Book

Báez, Fernando, 1970-

A universal history of the destruction of books : from ancient Sumer to modern Iraq / Fernando Báez ; translated from the Spanish by Alfred MacAdam.

New York : Atlas & Co. : Distributed to the trade by W.W. Norton, ©2008.

xii, 354 pages, [12] pages of plates : illustrations, map ; 19 cm

A product of ten years of research and support from leading American and European universities, A Universal History of the Destruction of Books traces a tragic story: the smashed tablets of ancient Sumer, the widespread looting of libraries in post-war Iraq, the leveling of the Library of Alexandria, book burnings by Crusaders and Nazis, and censorship against authors past and present. With diligence and grace, Báez mounts a compelling investigation into the motives behind the destruction of books, reading man's violence against writing as a perverse anti-creation. His findings ultimately attest to the lasting power of books as the great human repository of knowledge and memory, fragile yet vital bulwarks against the intransigence and barbarity of every age.--From publisher description.

Libraries -- Destruction and pillage -- History.

Censorship -- History.

Libraries and state -- History.

Prohibited books -- History.

Mac Adam, Alfred J., 1941-

Historia universal de la destrucción de libros. English

Originally published: Barcelona : Ediciones Destino, 2004, under title: Historia universal de la destrucción de libros: de las tablillas sumerias a la Guerra de Irak.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 283-336) and index.

Translated from the Spanish.

Introduction -- Part One: The Ancient World -- The near East -- Egypt -- Greece -- The Library of Alexandria -- Other Ancient Libraries and Aristotle's lost books -- China -- Rome and Early Christianity -- Oblivion and the fragility of books -- Part Two: From Byzantium to the Nineteenth Century -- Constantinople -- Between monks and barbarians -- The Islamic world -- Misplaced Medieval fervor -- The destruction of Pre-Hispanic culture in the Americas -- The Renaissance -- England -- Revolutions in France, Spain, and Latin America -- Fires, wars, mistakes, and Messiahs -- Books destroyed in fiction -- Part Three: From the Twentieth Century to the Present -- The rise of Fascism -- Censorship and self-censorship in the Modern Age -- China and the Soviet Union -- Spain, Chile, and Argentina -- A particular kind of hatred -- On the natural enemies of books -- Iraq -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index of names.

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098.109 Baez