WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT BOOKS The History and Future of Reading

Elisabeth Rodgers narrates this audiobook eloquently, paying attention to the author's encyclopedic knowledge of her subject. Her tone, style, and pace suit this thoughtful work's wide-ranging content. The author, a professor of the history of the book, leads the listener on a world tour of this iconic object, which she convincingly argues was the original mass-marketed product, and shows its iterations from handcrafted volume to ebook as it mirrored technological innovations. Price shares entertaining anecdotes--Hemingway's copy of ULYSSES looks unread--and revealing details: Japanese people read on smartphones, the French on computers, Americans on Kindles. Books persist and evolve, as do libraries, bookstores, and places we read. This audiobook overflows with insights. Anyone who loves to listen to and/or read books will enjoy this revelatory audiobook. A.D.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPTEMBER 2019]