The Book-Makers - Book of the Year 2024
I am picking Adam Smyth's The Book-Makers: A History of the Book in Eighteen Lives as the 2024 Book of the Year. Smyth does a masterful job not only explaining the cultural impact each evolution of the book and book production had, but he elevates the names and people behind key moments. These moments continue to reach forward and affect every book on your bookshelf.
Note: This post may contain affiliate links and is a follow-up post from yesterday’s list of category winners for the Books About Books Book Awards.
After all the books about books that I've been fortunate to read, it is always more enlightening and feels more comprehensive when an author connects historical events to actual names and places. Smyth and the folks at Basic Books have done this.
Like all historically focused books, this one glances all the way back to the 1400s and what it took to make "best-sellers" of the time, all from a tavern turned print shop. It mentions some well-known names like Baskerville and Ben Franklin but correctly highlights lesser-known folks and their contributions.
My favorite chapter, in The Book-Makers on Nancy Cunard, who ran a small press in 1930s France. The work was on the cutting edge socially, and her story is very inspiring. The best part for me is that I have now seen TWO books that Cunard printed in used bookstores. This kind of connection is precisely the kind of thing you want when you read a book about books.
The best books about books should allow you to roll around in all of the lore and history. It should raise your appreciation for book culture and all of the people who have ever been a part of creating the books we read and collect. A good book about books should make these 500-year-old histories feel relevant and fresh today. Kudos to Adam Smyth and Basic Books for doing just that in 2024.
