Books:The Durable Medium

Chapter OutlineHistoryIndustryControversies

Early Forms Earliest paper evolved around 3000 BC. Papyrus to parchment, made from dried animal skins. Greeks & Asian cultures made early books

The Printing Revolution This Person came up with moveable metal type. Printing changed the world ▪ From oral culture to literature culture. ▪ Led to many changes

The Book In America 1530’s - Spanish established first press in the Americas.

▪ In Mexico City.

Early colonial publishers escaped repression in England, Parchment gives way to early paper

Many colonial printers ran bookstores. ▪ vertical integration.▪ What is vertical integration?

Print shops/bookstores▪ Became meeting places & educational centers.

The Library Company of Philadelphia

Universal Education Massachusetts – ▪ Passed law requiring every child be taught to read

Universal education ▪ Became law in the U.S. in 1820s.

McGuffey’s Readers, ▪ 1st published in 1836

Books and Slavery Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, ▪ Published in 1851 - 1st national best seller.

The Book-of-the-Month Club was formed in 1926,

Paperback Books Mass-market paperbacks introduced by Pocket Books in 1939 Male-oriented mysteries, Westerns, and thrillers Harlequin, marketed romance novels grew in the 1960s, Trade paperback - heavier cover and better quality paper.

New Forms of the Book Audiobooks – Started for people with vision problems, E-books – Digital files, usually downloaded from Internet. ▪ E-books have the potential to change the medium. ▪ Hypertext fiction

▪ Anyone remember the type of books with this feature?

Types of Books Trade books – account for largest share of books sold. ▪ Fiction and nonfiction that are sold to the general public.

Educational books – textbooks for schools ▪ Elementary, secondary, college, and vocational.

Reference books – used to look up facts and information.

Professional books information for specific occupations

The specialty classification ▪ Religious books, high school and college yearbooks,

The Players Less than 200 full-time professional authors of books. ▪ Most authors teach, work for newspapers/magazines, or are celebrities.

Authors write under contract or on spec;

The Bookseller Barnes & Noble▪ Accounts for more than 25 percent of book sales.

Megastores have about 100k titles, ▪ Many perks & hard to find content

Independent bookstores ▪ Not part of a larger company.▪ Indy Bookstore

▪ Any advantages to independent bookstores? What?

Amazon.com is the leading online bookstore Developed “Bookmatcher” Recommends books based on customer’s other preferences.

There are many other online booksellers▪ What other sites have you gone to for books?

Book Clubs▪ What are some book clubs you are familiar with

The Reader – Determine what’s published.

Bibliophiles ▪ Consume 50 or more books a year.

Casual readers ▪ Enjoy reading, but only a few books a year.

Required readers ▪ Only read for work or studies.

Illiterates ▪ Never learned how to read.

Aliterates ▪ Those who can read but don’t.

Book Censorship – Banned Book link The First Amendment

▪ Restricts government interference with free speech, ▪ Any act of government censorship tends to be a serious issue.

Censorship by schools & libraries has been controversial.▪ Any books that were banned by your school? Why?

Challenging a book, provides publicity that stimulates sales.▪ What books were publicized and sold well?

Book censorship around the world ▪ Usually far stricter than in the U.S.

Censorship can protect children from ▪ Pornography, obscenity, and writers who advocate violence.▪ Do you agree with this? Why, Why Not

The Blockbuster Syndrome Publishing blockbusters ▪ Controls the economics of the industry.

Big payfor potential blockbusters ▪ Little money for more literary works.

Midlist authors ▪ Write books with literary merit but are not obvious blockbusters.

The Blockbuster Syndrome The quest for blockbusters ▪ Has led to “books by crooks.”▪ Such as “A Millions Little Pieces”

Another problem of the phenomenon is ▪ Decline in quality & accuracy in works of nonfiction.

Also, a number of books turn out to be hoaxes or plagiarized works.