{"product_id":"9781619022423","title":"The Golden Thread: A History of Writing","description":"\u003cp\u003eFrom the simple representative shapes used to record transactions of goods and services in ancient Mesopotamia, to the sophisticated typographical resources available to the twenty-first-century users of desktop computers, the story of writing is the story of human civilization itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCalligraphy expert Ewan Clayton traces the history of an invention which—ever since our ancestors made the transition from a nomadic to an agrarian way of life in the eighth century BC—has been the method of codification and dissemination of ideas in every field of human endeavour, and a motor of cultural, scientific and political progress. He explores the social and cultural impact of, among other stages, the invention of the alphabet; the replacement of the papyrus scroll with the codex in the late Roman period; the perfecting of printing using moveable type in the fifteenth century and the ensuing spread of literacy; the industrialization of printing during the Industrial Revolution; the impact of artistic Modernism on the written word in the early twentieth century—and of the digital switchover at the century’s close. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe Golden Thread\u003c\/i\u003e also raises issues of urgent interest for a society living in an era of unprecedented change to the tools and technologies of written communication. Chief among these is the fundamental question: “What does it mean to be literate in the early twenty-first century?” The book belongs on the bookshelves of anyone who is inquisitive not just about the centrality of writing in the history of humanity, but also about its future; it is sure to appeal to lovers of language, books and cultural history.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Counterpoint Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47037894754544,"sku":"9781619022423","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781619022423_p0.jpg?v=1763852131","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781619022423","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}