Paper

Paging Through History

By: Mark Kurlansky

Narrated by: Andrew Garman

Length: 13 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

From the New York Times best-selling author of Cod and Salt, a definitive history of paper and the astonishing ways it has shaped today's world.

Paper is one of the simplest and most essential pieces of human technology. For the past two millennia, the ability to produce it in ever more efficient ways has supported the proliferation of literacy, media, religion, education, commerce, and art; it has formed the foundation of civilizations, promoting revolutions and restoring stability. One has only to look at history's greatest press run, which produced 6.5 billion copies of Mao zhuxi yulu, Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung (Zedong), which doesn't include editions in 37 foreign languages and in brailleto appreciate the range and influence of a single publication, in paper. Or take the fact that one of history's most revered artists, Leonardo da Vinci, left behind only 15 paintings but 4,000 works on paper. And though the colonies were at the time calling for a boycott of all British goods, the one exception they made speaks to the essentiality of the material; they penned the Declaration of Independence on British paper. Now, amid discussion of "going paperless" and as speculation about the effects of a digitally dependent society grows rampant, we've come to a world-historic juncture.

Thousands of years ago, Socrates and Plato warned that written language would be the end of "true knowledge", replacing the need to excise memory and think through complex questions. Similar arguments were made about the switch from handwritten to printed books, and today about the role of computer technology. By tracing paper's evolution from antiquity to the present, with an emphasis on the contributions made in Asia and the Middle East, Mark Kurlansky challenges common assumptions about technology's influence, affirming that paper is here to stay. Paper will be the commodity history that guides us forward in the 21st century and illuminates our times.

©2016 Mark Kurlansky (P)2016 Recorded Books

Wonderfully written story of the history.

Author is an excellent writer. I have enjoyed all of his books. The audio book is well done.

Informative and more fun than I thought a book simply called paper would be

I enjoyed the ancient history part immensely.
The author hammers his thesis pretty constantly, though, and the modern history part therefore tends to repetitiveness.

Kurlansky's Best

My favorite book that I have read from Mark Kurlansky. Expansive but incredibly readable, fascinating work.

Flawed Recording Ruins a Fascinating History

Any additional comments?

I've read all of Kurlansky's books. All of them have been interesting and extremely enjoyable reads. Unfortunately Amazon has released a horribly flawed recording that skips and jumps, rendering the recording unlistenable. That this was allowed to be released in this condition is pathetic. I highly recommend the book. I can't recommend Amazon's shoddy release.

Fantastic book!

I love everything about this book, from the information to the organization to the performance. Very thought-provoking book!

A great book that changes how one sees the world.

The author brings to life the involvement of paper in ancient times from the chinese, arabic peoples, the conquest and debasement of the meso americans, history of devolopment of printing and publishing and techniques and art forms on through current times from many points of view.

He brings to mind the way that James A Michner developes an image that is made of brush strokes from different times and points of view through history that form an image with deeper meaning than the subject matter suggests. A masterful work, well presented, that has changed my understanding of the world i live in.

Kurlansky Scores Again

If you could sum up Paper in three words, what would they be?

Amazing Thorough Research

What was one of the most memorable moments of Paper?

There was not just one moment. It was the continuous flow of the story and how he wrapped it up at the end. He includes so many parallel events and analysis.

What about Andrew Garman’s performance did you like?

He has a perfect voice. Clear and smooth. Just the right emphasis. When I speed it up, it does not lose clarity.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The destruction of libraries in the ancient word. As one country conquered another, they would destroy their library rather than read what they found. Horrible.

Any additional comments?

A wonderful author. This book reminded me why I loved the author's book SALT so much.

Interesting role paper has played in history

I wasn’t sure what to expect but it was thorough and now I know a lot more about the history of paper than I ever expected. Also more importantly, the evolution of peoples interaction with paper.

I learned a lot.

Paper is a great book. It's just what I've come to expect from Kurlansky's books. I learned so much about a thing I use every day. The free association bank is full now whenever I think about trees or napkins or office work. This is a great way to enrich my life. Anyone could benefit from reading it.

Excellent research and brilliant narration.

Covered so much ground and so many details. Really amazing overview that was well presented.