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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
funny
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Wanted to like this more but I think I'm the wrong reader for this book. There were a few chunks of it that I found very interesting however most of it was odd. It seesawed back and forth between being quite academic, then being a bit personal without really allowing you to get to know the person who was writing, then just kind of descending into these weird lists.
It was written to be a love letter to book culture but I suspect the only ones who will read are ones who are already in love with books and need no convincing. I wanted to like it more than I did, unfortunately it just didn't do it for me.
It was written to be a love letter to book culture but I suspect the only ones who will read are ones who are already in love with books and need no convincing. I wanted to like it more than I did, unfortunately it just didn't do it for me.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
I loved it! Right now I will quit my studies and become a bookseller because the author has made me fall in love with books all over again. He even convinced me that it is indeed okay to scribble in the margins and to underline the pages that you loved the most, so I did :)
No, but seriously: this is a must-read for everybody and anybody that loves to read, hold, cuddle, smell and kiss books. In a beautiful and cosy setting of wordplay, the author describes a little bit of history of our fascination with books and his personal experience with booklovers. He has worked for 30 years in multiple bookshops all over London, so he kinda knows what he is talking about.
No, but seriously: this is a must-read for everybody and anybody that loves to read, hold, cuddle, smell and kiss books. In a beautiful and cosy setting of wordplay, the author describes a little bit of history of our fascination with books and his personal experience with booklovers. He has worked for 30 years in multiple bookshops all over London, so he kinda knows what he is talking about.
If you could see my face right now it is one of pure bliss and contentment. A book about the history of books, “The Booksellers Tale” was a hidden gem along the front counter of my local independent bookstore and I’m so glad I was drawn to it.
By exploring the history of books through the eyes of past collectors, sellers, admirers, critics, Pedlars, printers, publishers and authors, Latham’s thoughts, anecdotes and insights are imbued with a sense of awe and deep love for not only the physical objects of books, but the stories which they hold within, and their personal journeys throughout the changing physical and spiritual events of humanity.
I’m just so struck but how connected I felt to so many of these individuals mentioned. How their personal experiences and love for books has inspired within me a deeper respect for the impactful nature of “The Story,” as well as the physical placement of books. Whether they are situated in crates along the Seine, displayed lovingly within an expansive personal collection, curated in a public library, or waiting patiently on a shelf under the dim light of a bookstore, books and their physical placeholders hold so much magic and potential.
This book, I believe, was the physical manifestation of my passion for books that I truly needed at this singular moment in time. As I stand on the threshold of a new chapter in my life, beginning University, and all my aspirations for such an endeavour, this book has shown me every way in which such a passion can manifest within a life. It has sparked that little fire within me that has always wanted to be a bookseller, if only for a moment. It has shown me the power of the written word in catapulting a philosophical movement, and it has instilled within me a determination that my passion, and the deep desire I felt for books whilst reading this, shall never be lost, and instead, shall always be nurtured, so that a simple passion may grow into a happy and fulfilling vocation.
By exploring the history of books through the eyes of past collectors, sellers, admirers, critics, Pedlars, printers, publishers and authors, Latham’s thoughts, anecdotes and insights are imbued with a sense of awe and deep love for not only the physical objects of books, but the stories which they hold within, and their personal journeys throughout the changing physical and spiritual events of humanity.
I’m just so struck but how connected I felt to so many of these individuals mentioned. How their personal experiences and love for books has inspired within me a deeper respect for the impactful nature of “The Story,” as well as the physical placement of books. Whether they are situated in crates along the Seine, displayed lovingly within an expansive personal collection, curated in a public library, or waiting patiently on a shelf under the dim light of a bookstore, books and their physical placeholders hold so much magic and potential.
This book, I believe, was the physical manifestation of my passion for books that I truly needed at this singular moment in time. As I stand on the threshold of a new chapter in my life, beginning University, and all my aspirations for such an endeavour, this book has shown me every way in which such a passion can manifest within a life. It has sparked that little fire within me that has always wanted to be a bookseller, if only for a moment. It has shown me the power of the written word in catapulting a philosophical movement, and it has instilled within me a determination that my passion, and the deep desire I felt for books whilst reading this, shall never be lost, and instead, shall always be nurtured, so that a simple passion may grow into a happy and fulfilling vocation.
informative
slow-paced
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
A book very much about the history of books, bookstores, libraries, etc. written by Martin Latham, who runs Waterstones in Canterbury. A very insightful read on the (mostly) Western reading culture. Although very detailed, I believe this is not for everyone. This is almost like reading an academic journal (I only later found out that the author has a PhD). Very informative and enjoyable, although I had so much trouble with hundreds of names mentioned in the book. I particularly loved the bits on marginalia (authors' and readers' notes on the side of the books) & Comfort Books. Especially on the history of women in reading.
A well-written almost-academic read.
A book very much about the history of books, bookstores, libraries, etc. written by Martin Latham, who runs Waterstones in Canterbury. A very insightful read on the (mostly) Western reading culture. Although very detailed, I believe this is not for everyone. This is almost like reading an academic journal (I only later found out that the author has a PhD). Very informative and enjoyable, although I had so much trouble with hundreds of names mentioned in the book. I particularly loved the bits on marginalia (authors' and readers' notes on the side of the books) & Comfort Books. Especially on the history of women in reading.
A well-written almost-academic read.
I'm afraid this wasn't meant for me! It wasn't what I was expecting. The tone wasn't right. What I was expecting to be a good and slightly funny book for bookish was in the end more of a cultural tale surrounding the market of book. The author seem like someone who love to heard himself talk and that was the feelings I had all along. Like when you talk to someone who just talk about himself again and again and again. A bad date! I felt pretentious to me, lot of name dropping. «I was there. I've seen that and I read book you never even heard about.» Sure the author know his subject and have a solid bookworld background, but in a way he remind me of bad teacher, there is a huge difference, a world, between knowing your subject right and being able to pass it on.