Amazing. The synopsis describes The Book as an "...invitingly tactile history of this 2,000-year-old medium", and this description is as apt as anything I could come up with.

From the very construction of the book itself, to the labels describing every part of the book, to the illustrations, to the nitty-gritty details describing every facet of all that goes into book making, I was delighted! I loved how often the author wrote, "If you look at the ___ of this book, you'll see an example of ___." 

The nerd in me is pretty sure we died and went to heaven. 🤓

I was the kid who wanted to know how things were put together, but was never really satisfied with the explanation. Don't get me wrong, that crayon video on Mr. Rogers was amazing, but I always wondered how they came up with the machine that made the crayon, and how they made THAT machine.

This book answers that, but for books. Excuse me: codices. 😁 Down to the last detail. I found myself googling some of the processes so I could watch a video, and giggling at the drama between rival printers and paper makers. I touched the illustrations with a bit of reverence for the artistry, skill, and even the practicality that lead to me holding THIS book, at THIS time, in MY hands. *swoon*

It's smart, accessible, detailed, and highly readable, if you like that sort of thing. It goes deep into the weeds of history, page by page.  Some would call it dry or slow, but I usually end up liking it if I'm interested in the topic. Books definitely qualify. 📚