From monastic cloisters in the time of Charlemagne to the book-lined studies of 20th-century authors, this study presents an overview of the literary and artistic world in France. The Bibliotheque nationale de France, rich in collections of illuminated manuscripts, books, medals, maps and prints, had its beginnings when Charles V established his library in the falcon tower of the Louvre. During the Middle Ages, culture was the handmaiden of church and government; during the absolute monarchy, it became an instrument of propaganda; in the 18th century it developed an independent voice. This boo... View More...
The dual memoir of two octogenarian antiquarian booksellers and Alcott authorities, this book explores the combined century of literary sleuthing done by Rostenberg and Stern. Like a precious gem, Old Books, Rare Friends is a book to treasure about the companionship of two rare friends and their shared passion for old books. 36 photos. View More...
In 1995 Nicholas Basbanes introduced a resonant phrase to describe the obsessive passion people have had over the past twenty-five hundred years to possess books, a condition more commonly known as bibliomania, one he christened in his book A Gentle Madness. Reviewing the work in the Washington Post, Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Michael Dirda judged it to be a gallery of wonderful characters, "each more appealing than the last."Now, in Patience & Fortitude, Basbanes continues his discursive adventures among the gently mad, expanding his focus to probe the more comprehensive concept of book... View More...
