, full of odd pieces of information I'll probably recall years from now when I hear something random.
A fascinating read. I received my copy through the First Reads programme.
Emma Smith proves that you can have a biography about a book. The early years are brief. This really is a life story. Not just of the First Folio, but of all the many unique and various copies of the First Folio. This isn't achieved by anthropomorphising the books, it's just telling how they grew and changed. The influences around them. Much like the plays within there are tragedies, histories, and even comedies. There's even some romance too.
Smith delivers many layers in this book. Each copy has been part of many lives. It is fascinating see how the world has changed, and the attitudes towards the book. From the early days when children used the margins to draw houses to the modern precautions for transportation and display that define things like the means of travel and the climatic requirements for preservation, not to mention the security concerns.
If you think calling it a biography might make this a light, easy read, you should realise that this is the one way the book really isn't a biography. The first of the five chapters runs to 97 pages, and contains 226 footnotes. This is a serious, well-researched, academic work. It's a dense, intense read too. Not a great choice to read after a long, hard day. But when you have the time and peace to read it properly it's very rewarding. Smith shows real passion for her subject, her writing is engaging and she conveys her enthusiasm well. It achieves that magical property of becoming hard to put down.
Much as a book is always judged by the reading, this is one that has a significance beyond then. I come away feeling more informed about both the main subject of the book and many ancillary aspects of society and history. It's a rich look at these broad topics, full of odd pieces of information I'll probably recall years from now when I hear something random.
A fascinating read. I received my copy through the First Reads programme.
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