My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A real fun read of a small edition of this classic book on the love of books. Penned in the 14th century by Richard de Bury, the Bishop of Durham, it talks about the joy and need of books, thoughts on maintaining an scholarly library and the proper handling of books. The author is so excited and it comes out in his writing. He beat Thomas Frognall Dibdin to the punch by almost five centuries. Right off the bat, he writes “In books I find the dead as if they were alive; in books I foresee things to come; in books warlike affairs are set forth; from books come forth the laws of peace” (p. 9). Could it be put any more succinctly?

He also discusses those who don’t see learning or books in the same light that he does. It’s amazing that seven centuries later his thoughts on human action are spot on. He cites Ovid in complaining that many people of the day are turning to making money instead of studying and making new science and philosophy (p. 67). Later, he writes “Although it is true that all men naturally desire knowledge, yet they do not all take the same pleasure in learning. On the contrary, when they have experienced the labour of study and find their sense wearied, most men inconsiderately fling away the nut, before they have broken the shell and reached the kernel” (p. 83-84).

In chapter XVII, he puts forth a wondrous, joyful set of rules for handling books. It’s still excellent advice: “that they [books] may rejoice in purity while we have them in our hands, and rest securely when they are put back in their repositories” (p. 104). In Chapter XIX, he lays out a set of rules for how to lend books out of the Oxford library, such as making a record of the item borrowed, only lending a copy outside the library if there is another copy, and regularly cataloging and reviewing its holdings.

Well worth the time to read through this short work.