Best intro to the history of printing
Chappell and Bringhurst have put together an informative, enjoyable book on printed text. It starts with a brief history of writing in general, then of the Roman alphabet now used for most European languages. Along the way, we see a few hints about the history of page layout and other typographic concerns. The book devotes a few pages to the skilled craft of punch-cutting, of carving the steel stamps that represented the master copies from which metal type was replicated.
That just sets the stage, though. The next 250 pages or so cover the history of printed text in Europe and the New World. It's an amazing journey, filled with rich characters. Gutenberg was only one of those characters, and his bankruptcy played a surprising role in the spread of printing. Chappell followed through, era by era, until the start of photocomposition, somewhat after WWII. Bringhurst added the section on computer typesetting and all-electronic fonts, bringing the story quite up to date.
Bringhurst has done an elegant, seamless job of updating Chappell's original work. This is a posthumous collaboration that actually works, to my happy surprise. The book tells a coherent story in a very readable way, without bogging down in pedantic detail. The history of print can't really be told in just 300 pages, but this is an outstanding summary. It provides the framework and structure for the full story. Interested readers will look elsewhere to furnish the framework with detail, but will keep coming back to give context to those finer points.
With Bringhurst as collaborating author, you know that this book has to be a joy to read, both in its prose and in the structure of the physical book itself. I suggest it to anyone interested in typography, printing, or history in general.
//wiredweird
Check out updated version by R. Bringhurst
The Canadian typographer and book designer Robert Bringhurst updated Chappell's (1904-91) history. He is also the author of Element of typographic style (which is also a classic)Althought I haven't yet read this classic by Chappell. I want to read it and would like any help in finding it too! I think the new version is by Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
a must read
The book is a great source of information. The 4 (not 5) stars is given cause the book is filled with postscript errors (missing letters, ligatures replaced by spaces, accented glyphs...). Disapointing for a book about typography.
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