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The Bookshop
A History of Bookselling From the Dawn of Print to the 21st Century
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Brief Description
Bookshops are a comforting sight on our high streets, warm and welcoming spaces in which to browse, meet friends and occasionally buy books. They may feel timeless, yet their history is a restless and turbulent one, filled with as many entrepreneurial street hawkers and illicit trades...
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See moreA magisterial history of bookshops and booksellers by the author of The Library and The Book at war
A magisterial history of bookshops and booksellers by the author of The Library and The Book at war
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Description
Bookshops are a comforting sight on our high streets, warm and welcoming spaces in which to browse, meet friends and occasionally buy books. They may feel timeless, yet their history is a restless and turbulent one, filled with as many entrepreneurial street hawkers and illicit trades as with beloved institutions.
The Bookshop, from the celebrated author of The Library and The Book at War, explores the evolution of bookselling from the cramped collectors' shops frequented by Samuel Pepys to the radical feminist bookshops of the 70s, the rise of monolithic chains and the new world of online selling. Connecting stories and lives that span centuries, countries and continents, The Bookshop brings us into beloved bookshops of today and looks forward to the possible experience of booksellers of tomorrow.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781805224372
Publisher: Profile Books Ltd
Format: Hardback
Date Published: 17 September 2026
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Profile Books Ltd
Edition: Main
Illustration: 8pp colour plates
Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 32.0mm
Width: 154.0mm
Height: 236.0mm
Weight: 535g
Pages: 320
About the Author
Andrew Pettegree, FBA, is Professor of Modern History at the University of St Andrews. He is the author of The Book at War, the prize-winning The Book in the Renaissance and co-author of The Library: A Fragile History. He is a former Vice-President of the Royal Historical Society and founding director of the Universal Short Title Catalogue.
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