Posted on 08/09/2024 7:40:24 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
Books are the purest form of escapism. They can take you to any time, place, or culture. In honor of National Book Lovers Day August 9, we put away our smartphones, pull out a good book and simply read. (Well, an audiobook will suffice too.) From clay tablets to today’s eBooks, literature has played a crucial role in preserving cultures, educating the masses, and storytelling. Thanks to Johannes Gutenberg’s 15th-century printing press, anyone, not just royalty, monks or landed gentry, could read and own books. But, alas, there was no overnight shipping. Today, join a book club or re-read a favorite novel because National Book Lovers Day rocks!
History of National Book Lovers Day
Book Lovers Day appreciates the medium that has withstood and preserved its importance in time — literature. Our love for books knows no bounds — someday we’ll write a book on it.
The modern book is made by binding paper, but before the invention of paper, books came in the form of tablets, scrolls, and engravings. Every civilization had its own way to document events. Some time in 3500 B.C., the Mesopotamians would make markings on clay tablets using a pointed device, made from the stem of the reed plant, called the calamus. These writings on the moist clay were called ‘cuneiform.’ Approximately 20,000 of these tablets were discovered in modern-day Iraq.
Paper was invented in China in the 1st century A.D. By experimenting with various materials such as hemp, fishnets, and the mulberry plant, Ts’ai Lun invented the first paper. With time, printing on woodblocks also became the go-to way of reproducing books in China. The ancient scrolls dating back to the 4th century B.C. are considered the first ‘books,’ but by today’s definition, the oldest surviving compiled book is “The Diamond Sutra” which was published in China on May 11, 868.
Hardback books ruled the market at the start of the 20th century, with a certain prestige associated with the hard bindings of books. But from 1937 onwards, paperbacks rose in popularity, paving the way for digests, pulp fiction, and pocket-friendly books.
Advancement in computers and technology led to the digitization of books, with the first book sold in CD format in the 1980s, “The New Grolier Electronic Encyclopedia.”
100 fiction books to read in a lifetime
https://www.abebooks.com/books/100-books-to-read-in-lifetime/
LOL! So you’re reading, ‘Everybody Poops?’ A classic! ;)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_First_Tycoon
The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt is a 2009 biography of Cornelius Vanderbilt, a 19th-century American industrialist and philanthropist who built his fortune in the shipping and railroad industries, becoming one of the wealthiest Americans in the history of the U.S. It was written by American biographer T. J. Stiles. The book was honored with the 2009 National Book Award for Nonfiction[1] and the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography.[2]
I’ve read about a third of them.
I don’t have time for books. I’m still getting caught up on MAD Magazine.
I’ve read most of them; some more than once! I was crazy for Bradbury, Atwood and Vonnegut as a teen.
My Mother is a voracious reader. She used to get the ‘Readers Digest Condensed Books’ in the mail each month. She handed me ‘Jaws’ and said, ‘You have GOT to read this!’ I was 14 years old. *GASP* ‘Jaws’ was the first ‘R-Rated’ movie I ever sneaked into - and sure wish I hadn’t! I don’t like scary movies, but scary books are fine - you CAN put them down, LOL!
As an adult I’m drawn to Historical Fiction, Police/Cop Series and any Murder Mystery, though I have a list of favorite Authors as long as my arm. ;)
Currently reading: ‘Istanbul Passage’ by Joseph Kanon but I am NOT above reading the current James Patterson thriller, either. ;)
Just finished reading “Christians in the American Revolution”, by Mark A. Noll — the smartest man I ever knew.
It wasn’t exactly what I expected, but I learned a lot.
Nearing the last of the excellent Matthew Shardlake historical novels by C.J. Sansom, sadly to learn of the authors passing in April. They’re crime novels set during the reign of Henry VIII and bring many of the places and people of that time to life. Hopefully another author will continue to write similar books, as Kyle Mills did for the Mitch Rapp series after Vince Flynns death (and now, Don Bentley will continue).
I read Gone With The Wind numerous times. Mitchell could turn a phrase.
BTTT
Read many, have several but have banned a few from this house. Can’t stand Stephen King and he can’t complete a sentence without a 4 letter word. The Color Purple can sit on a dusty store shelf mainly due to Oprah. I’d add O Henry stories, Shakespeare and James Herriot’s series but with a tissue.
Jack Reacher series. Just finished most of the Joe Ledger series. Joe > Jack
I miss Vince! I get a little choked up when I see his books as I’m sorting through my favorite Thrift Store bookcases. :(
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