The Madman's Library: The Strangest Books, Manuscripts and Other Literary Curiosities from History
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- Create Date：2021-04-08 05:31:19
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Edward Brooke-Hitching
- ISBN：179720730X
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Summary
This fascinating and bizarre collection compiles the most unusual， obscure books from the far reaches of the human imagination throughout history。
From the author of the critically acclaimed bestsellers The Phantom Atlas and The Sky Atlas comes a unique and beautifully illustrated journey through the history of literature。 The Madman's Library delves into its darkest territories to hunt down the oddest books and manuscripts ever written， uncovering the intriguing stories behind their creation。
From the Qur'an written in the blood of Saddam Hussein， to the gorgeously decorated fifteenth-century lawsuit filed by the Devil against Jesus， to the most enormous book ever created， The Madman's Library features many long forgotten， eccentric， and extraordinary volumes gathered from around the world。
Books written in blood and books that kill， books of the insane and books that hoaxed the globe， books invisible to the naked eye and books so long they could destroy the Universe， books worn into battle and books of code and cypher whose secrets remain undiscovered。 Spell books， alchemist scrolls， wearable books， edible books， books to summon demons， books written by ghosts， and more all come together in the most curiously strange library imaginable。
Featuring hundreds of remarkable images and packed with entertaining facts and stories to discover， The Madman's Library is a captivating compendium perfect for bibliophiles， literature enthusiasts， and collectors intrigued by bizarre oddities， obscure history， and the macabre。
• MUST-HAVE FOR BOOKLOVERS: Anyone who appreciates a good read will love delving into this weird world of books and adding this collection to their own bookshelf。
• DISCOVER SOMETHING TRULY UNIQUE: The Madman's Library will let you in on the secret and obscure histories of the strangest books ever made。
• EXPERT AUTHOR: Edward Brooke-Hitching is the son of an antiquarian book dealer， a lifelong rare book collector， and a master of taking visual deep dives into unusual historical subjects， such as the maps of imaginary geography in The Phantom Atlas or ancient pathways through the stars in The Sky Atlas。
From the author of the critically acclaimed bestsellers The Phantom Atlas and The Sky Atlas comes a unique and beautifully illustrated journey through the history of literature。 The Madman's Library delves into its darkest territories to hunt down the oddest books and manuscripts ever written， uncovering the intriguing stories behind their creation。
From the Qur'an written in the blood of Saddam Hussein， to the gorgeously decorated fifteenth-century lawsuit filed by the Devil against Jesus， to the most enormous book ever created， The Madman's Library features many long forgotten， eccentric， and extraordinary volumes gathered from around the world。
Books written in blood and books that kill， books of the insane and books that hoaxed the globe， books invisible to the naked eye and books so long they could destroy the Universe， books worn into battle and books of code and cypher whose secrets remain undiscovered。 Spell books， alchemist scrolls， wearable books， edible books， books to summon demons， books written by ghosts， and more all come together in the most curiously strange library imaginable。
Featuring hundreds of remarkable images and packed with entertaining facts and stories to discover， The Madman's Library is a captivating compendium perfect for bibliophiles， literature enthusiasts， and collectors intrigued by bizarre oddities， obscure history， and the macabre。
• MUST-HAVE FOR BOOKLOVERS: Anyone who appreciates a good read will love delving into this weird world of books and adding this collection to their own bookshelf。
• DISCOVER SOMETHING TRULY UNIQUE: The Madman's Library will let you in on the secret and obscure histories of the strangest books ever made。
• EXPERT AUTHOR: Edward Brooke-Hitching is the son of an antiquarian book dealer， a lifelong rare book collector， and a master of taking visual deep dives into unusual historical subjects， such as the maps of imaginary geography in The Phantom Atlas or ancient pathways through the stars in The Sky Atlas。
Reviews
Kristine
，
The Madman's Library by Edward Brooke-Hitching is a free NetGalley ebook that I read in late March。Spooky and indelibly colorful， this book clears up the mustiness， dusty vellum/parchment， and bored attitude surrounding old books & objects and imbues them with life and， well， maybe the afterlife， the gruesome， the rude， the encrypted， the eerie， and the mystical。 The Madman's Library by Edward Brooke-Hitching is a free NetGalley ebook that I read in late March。Spooky and indelibly colorful， this book clears up the mustiness， dusty vellum/parchment， and bored attitude surrounding old books & objects and imbues them with life and， well， maybe the afterlife， the gruesome， the rude， the encrypted， the eerie， and the mystical。 。。。more
TimInCalifornia
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Brooke-Hitching has compiled a fascinating collection of the obscure， the odd， and the over-the-top outrageous in history of the written word。 Without delving too deeply into the technicalities of production through the years， the reader still gets an informative overview of the development of the codex。 Most interesting to me were the chapters covering books with cryptic writing and literary hoaxes because I love a good puzzle and a good joke。 The last chapter on amusing titles was good for a c Brooke-Hitching has compiled a fascinating collection of the obscure， the odd， and the over-the-top outrageous in history of the written word。 Without delving too deeply into the technicalities of production through the years， the reader still gets an informative overview of the development of the codex。 Most interesting to me were the chapters covering books with cryptic writing and literary hoaxes because I love a good puzzle and a good joke。 The last chapter on amusing titles was good for a chuckle。 The best part of the book were the colorful photos of these books of history。 Madman’s Library is generously filled with pictures allowing readers to fully appreciate the artistry and craftsmanship of the past。 It is no wonder that books have been cherished and revered by so many。 I read my ARC electronically on Adobe Digital Reader （thank you Netgalley）。 I look forward to purchasing this in hardback。 Some things to note about the e-book in the version I read: （i） couldn’t read on phone or tablet as file was too large。 I had to be at my computer （ii） could not adjust page view for easy reference。 This needs a side by side page option so that one can look at the photos of the book being described-able to glance back and forth rather than scroll up and down。 The newspaper style columns of text on the page were also irritating on an e-reader as I had to read down one column， scrolling down， and then scroll back up to read the next column。 The font was too small for me to read comfortably and keep the page small enough to fit on the screen without scrolling。 So， approach thoughtfully with an e-reader but I still have no hesitation in giving this 5/5 stars。 。。。more
Między sklejonymi kartkami
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DNF
fleurette
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I love trivia， and what could be better than book trivia！ This book is full of them， and full of pictures of fascinating books！ Believe it or not， I read it whole， along with every photo description。This is such a fascinating book。 The passion of an author who loves the topic he writes about is clearly visible。 He has done a tremendous amount of research and has put together the most interesting examples to include in this book。 It mainly describes well-documented examples。 This is not just a co I love trivia， and what could be better than book trivia！ This book is full of them， and full of pictures of fascinating books！ Believe it or not， I read it whole， along with every photo description。This is such a fascinating book。 The passion of an author who loves the topic he writes about is clearly visible。 He has done a tremendous amount of research and has put together the most interesting examples to include in this book。 It mainly describes well-documented examples。 This is not just a collection of rumors， gossips and anecdotes。 We can see everything the author writes about in the numerous amazing pictures。 So， we know exactly what he is talking about， it allows us to understand everything much better。It is a very easy book to read。 The author clearly wrote it for people who do not know all the secrets of book binding and history。 All of the more difficult concepts are well explained。 The author was able to choose the material very well and writes about things that may interest everyone。 I also really like the humor with which he does it。 This is a book for everyone。Well， maybe not everyone， because there are some rather dark topics here that can be difficult if you are very sensitive。 I mean books bound in human skin and written with human blood。 These are definitely topics for people with the strong nerves， but the author writes about them in a way that makes it more fascinating than scary。 In general， the topics are very varied， there are even a few photos of unusual writing machines。This is a beautiful and fascinating book， richly illustrated with wonderful photos。 A must-read for every book lover。Thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Eule Luftschloss
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trigger warning（view spoiler）[ books written on human skin and with human blood， mention of torture， mention of racism （hide spoiler）]I think I can spare the summary of the contents as it's what it says on the tin: The Strangest Books， Manuscripts and Other Literary Curiosities from History。 We have books that are not in the form of a codex， which is how we know our books today， books whith physical contents that are unusual like penguin blood as ink， books whose literary contents are unusual o trigger warning（view spoiler）[ books written on human skin and with human blood， mention of torture， mention of racism （hide spoiler）]I think I can spare the summary of the contents as it's what it says on the tin: The Strangest Books， Manuscripts and Other Literary Curiosities from History。 We have books that are not in the form of a codex， which is how we know our books today， books whith physical contents that are unusual like penguin blood as ink， books whose literary contents are unusual or that are written in code。It's a giant trove of weird things to do with books and stories， easily accessible for the reader but also suited to be quoted due to the excellent work of the author。This is the second book I read by him， the first being Fox-Tossing， Octopus-Wrestling and Other Forgotten Sports， which was equally hilarious， entertaining and educating， which is my favourite combination of adjectives to put to a non fiction book。This is great。 I would love to have my own physical copy of this， and I am sure one day I'll have every book he wrote in my shelves。 It's been exactly as great as I hoped it would be， so I am very thankful for being given the arc by the publisher。Full recommendation。 。。。more
Janelle
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This wonderful book is a book about books， not everyday books but the weird， the unique and the crazy。 From books written in blood， or bound in skin （including human）， large and tiny， beautifully illustrated and filled with all sorts of information。 The chapters cover everything from science and religion， alchemy， bestiaries， codes and ciphers，grimoires， literary hoaxes and dictionaries of the vulgar tongue。Some of my favourite bits include the fake travel books。 Walter E Traprock made up a trip This wonderful book is a book about books， not everyday books but the weird， the unique and the crazy。 From books written in blood， or bound in skin （including human）， large and tiny， beautifully illustrated and filled with all sorts of information。 The chapters cover everything from science and religion， alchemy， bestiaries， codes and ciphers，grimoires， literary hoaxes and dictionaries of the vulgar tongue。Some of my favourite bits include the fake travel books。 Walter E Traprock made up a trip to south seas including a bird that laid cube shaped eggs， the picture is clearly of dice in a nest！ There’s some wonderful trivia here， from Jonathan Swift and Daniel Defoe’s pseudonyms to weird medical treatments。 There’s also a bit on mediums that channeled dead authors including Shakespeare， Dickens and Twain。 One medium also channeled martians！A great read that made me laugh too。 。。。more
Lynne Emmett
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A beautifully presented book， fantastic illustrations。The text is slight。 I'm glad I borrowed it from the library as I reallyenjoyed looking at it， but I wouldn't have wanted to spend a lot of money on it。 A beautifully presented book， fantastic illustrations。The text is slight。 I'm glad I borrowed it from the library as I reallyenjoyed looking at it， but I wouldn't have wanted to spend a lot of money on it。 。。。more
Athina （booknotes_athina）
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I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest reviewYou can read the full review also on my blog Book Notes by AthinaMy favourite non-fiction genre to read is books about books and the history of books， so when I get the chance to do it I am very excited。 This book was a really exciting one。 It compiles the most unusual and obscure books from around the world and throughout history。 It's a beautifully illustrated journey with a lot of information about the most strange a I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest reviewYou can read the full review also on my blog Book Notes by AthinaMy favourite non-fiction genre to read is books about books and the history of books， so when I get the chance to do it I am very excited。 This book was a really exciting one。 It compiles the most unusual and obscure books from around the world and throughout history。 It's a beautifully illustrated journey with a lot of information about the most strange and intriguing books， It is divided into many categories such as books that are not books， books made of flesh and blood， cryptic books and many more。All in all， I really liked it and I believe that if you are a book lover you definitely need this in your life。 I know I do！ 。。。more
Angela Lewis
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Fabulously illustrated and written with dry humour。 An extraordinary collection of literacy。 Giving insight on some known and much new information， hugely enjoyable and a bit scary too。
Nicole
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Interesting and funky。
Brenda
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Could a topic possibly be more arresting for bibliophiles？！ From the very first line in the introduction to the Strange Titles section at the back， this book bursts at the seams with enthralling curiosities。 And the photographs！ Many are so vibrant and rich， all are remarkably interesting。 I read every single book about books I can get my hands on and this one is stellar in every way。 The writing is witty and the sheer amount of information is staggering。 As the author reminds us， books breathe。 Could a topic possibly be more arresting for bibliophiles？！ From the very first line in the introduction to the Strange Titles section at the back， this book bursts at the seams with enthralling curiosities。 And the photographs！ Many are so vibrant and rich， all are remarkably interesting。 I read every single book about books I can get my hands on and this one is stellar in every way。 The writing is witty and the sheer amount of information is staggering。 As the author reminds us， books breathe。 They sure do。 Though none on my shelves are made with human or penguin skin or written in blood or on bone， each has personality。 Well， wait until you read this book。 Chock。 Full。 Amongst the plethora of topics I learned about dangerous books containing arsenic， cryptic unsolved codes， death passports， love spells， curse tablets， secret poison cabinets and invisible egg writing。I had no idea that a secret eyebrow plucking society existed nor that there are massive books measuring not in inches or centimeters but meters。 One man even went so far as to record his life over several years every five minutes which totalled 37。5 million words， including everything。 I mean everything。 Lilliputiana was another remarkable topic。。。so many of us are entranced by miniatures。 Beale's code is migraine inducing！ And what fun to read tales of literary hoaxes， such as that of the New York animals。A special treat awaits at the end， too。 Who wouldn't adore books called The Origin of Feces， The Loathsomenesse of Long Haire， The Lady's Back Report or Highlights in the History of Concrete？！This book should be on every bibliophile's list to read。 It would be a shame to miss。My sincere thank you to Chronicle Books and NetGalley for the privilege of reading the eARC of this marvelously informative and entertaining book。 I thoroughly enjoyed it。 。。。more
Dan
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My thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for an advanced copy of this book。Edward Brooke-Hitching is ruining live and making book lovers want to pauper themselves with his new book The Madman's Library: The Strangest Books， Manuscripts and Other Literary Curiosities from history。 Page after page in glorious colours are books that are micro， books that need machines to move them， books in code， books covered in skin and books written in blood。 I can't stress the photos enough， but the descripti My thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for an advanced copy of this book。Edward Brooke-Hitching is ruining live and making book lovers want to pauper themselves with his new book The Madman's Library: The Strangest Books， Manuscripts and Other Literary Curiosities from history。 Page after page in glorious colours are books that are micro， books that need machines to move them， books in code， books covered in skin and books written in blood。 I can't stress the photos enough， but the descriptions in the text of these books are what makes the the Bible pulls want them all。 Historical， filled with facts， but full of passion from a man who loves books and what they can do， and wants to share that love with other readers。 A truly one of a kind biblo-wish book。 A great graduation gift for English majors， or for artists to inspire。 A necessary book for any library。 。。。more
Luka
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Fun representation of amazing literary works， some of which are very well known （pleasant suprise was passage about Liber Linteus Zagrabiensis）。 Some of the works are so bizarre， they made me really laugh out loud。 It's a shame we couldn't get more info on them， but then again it nudged me to explore them for myself。 Fun representation of amazing literary works， some of which are very well known （pleasant suprise was passage about Liber Linteus Zagrabiensis）。 Some of the works are so bizarre， they made me really laugh out loud。 It's a shame we couldn't get more info on them， but then again it nudged me to explore them for myself。 。。。more
Ana
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I received a free e-ARC from the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 The Madman's Library is every bibliophiles dream。 It contains fascinating stories about texts and libraries from all over the world - the obscure， the bizarre， the beautiful。 The whole experience is accompanied by gorgeous colour photographs。 The writing is seamless - entertaining， easy to read， and never dry。 This would make the perfect coffee table book for any bibliophile。 I am looking forward to I received a free e-ARC from the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 The Madman's Library is every bibliophiles dream。 It contains fascinating stories about texts and libraries from all over the world - the obscure， the bizarre， the beautiful。 The whole experience is accompanied by gorgeous colour photographs。 The writing is seamless - entertaining， easy to read， and never dry。 This would make the perfect coffee table book for any bibliophile。 I am looking forward to getting a physical copy for myself。 。。。more
Tara Woolard （Ehrbar）
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I can't give proper feedback because I can not get it to properly download unfortunately。 I have tried thw pdf file many times but it just keeps giving me a error every time I try to open the file。 Hopefully this can be fixed because it will not allow any other format。 I can't give proper feedback because I can not get it to properly download unfortunately。 I have tried thw pdf file many times but it just keeps giving me a error every time I try to open the file。 Hopefully this can be fixed because it will not allow any other format。 。。。more
Jenni V。
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First Impressions/Judging a Book by Its CoverI picked this book out on NetGalley （disclaimer below） based on the title。 Is it too meta to read a book about books？ I like books that explore niche curiosities so I hope this is interesting and not dry。The cover art is really intriguing too; it looks like an old painting。 Since I'm on an e-reader I can't see as many details as I probably could if I had the real thing but there are lots of things to look at。 I'll probably look at it again after readi First Impressions/Judging a Book by Its CoverI picked this book out on NetGalley （disclaimer below） based on the title。 Is it too meta to read a book about books？ I like books that explore niche curiosities so I hope this is interesting and not dry。The cover art is really intriguing too; it looks like an old painting。 Since I'm on an e-reader I can't see as many details as I probably could if I had the real thing but there are lots of things to look at。 I'll probably look at it again after reading to see if there are connections between the seemingly random objects strewn around the cover。My Opinion**I received an electronic copy of this book via NetGalley and would like to thank the author and/or publisher for the opportunity to read and honestly review it。**This was a well-researched treasure trove of a book。 It was not a quick read because of all the photos and illustrations which was an unexpected bonus and something I'm so happy came through even though this was an electronic ARC because they made a huge difference。 It was also not a quick read because the text was in columns instead of left to right so it was extra work for my eyes not to automatically scan over to the next section instead of following the text down; this also involved extra scrolling from top to bottom and back to top because of the text size I used to see all the details and captions of the photos。I texted my family fun facts including the Chinese flatulence mural， the chicken poet， and the book made with cloths from the author's travels。 The stitched/embroidered jacket from the woman in the insane asylum also resonated with me -- the photo enhanced the story so much but it also felt like such a private thing to look at。The title Pigs: How to Make Them Pay （C。 Arthur Pearson， 1918） listed in the selection of "Strange Titles" is very catchy。Quote from the Book*Note: I read an ARC so the following quote may or may not appear in the final version*"If a creature has run， hopped， slithered or swum on this planet， at some point its skin has been used to bind a book。"Find all my reviews at: https://readingatrandom。blogspot。com 。。。more
Donna Holland
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Extraordinary stories and very lavish illustration this book gathers together the weirdest books/ manuscripts from history 。A Bibliophiles dream 。
Kelley
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Absolutely fascinating！ Anyone who has any interest in books should pick this up！ So much history， necessity and just plain oddity in here。 Excellent photos， wonderful explanations。 What a joy this must have been to research and write and it's also a joy to just sit back and devour。 I actually took quite a while to enjoy this book。 Paging back to review favorites， calling people over to look at things I found interesting。 This book was a complete experience for me （and often those around me）。 Br Absolutely fascinating！ Anyone who has any interest in books should pick this up！ So much history， necessity and just plain oddity in here。 Excellent photos， wonderful explanations。 What a joy this must have been to research and write and it's also a joy to just sit back and devour。 I actually took quite a while to enjoy this book。 Paging back to review favorites， calling people over to look at things I found interesting。 This book was a complete experience for me （and often those around me）。 Bravo， and thank you for this one！ 。。。more
Maxine
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If you love books， not just the texts， but everything about them， you really need The Madman’s Library by Edward Brooke-Hitching。 It describes books of every seemingly possible （and occasionally seemingly impossible） material and text。 There are books that are fantastic， beautiful， sacrilegious and religious; books made of every conceivable material including human skin and written in human blood; books that are indecipherable and books that are just plain odd。 But they are all amazing to look a If you love books， not just the texts， but everything about them， you really need The Madman’s Library by Edward Brooke-Hitching。 It describes books of every seemingly possible （and occasionally seemingly impossible） material and text。 There are books that are fantastic， beautiful， sacrilegious and religious; books made of every conceivable material including human skin and written in human blood; books that are indecipherable and books that are just plain odd。 But they are all amazing to look at and read about。Brooke-Hitching’s descriptions are both informative and entertaining and the full-colour illustrations that accompany them are absolutely stunning。 I definitely recommend this book highly for all the book lovers out there。Thanks to Netgalley and Chronicle Books for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review 。。。more
Kerry Bridges
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I bought this book for myself and then had to order another copy immediately for a friend who likes interesting facts。 What a treasure trove - I loved this book; the illustrations and treasure trove of facts and asides are out of this world。I will definitely be looking for more books by this author。Fantastic！
anud-be
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Many thanks to Netgalley and Chronicle Books for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review。I need this book in my vicinity， like physically， I need it to exist in my book shelves asap。 I'm so buying the hardback and rereading it。 I loved it so so much， it was filled to the brim with awesome， funny， scary horrifying facts， I was left dumbfounded after each reading session。My favorite story was the story of the war prisoner Peter Moen。I found "The Japanese farting competitions" h Many thanks to Netgalley and Chronicle Books for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review。I need this book in my vicinity， like physically， I need it to exist in my book shelves asap。 I'm so buying the hardback and rereading it。 I loved it so so much， it was filled to the brim with awesome， funny， scary horrifying facts， I was left dumbfounded after each reading session。My favorite story was the story of the war prisoner Peter Moen。I found "The Japanese farting competitions" hilarious， and the human skin book binding the most horrifying。 Had a sneak peek to the French revolution's atrocities with that maid pants story and smiled at the authors at the hoax section of the book。 。。。more
Annarella
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What a fascinating book。 I think it's a must read if love book and you will learn a lot。It's well written and well researched， entertaining and engrossing。I strongly recommend it。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine What a fascinating book。 I think it's a must read if love book and you will learn a lot。It's well written and well researched， entertaining and engrossing。I strongly recommend it。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine 。。。more
Al Bità
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This rather astonishing book of historical literary curiosities will provide much to amuse and marvel at for anyone interested in the range and depth of human capabilities （and surely that is all of us！）。The book is lavishly illustrated throughout， with each illustration accompanied by its explanatory box — and simply perusing through those will provide hours of pleasure… The Introduction provides us with the author’s story of his own interest in this subject-matter， and lays out the basis for t This rather astonishing book of historical literary curiosities will provide much to amuse and marvel at for anyone interested in the range and depth of human capabilities （and surely that is all of us！）。The book is lavishly illustrated throughout， with each illustration accompanied by its explanatory box — and simply perusing through those will provide hours of pleasure… The Introduction provides us with the author’s story of his own interest in this subject-matter， and lays out the basis for the organisation of the remainder of the book。The writing is pragmatic and relatively straightforward （although I would have preferred if the editors had provided more consideration to the sectional aspects of this， through the use， perhaps， of judicious boldface openings to the various sub-sections to assist the reader — but this is a minor quibble）。 Brooke-Hitching’s cool， rather detached style should not alienate: there is much， much more in the written aspects for each chapter， specifically many stories and anecdotes that widen the perspective。 And every now and then there is the author’s rather sly sense of humour that peeps through with wry comments and asides…Perhaps the most astonishing aspect of all of this is the extent to which the human mind can range: from the gruesome， the most grotesque， the most beautiful， the most outrageous， the most obsessive， the most insane — the list goes on and on。 Here also are the contenders for the smallest books ever published， the longest novel so far written， and for physically gargantuan-sized books。 Some of these would also require technological marvels of ingenuity and expertise needed to realise them。 One such example which might be overlooked can be found in the first column on page 222 where we can see what looks like an elongated underline encased between brackets; use a magnifying glass to look more closely at the “underline” and be amazed — you are looking at a sentence written in the smallest typeface ever created， and this was achieved in 1819！There is， perhaps， a rather pedantic quality to this work。 The objects it exhibits are simply presented。 They actually exist。 Brooke-Hitching provides basic backgrounds as to the reasons why such works were done， and one feels that similar deeds will continue to be realised in the future， but one cannot help but feel the question remains unresolved。 One the one hand they express the loftiest of ambitions and creativity; on the other they raise questions as to the soundness of mind of their creators。Perhaps the most accurate answer to the question why？ is “because it seemed like a good idea at the time”， but it is also true that curiosity， obsessiveness， ingenuity， and other like qualities are equally valid。 One thing is clear: there is no limit to what human beings have， and will achieve。 All these objects exist because we are human: they are the products of humanity。 And perhaps that in itself should both exhilarate and terrify us in equal measure！ 。。。more
Gizem-in-Wonderland
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Get ready to be engrossed in this literary feast， a dream book for curious bibliophiles， who are obssessed with not just books but books about books， here we have one of the best examples of bookception。 I absolutely loved this collection of the strangest books and literary curiosities， which will surely tickle the curious bone of the everyday bibliophile and quench the never-ending thirst for more。 It contains multitudes of bizarre examples of books， most of which were totally unknown to me。 I Get ready to be engrossed in this literary feast， a dream book for curious bibliophiles， who are obssessed with not just books but books about books， here we have one of the best examples of bookception。 I absolutely loved this collection of the strangest books and literary curiosities， which will surely tickle the curious bone of the everyday bibliophile and quench the never-ending thirst for more。 It contains multitudes of bizarre examples of books， most of which were totally unknown to me。 I learned a lot while enjoying it， a wholesome package of knowledge and entertainment。 In here you will find some elegant samples of books that are not actually books （including wearable， tearable， edible， mummified books）， cryptobooks （including every romantic， obscene cryptic love letters）， bibliohoaxes （books that were meant to be ridiculous but taken too seriously）， supernatural books， pseudo-scientific books （including a riveting image of blood transfusion between a goat and man！）， mini and maxi-sized books ever written and last but not least， books with strange titles that will make you question your reading choice。 This magnificently constructed， beautifully illustrated book will spark imagination， provoke enthusiasm to research and read more。 As quoted in the introduction from Rosenbach， this book is for booksworms， who “go long journeys halfway about the world， forget friendships， even lie， cheat and steal， all for the gain of a book。”Loved it！（I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。） 。。。more
Travelling Bookworm
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“The books I have always been interested in finding are the sunken gems twinkling in the gloom of this giant remainder， the oddities abandoned to obscurity， too strange for categorization yet proving to be even more intriguing than their celebrated kin。”--------------------Starting off with a gem of an opening sentence "I had just turned one when my father first used me as a bidder's paddle at auction。"， I was immediately obsessed with this fascinating book and its accompanying， mesmerizingly be “The books I have always been interested in finding are the sunken gems twinkling in the gloom of this giant remainder， the oddities abandoned to obscurity， too strange for categorization yet proving to be even more intriguing than their celebrated kin。”--------------------Starting off with a gem of an opening sentence "I had just turned one when my father first used me as a bidder's paddle at auction。"， I was immediately obsessed with this fascinating book and its accompanying， mesmerizingly beautiful illustrations。 It turns out that the opening sentence was only a harbinger to the strange， hilarious collection of literary oddities that would follow in the next pages。The Madman's Library is an incredible journey in unexpected literature: from books written in code still unsolved to this day， to books made of human skin and blood， stories written on musical instruments， books written by imaginary counts， by ghosts， about non-existent lands， and about whether it's possible to keep a severed head "alive" （spoiler alert: no， it is most definitely not）。 Written in an entertaining， engaging， and clearly expert voice， this unique collection asks the reader to delve into the very core of bibliophilia， exploring what passions， secrets and soul actually makes a book。Definitely recommended for those who love to read books about books， and learn weird facts to freak out guests at dinner parties。 At the very least， you are sure to expand your reading list with a few essential books that you might have missed， such as:Sun-beams May Be Extracted From Cucumbers， But the Process Is Tedious （1799） by David DaggettDucks; and How to Make Them Pay （1890） by William CookDoes the Earth Rotate？ No！ （1919） by William Westfieldand of course， the invaluable guide to surviving the 2020s:How to Good-bye Depression: If You Constrict Anus 100 Times Everyday。 Malarkey？ or Effective Way？ （2000） by Hiroyuki Nishigaki（I have received this book as an ARC from NetGalley， in exchange for an honest review。） 。。。more
Carolyn Drake
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Practically each entry in this book about books could be shared as a weird or interesting fact on QI。 It's a throughly entertaining guide to an imaginary library put together by author Edward Brooke-Hitching， who wanted to capture the beauty and eccentricity of some of the most bizarre books from around the world。 These range from the awe-inspiring to the vomit-inducing: amongst those described are books written in code on toilet paper by prisoners; catalogues of all the different types of trees Practically each entry in this book about books could be shared as a weird or interesting fact on QI。 It's a throughly entertaining guide to an imaginary library put together by author Edward Brooke-Hitching， who wanted to capture the beauty and eccentricity of some of the most bizarre books from around the world。 These range from the awe-inspiring to the vomit-inducing: amongst those described are books written in code on toilet paper by prisoners; catalogues of all the different types of trees made and bound in each specimen's wood and bark; and a Qu'ran commissioned by Saddam Hussein - written using 25 litres of the dictator's blood。 The Madman's Library contains exquisite pictures and descriptions crafted with obvious joy and plenty of humour。 A real treat。 。。。more
Susan
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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review。I think this is a perfect gift for all bibliophiles， literature enthusiasts， and collectors out there who are intrigued by the unusual， fascinating and history of books/reading。 This looks at the history of the bizarre， unusual， and fascinating books and documents in human history。 It is well researched and with amazing illustrations to go along。
Debbie
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7/10 - interesting types of literature and gorgeously illustrated。
Nisha Joshi （in the midst of an Austengasm）
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Totally fascinating and utterly stupendous。 This book lists manuscripts and books from as early as 1400 BC and there are pictures， lots of them。 There is hardly anything mad about this book but it is amazing how man has always wanted to make a mark in the world。 This will make a great coffee table book。 The author has done a massive amount of research and the result shows。Thanks to Netgalley， Edward Brooke-Hitching， and Chronicle Books for the ARC。
Caèl G。
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