In quest of the perfect book : Reminiscences & reflections of a bookman

audiobook

In quest of the perfect book : Reminiscences & reflections of a bookman

by William Dana Orcutt

EN·~6 hours·12 chapters

Chapters

12 total

1:19

FOREWORD TO THE THIRD EDITION

3:53

ILLUSTRATIONS

6:45

CHAPTER I

36:11

CHAPTER II

41:56

CHAPTER III

38:38

CHAPTER IV

57:07

CHAPTER V

40:15

CHAPTER VI

1:06:37

CHAPTER VII

33:15

Description

The narrator, a lifelong devotee of the printed word, takes listeners on a warm, wandering tour through the hidden histories of printing, binding, and the very soul of a book. Drawing on personal letters, rare manuscripts, and his own experiences in the trade, he shares vivid anecdotes that reveal how a simple page can become a bridge between centuries. His voice is both scholarly and conversational, making the world of typographers, illuminators, and collectors feel intimate and alive.

At the heart of the memoir lies an enduring quest: the search for the “perfect book,” a harmonious blend of authorial voice, elegant design, fine paper, and a reader’s imagination. Rather than offering a final answer, the author invites us to consider how each element—typeface, binding, illustration—contributes to a reading experience that can change over a lifetime. Listeners will come away with fresh appreciation for the craft behind the books they love and a reminder that the true perfection of a book lives in the personal connection each reader creates.

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Details

Language

en

Duration

~6 hours (355K characters)

Publisher of text edition

Project Gutenberg

Original publisher

Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1926.

Credits

Terry Jeffress, Tim Lindell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)

Release date

2023-09-14

Rights

Public domain in the USA.

About the author

William Dana Orcutt

William Dana Orcutt

1870–1953

Drawn to beautiful books as both objects and ideas, this American writer and designer helped shape the craft of printing in Boston while also publishing works of history, fiction, and literary reflection. His career linked the making of books with a deep affection for reading, typography, and the life of the mind.

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