Imprint
- John Murray
- John Murray
- John Murray
Burning the Books: RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK: A History of Knowledge Under Attack
Richard Ovenden
History, General & world history, History: earliest times to present day
'A stark and important warning about the value of knowledge . . . Vital reading for this day and age' PETER FRANKOPAN
An unforgettable 3,000-year-old journey - from Mesopotamian clay tablets trying to predict the future, to Tudor book-hunters and Nazi bonfires, and on into the dangers of our increasingly digital existence, Burning the Books shows how the preservation of knowledge is vital for the survival of civilization itself.
'A wonderful book, full of good stories and burning with passion' SUNDAY TIMES, BOOKS OF THE YEAR 'Compelling, fascinating and rewarding' LITERARY REVIEW
'When books burn, it is more than just words under attack . . . this extraordinary book should stir us to thinking and to action' FINANCIAL TIMES
'A tale of ingenuity and deep courage' GUARDIAN
'A stark warning - the truth itself is under attack' THE TIMES, BOOKS OF THE YEARPraise for Burning the Books: RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK: A History of Knowledge Under Attack
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A galvanising manifesto for the importance of physical libraries in our increasingly digital age - The Bookseller
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A magnificent book - timely, vital and full of the most incredible tales, a manifesto for our humanity and its archives
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'Dangerous souvenirs' is what Richard Ovenden calls the books salvaged by ex-monks under the nose of Henry VIII. Now as then, books need friends. This fascinating book will help to find them.
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Both timely and authoritative...The subject of archives and libraries is one of permanent importance in the understanding a nation has of itself, and touches not only high politics but also life-and-death drama. I can think of no-one better qualified to write about it than Richard Ovenden. I enjoyed Burning the Books immensely.
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A stark and important warning about the value of knowledge and the dangers that come from the destruction of books. Vital reading for this day and age.
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Like an epic film-maker, Richard Ovenden unfolds vivid scenes from three millennia of turbulent history, to mount passionate arguments for the need to preserve the records of the past - and of the present. This urgent, lucid book calls out to us all to recognise and defend one of our most precious public goods - libraries and archives.
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