To give a book a worthy binding is one of the most satisfying of crafts. Over and above the utility of a good binding there is a great deal of aesthetic pleasure to be gained from a case the opens easily and flatly, and from the decoration, the harmony of colours and the brilliance of gold, Arthur Johnson one of the foremost British designer bookbinders, who teaches at the London College of Printing, has written a manual of the craft whose clarity and comprehsiveness will make it invaluable to the student bookbinder. It covers equipment, tools and materials, all stages of preparation (endpapers, sewing, rounding and backing, edge gilding, etc.), many different binding styles, and the finer points of finishing. The illustrations show not only tools, materials and processes but also a selection of striking and beautiful examples of the binder’s art, both historic and modern.