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Title details for Gutenberg's Fingerprint by Merilyn Simonds - Available

Gutenberg's Fingerprint

Paper, Pixels and the Lasting Impression of Books

by Merilyn Simonds
ebook
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1 of 1 copy available

An intimate narrative exploring the past, present, and future of booksFour seismic shifts have rocked human communication: the invention of writing, the alphabet, mechanical type and the printing press, and digitization. Poised over this fourth transition, e-reader in one hand, perfect-bound book in the other, Merilyn Simonds — author, literary maven, and early adopter — asks herself: what is lost and what is gained as paper turns to pixel?Gutenberg's Fingerprint trolls the past, present, and evolving future of the book in search of an answer. Part memoir and part philosophical and historical exploration, the book finds its muse in Hugh Barclay, who produces gorgeous books on a hand-operated antique letterpress. As Simonds works alongside this born-again Gutenberg, and with her son to develop a digital edition of the same book, her assumptions about reading, writing, the nature of creativity, and the value of imperfection are toppled.Gutenberg's Fingerprint is a timely and fascinating book that explores the myths, inventions, and consequences of the digital shift and how we read today.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    April 11, 2017

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9781773050027
      • File size: 7357 KB

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9781773050027
      • File size: 7358 KB

    • Open EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9781773050027
      • File size: 7365 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      April 10, 2017
      In a mix of historical inquiry and technological experiment, Simonds (The Convict Lover) creatively grapples with the meaning of the paradigm shift that has transformed words pressed onto paper into digital pixels on screens. With the help of Hugh Barclay, who knows how to operate a 19th-century letterpress, she decides to publish her book The Paradise Project using the same techniques that Johannes Gutenberg used six centuries ago, while her son, Erik, prepares the manuscript as an e-book. Simonds rediscovers the art of print publishing through the examination of its four essential elements: paper, typeface, ink, and press. Each element has its own story, which is uncovered through exploration of historical evidence and hands-on experience, and its own digital representation simulated by LCD technology. She considers how the transition from physical to virtual has affected people’s reading habits and attitudes toward books in general, the ways that it has affected writers, and its potential to make more books available to readers. Simplicity of narration, curious facts, and the personal angle of the story will fascinate book lovers from beginning to end, no matter whether they are devoted to print or to digital, or move between the mediums. Agent: Martha Webb, McDermid Agency.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook
  • Open EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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