How do you create an active reader? Why is reading good for creativity? Why is it vital for teaching the next generation resilience and positive mental health?
In the digital age of never-ending screen time you could argue that the power of books has diminished. But while screens have changed the act of reading, Alex Johnson believes reading is even more important, and that people value books more than ever. This is visible in the sales of printed special editions, the revival in reading aloud, the increased interest in poetry anthologies and the rescuing of 'lost words' from obscurity.
But the problem is: with so many competing distractions, which are the best books for children to read and how can we access them? How do we get children to start reading? And how can we encourage them to be curious? How can we encourage their reading and maintain their interest? In this book of practical advice, Alex Johnson brings his tremendous enthusiasm and informed passion to answer these questions, and many more, to ensure a new generation of bookworms are whisked away to new worlds and essential discoveries.
Propaganda is thousands of years old. But it came of age in the 20th century, when the development of mass media (and later multimedia communications) offered a fertile ground for its dissemination, and the century's global conflicts provided the impetus needed for its growth. Put simply, propaganda is the dissemination of ideas intended to convince people to think and act in a particular way and for a particular persuasive purpose. But it takes many forms, is fluid and indeed is constantly developing, most fervently in our own digital era. Terms such as 'fake news', 'post-truth', 'gate-keepers' and 'asymmetrical warfare' were unknown a decade ago yet today are now commonplace, and often cynically derided, in daily media communications.
In this timely and fully international book, David Welch has selected fifty images to highlight the continuities and dis-continuities of mass-communication throughout history, be they via images, events, films or by 'propaganda by deed'. Such an approach demonstrates how changing technological innovations (such as television and the internet) have continued to shape the propaganda narrative but also demonstrate how tried and trusted forms of propaganda - such as the humble leaflet - can still prove highly effective. The fifty images included are not all necessarily the most striking - rather they have been chosen because they illustrate recurring themes and devices (such as humour) and different mediums employed by propagandists - from early Egyptian coins eulogizing Alexander the Great to the psychological warfare used in the war against terrorism following the destruction of the Twin Towers in New York, and the use of social media employed so widely in the current Covid pandemic.
A richly illustrated look at some of the British Library's most beautiful books from around the world.
For centuries across the world, books have been created as objects of beauty, with bookmakers lavishing great care on their paper, binding materials, illustrations, and lettering.
The Book by Design , featuring an array of books from the British Library's collection, focuses on the sensory experience of holding and reading these objects. Each selection represents a specific moment in the development of what we know today as the book-from scrolls and bound illuminated manuscripts to paperbacks and formatted digital information. These range from the seventh century to the present and include examples from China, Japan, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and North America, in addition to a look at book traditions in Africa and Oceania. John James Audubon's Birds of America , the works of Chaucer, Russian Futurist books, limited editions, historic copies of the Qur'an and the Bible, mass-market paperbacks, and more come together to tell the visual, tactile, artistic, and cultural history of books.
Expert curators and specialists explore these books from the perspective of design and manufacturing, original art photographs offer vivid representations of their textures and materials, and graphics detail the size and specifications of each book. Offering a wide-ranging look at the creation and use of books, illustrated with hundreds of color images, this volume is itself an object of beauty.
Gold is universally appreciated for its beauty and value. Since ancient times, people have found all kinds of ways to incorporate gold into handmade books and documents - gold writing, gold pages, pictures ornamented with gold, gold book covers. This exhibition will bring together some of the British Library's most luxurious golden illuminated manuscripts from around the world to explore the different techniques used to apply gold and to tell the story of gold's significance.
The exhibition celebrates cultural diversity by bringing together items from at least 20 different countries worldwide, representing many languages and the major world religions. The majority of items included in the exhibition date from pre-1600, with some South and Southeast Asian objects from the 17th-19th centuries, and some 20th century items.
Written and selected by the curatorial team, the dazzling, large-format Gold Exhibition Highlights Book showcases the British Library's exceptional collection of manuscript items incorporating gold as featured in this major exhibition. The featured items have universal appeal and are central to the traditions of book art from around the world.
Accompanying the first ever exhibition on the storytelling around Alexander the Great, King of Macedon, this book charts the evolution of a legend that continues to captivate audiences today.
Alexander the Great acceded to the throne at the age of 20, as king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. By his death in 323 BC, he had created one of the largest empires in the world - but myth proved more powerful than historical truth, and Alexander's life remains lost in legend.
These stories permeate western and eastern cultures and religions, and have endured for more than 2,000 years. Even now, Alexander continues to appeal to new generations and his image persists today in film, theatre, literature and even video games.
This book explores the stories that began shortly after Alexander's mysterious death, and that by the Middle Ages had developed into a narrative of Alexander as the all-conquering hero who fought mythical beasts and explored the unknown using submarines and flying chariots. These incredible legends are brought to life here with exquisite original illustrations in books and manuscripts from around the globe.
