A Splendor of Letters: The Permanence of Books in an Impermanent World
Language: English
Published by Harper, 2003
- First Edition
- Hardcover
- Used
Seller: JK Books - Restorations and Rescue Books, Brooklyn, NY, U.S.A.JK Books - Restorations and Rescue Books
AbeBooks seller since April 9, 2026
Condition: Used - Good
£ 7.60
Quantity: 1 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
First/First with full number line. Ex library book with stickers and card pocket. Otherwise in perfect shape.it looks unread, though I can't imagine why. Unclipped mylar protected DJ.
Seller Inventory # ABE-1784736947903
- Title
- A Splendor of Letters: The Permanence of Books in an Impermanent World
- Author
- Basbanes, Nicholas A
- Publisher
- Harper
- Publication year
- 2003
- Condition
- Good
- Dust jacket
- Very Good
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 0060082879
- ISBN 13
- 9780060082871
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Printing
- 1st Printing
- Item weight
- 1.676 pounds
- Dimensions
- 6.12 inches width by 9 inches height by 1.41 inches depth
In A Splendor of Letters, Nicholas A. Basbanes continues the lively, richly anecdotal exploration of book people, places, and culture he began in 1995 with A Gentle Madness (a finalist that year for the National Book Critics Circle Award) and expanded in 2001 with Patience & Fortitude, a companion work that prompted the two-time Pulitzer Prizewinning historian and biographer David McCullough to proclaim him "the leading authority of books about books."
Basbanes now offers a consideration of the many pressing issues that surround the role of books in contemporary society, such as the willful destruction of books and libraries in Sarajevo, Tibet, and Cambodia, and the spirited efforts to restore them. The matter of "discards" at various libraries takes on an entirely new dimension as well, with fully researched stories about the kind of attitudes that may lead to the loss of last copies of important works.
In vivid detail, Basbanes examines the many materials that have been used over the centuries to record information -- among them clay tablets, papyrus scrolls, slabs of stone, palm leaves, animal skins, and hammered sheets of gold and copper. Also discussed are the various debates that continue to rage about preservation, which may mean saving and storing books on paper indefinitely, or as electronic data, which are by nature ephemeral.
In this beautifully packaged edition, Nicholas Basbanes brings to a close his wonderful trilogy on the remarkable world of books and bibliophiles.
"Synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
About the Author
"About the title" may belong to another edition of this title.
JK Books - Restorations and Rescue Books
Brooklyn, NY, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since April 9, 2026
Shipping rates within U.S.A.
| Item | 6 to 14 business days | 4 to 6 business days |
|---|---|---|
| First item | £ 4.61 | £ 9.23 |
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- Paypal
Store description
Small home-based collection of select titles and subjects. Where indicated, some volumes may have been repaired and restored to as close an approximation of their original condition as possible. My purpose is to revive, repair, restore, and recirculate well-used yet deserving works.
Specialty
Travel, Book repair and restoration, Books on Books, Bookbinding, Fiction, Science Fiction, Literature, HistorySeller's business information
JK Books - Restorations and Rescue Books
NY, U.S.A.
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