The Coming of the Book: The Impact of Printing 1450-1800 (Verso Classics, 10)

Let me state, before beginning to comment, that I did not read the English version, but the French one. The comment therefore pertains only to the contents.

There is a great deal of information in this book: technical, historical and cultural.

If there is something to pick upon, it will be that the book focus too much in France - but then, this is only normal and it may be argued that France having been one of the most important cultural centers of Europe this is no bad thing.

The book is very well written: in some places it may be difficult to understand unless one already knows something about printing and casting, but it is always very clear. The logical integration of the book - I mean, the connection of ideas - and the balance between facts and interpretations is extremely good. In fact, it is possible to read it for very long hours indeed, which is rare for books on books.

As far as I know, in terms of quality, it is the very best book on this subject.

Some people will deplore the lack of pictures. But I think the flow would be compromised and, in any case, there are other books which illustrate printing history.

Excellent

The written word isn't going away. Prose may read from the commercial to poetic, we may read more package copy than works of literature, and more off a screen or monitor than printed on the page; but read we do and will continue to do. One could say that reading is as natural (and necessary) a function as breathing, eating or drinking; but, in fact, the book has an techno/economic/political origin. And, why not learn something of that origin? Just how did the book happen? Why? And, once the proverbial genii left the bottle, how did the book change everything? Things just don't happen. Dots are not just connected. Or are they?

Febvre and Martin explain it all and with all its historical, political and economic implications. David Gerard translation is lucid and fluid and the book is a lovely read.

Febvre and Martin's, The Coming of the Book, is a scholarly work without the dry academic tone of a textbook. Having said that, this isn't a casual read, as the authors will provide some of the details of edition sizes, costs, and distribution. The authors themselves give the reason for the present work, "...we hope to establish how and why the printed book was something more than a triumph of technical ingenuity, but was also one of the most potent agents at the disposal of western civilization in bringing together the scattered ideas of representative thinkers." In support of this thesis, Febvre and Martin spend a considerable portion of the book on technical issues such as the invention of the moveable-type press, how books were constructed, economic and social forces affecting the distribution and printing of books, and the geography of the spread of books. About the last third focuses on, "The Book as a Force for Change."

The first three chapters are devoted to the introduction of paper into Europe, the technical difficulties associated with the invention of the moveable-type press in Europe, and the basic construction of the book. It is important to note that both paper and moveable-type presses were not unique to Europe - they were invented in China centuries before. However, aside from paper there is no direct evidence that the moveable-type press was imported; it seems more likely that it was an independent invention. The major problem facing inventor(s) of the moveable-type press was finding suitable materials and processes for the creation of metal type founts. Febvre and Martin devote relatively few pages to such enabling forces as the development alphabetic languages (Douglas McMurtrie in, The Book: The Story of Printing and Bookmaking, provides a more complete summary). But they do spend some time discussing processes in related industries that provided adaptable techniques - the use of clay moulds to make relief inscriptions and the use of brass die-stamps by moneyers to strike coins to name two.

The next four chapters are devoted to the book as a commodity, the economic and social conditions affecting its production and sale, a short section on apprenticeships, and geography. Here the authors discuss the growth of book production into an international trade and its subsequent fracturing into more localized businesses, due in part to a series of wars and the increasing popularity of printed material in the vernacular. Febvre and Martin introduce the reader to the great printer/publishers of each age, Anton Koberger, Jean Petit, the Estiennes, etc.

It is the last, and longest, chapter that is devoted to how the book enabled some of the changes that occurred in Early Modern Europe. If there is one event that most readers will be familiar, it is the Reformation. Febvre and Martin discuss the distribution of Protestant literature and the ineffectiveness of the various laws and censoring edicts enacted in France, and other countries, with the intent to stem the spread of such material. But this chapter isn't limited to the Reformation. It also covers the effect of printing on Humanism and the knowledge of Latin and the classics and the effect on the development of modern European languages.

Throughout, Febvre and Martin provide details on the sizes of editions, and sometimes their geographic distribution, of the most popular works in each period; be warned though, the authors do not translate the French, Latin, Greek, and German titles. You can see how the increased availability of books led to social and cultural changes, which in turn led to changes in what works were produced, which lead...well you get the picture. As with many of the scholarly works I've read of late this one is also nearly devoid of illustration. It isn't a fatal flaw, but it would have been nice to include more maps and perhaps some images of incunabula. Though I haven't picked it up yet, The Smithsonian Book of Books looks like it makes up for this lack with over 300 color plates. You can also, as I did, find plenty of images and the occasional map on the web. One thing I do want to point out is that the Verso paperback edition is rather fragile. After a single reading the book is falling apart. If you are more careful than I was, you can probably keep it together.

If you are interested in learning some of the details of the invention of the moveable-type press in Europe, the economics of early printing concerns, and some of the social and cultural changes books enabled I'd recommend reading, The Coming of the Book.

The Coming of the Book is essential reading for anyone interested in book history, the development of modern literary languages, or the growth of capitalism in early modern Europe. It's an excellent example of the social history that the Annales school of sociologists and historians worked to produce: coherent narrative drawn not from specific important events but from the interpretation of massive amounts of data on the 'everyday' professional lives of early type founders, journeyman printers, shippers and booksellers. Most importantly, Febvre and Martin analyze the affect that the unique pressures of print as a capitalist enterprise (the capital investment in type, the costs of paper and of labor, problems in transport and marketing) had on the development of standardized print-languages, the development of 'mass' culture, and the spread and evolving functions of literacy.

Lucien Febvre and Jean-Henri Martin have integrated careful archival research with a lively recounting of history which transcends individual rulers in this account of early printing. The book is particularly interesting since we also live in a time when the economics and sociology of information dissemination is changing quickly.

The reaction of the early copyright system in place at medieval universities to new realities, of the technical innovation necessary to make good type founts, and of early print censorship were particularly interesting. I also enjoyed the discussion of the documentary evidence about Gutenburg and his unhappy relations with his financial backers.