Anybody who loves the printed word will be bowled over by this amusing, erudite, beautiful book about books. It is in every way a triumph. One of the loveliest books to have been published for many, many years Alexander McCall Smith Quite simply the best gift for any book lover this year, or perhaps ever Lucy Atkins, Sunday Times Books of the YearAn utterly joyous journey into the deepest eccentricities of the human mind The most cheering, fascinating book I've read for agesGuardianFrom the aut ...