Books: a Lifetime Friend
Introduction:
Books are a common feature in today’s fast moving world. It is quite difficult to find someone who has not seen, touched, and read at least one book in his or her lifetime. Today, authors write books on nearly every subject be it arts, science, commerce, history, literature, poetry, and other contemporary subjects.
Publishing and printing of books has become easier and more widespread since the invention of the printing press. Earlier, books were copied and written by hand, making books expensive and rare. Let us travel a little back in time to discover the journey that books have taken since first known to humankind.
History:
The word ‘book’ comes from an Old English word called ‘b?c”. According to the popular site thefreedictionary.com, a book in modern terms is “A set of written, printed, or blank pages fastened along one side and encased between protective covers.”
The early Mesopotamians wrote books on clay tablets. The ancient Egyptians wrote on papyrus rolls in Egypt as early as 3000 B.C. In China, bamboo strips tied together with chords served as books. These dated back to around 1300 B.C. In ancient India, seers and sages wrote ancient religious texts on palm leaves – nature’s paper. These early writers would preserver these books for posterity and hand them down from one generation to another for preservation and dissemination of knowledge.
