Bookbinding is the process of physically
assembling a
book from a number of folded or
unfolded sheets of
paper or other material. It
usually involves attaching covers to the resulting
text-block.
History
Origins of the book
The craft of bookbinding originated in India, where religious
sutra were copied on to palm leaves (cut into
two, lengthwise) with a metal stylus. The leaf was then dried and
rubbed with ink, which would form a stain in the wound. The
finished leaves were given numbers, and two long twines were
threaded through each end through wooden boards. When closed, the
excess twine would be wrapped around the boards to protect the
leaves of the book. Buddhist monks took the idea through Persia,
Afghanistan, and Iran, to China in the first century BC.
Western writers at this time wrote longer texts as
scrolls, and these were stored in shelving with small
cubbyholes, similar to a modern winerack. The word
volume,
from the Latin word
volvere ("to roll"), comes from these
scrolls. Court records and notes were written on tree bark and
leaves, while important documents were written on
papyrus. The modern English word
book comes
from the Proto-Germanic
*bokiz, referring to the beechwood
on which early written works were recorded.
The book was not needed in ancient times, as many early Greek
texts—scrolls—were thirty pages long, which fits into the hand.
Roman works were often longer, running to hundreds of pages. The
Greeks used to comically call their books
tome, meaning
"to cut". The Egyptian
Book of the
Dead was a massive 200 pages long but was never meant to be
read by the living.
Torahs, editions of the
Jewish holy book, were also held in special holders when
read.
Scrolls can be rolled in one of two ways. The first method is to
wrap the scroll around a single core, similar to a modern roll of
paper towels. While simple to construct, a single core scroll has a
major disadvantage: in order to read text at the end of the scroll,
the entire scroll must be unwound. This is partially overcome in
the second method, which is to wrap the scroll around two cores, as
in a Torah. With a double scroll, the text can be accessed from
both beginning and end, and the portions of the scroll not being
read can remain wound. This still leaves the scroll a
sequential-access medium: to reach a given page, one generally has
to unroll and re-roll many other pages.
Early book formats
The first solution invented to overcome this problem was a set of
simple wooden boards sewn together, around the 1st century A.D.
Romans called this simple book a
codex—the
Latin for the trunk of a tree. However, it was the early Coptic
Christians of Egypt who made the first breakthrough. They
discovered that by folding sheets of
vellum
or
parchment in half and sewing them
through the fold, they could produce a book that could be written
on both sides. Wooden boards held it together, and the whole book
was slipped into a goatskin leather bag to be carried.

A bookbinder at work
Codices were a significant improvement over papyrus or vellum
scrolls in that they were easier to handle. But despite allowing
writing on both sides of the leaves, they were still
foliated—numbered on the leaves, like the Indian books.
The idea
spread quickly through the early churches, and the word
Bible comes from the town where the Byzantium monks
established their first scriptorium,
Byblos
, in modern Lebanon. The idea of numbering
each side of the page—Latin
pagina, "to fasten"—appeared
when the text of the individual testaments of the Bible were
combined and text had to be searched through more quickly. This
book format became the preferred way of preserving manuscript or
printed material.
Early and medieval codices were bound with flat spines, and it was
not until the 15th century that books began to have the rounded
spines associated with hardcovers today. Because the vellum of
early books would react to humidity by swelling, causing the book
to take on a characteristic wedge shape, the wooden covers of
medieval books were often secured with straps or clasps. These
straps, along with metal bosses on the book's covers to keep it
raised off the surface that it rests on, are collectively known as
furniture.
Marbled book board from a book published in London in 1872
Thus, Western books from the 5th century onwards were bound between
hard covers, with pages made from parchment folded and sewn on to
strong cords or ligaments that were attached to wooden boards and
covered with leather. Since early books were exclusively
handwritten on handmade materials, sizes and styles varied
considerably, and each book was a unique creation or a copy of
it.
Introduction of paper
The
Arabs revolutionised the book's production
and its binding in the
medieval
Islamic world. They were the first to produce
paper books after they learnt paper industry from the
Chinese in the 8th century. Particular skills were developed for
Arabic calligraphy,
miniatures and
bookbinding. The people who worked in making books were called
Warraqin or paper professionals. The Arabs made books
lighter—sewn with silk and bound with leather covered paste boards,
they had a flap that wrapped the book up when not in use. As paper
was less reactive to humidity, the heavy boards were not needed.
The
production of books became a real industry and cities like Marrakech
, Morocco
, had a
street named Kutubiyyin or book sellers, which contained
more than 100 bookshops in the 12th century; the famous Koutoubia
Mosque
is named so because of its location on this
street. In the words of Don Baker: "
The world of
Islam has produced some of the most beautiful
books ever created. The need to write down the Revelations which the Prophet Muhammad, may peace be upon him, received, fostered
the desire to beautify the object which conveyed these words and
initiated this ancient craft. Nowhere else, except perhaps
in China, has calligraphy been held in such high esteem.
Splendid illumination was added with gold and vibrant colours,
and the whole book contained and protected by beautiful
bookbindings"
Development
With the arrival (from the East) of rag paper manufacturing in
Europe in the late
Middle Ages and the
use of the
printing press beginning
in the mid-15th century, bookbinding began to standardize somewhat,
but page sizes still varied considerably.
With printing, the books became more accessible and were stored on
their side on long shelves for the first time. Clasps were removed,
and titles were added to the spine. The reduced cost of books
facilitated cheap lightweight Bibles, made from tissue-thin oxford
paper, with floppy covers, that resembled the early
Arabic Qurans, enabling
missionaries to take portable books with them around the world, and
modern wood glues enabled paperback covers to be added to simple
glue bindings.
Historical forms of binding
Historical forms of binding include the following:
Some books have even been bound in
human
skin, a practice known as
anthropodermic bibliopegy.
Modern commercial binding
There are various commercial techniques in use today.
Commercially-produced books today tend to be of one of four
categories:
Hardcover binding
A
hardcover, hardbound book has rigid
covers and is stitched in the spine. Looking from the top of the
spine, the book can be seen to consist of a number of
signatures bound together. When the
book is opened in the middle of a signature, the binding threads
are visible. The signatures in modern hardcover books are typically
octavo (a single sheet folded three
times), though they may also be folio, quarto, or 16mo. Unusually
large and heavy books are sometimes bound
with wire or cable.
Until the mid-20th century, those of mass-produced books were
covered in cloth, but from that period onwards, most publishers
adopted clothette, a kind of textured paper which vaguely resembles
cloth but is easily differentiated on close inspection. Most
cloth-bound books are now half-and-half covers with cloth covering
only the spine. In that case, the cover has a paper overlap. The
covers of modern hardback books are made of thick cardboard.
Some books that appeared in the mid-20th century signature-bound,
appear in reprinted editions in glued-together editions. It is
often difficult to find a copy of such books stitched together in
their original format. They are sought for aesthetic and practical
reasons.
A variation of the hardcover which is more durable is the
calf-binding, where the cover is either half or
fully clad in
leather, usually from a
calf. This is also called full-bound or,
simply, leather bound.
Library binding refers to the
hardcover binding of
serials and
paperback books intended for the rigors of
library use. Though many publishers have
started to provide "library binding" editions, many libraries elect
to purchase paperbacks and have them rebound as hardcover books,
resulting in longer life for the material.
Methods of hardcover binding
There are a number of methods used to bind hardcover books, from
them:
- Oversewing,
where the signatures of the book start off as loose pages which are
then clamped together. Small vertical holes are punched through the
far left-hand edge of each signature, and then the signatures are
sewn together with lock-stitches to form the text block. Oversewing
is a very strong method of binding and can be done on books up to
five inches thick. However, the margins of oversewn books are
reduced and the pages will not lie flat when opened.
- Sewing through the fold, where the signatures
of the book are folded and stitched through the fold. The
signatures are then sewn or glued together
at the spine to form a text block. In contrast to the previous
method, through the fold books have wide margins and can open
completely flat. However, the text block of a sewn through the fold
book is not very secure, which can cause some signatures to come
loose over time. Many varieties of sewing stitches exist, from
basic links to complex decorative stitches. While Western books are
generally sewn through holes punched along the fold, some Asian
bindings, such as the Retchoso or Butterfly Stitch of Japan, use
small slits instead of punched holes.
- Double-fan adhesive binding starts off with
two signatures of loose pages, which are run over a roller
-"fanning" the pages- to apply a thin layer of glue to each page
edge. Then the two signatures are perfectly aligned to form a text
block, and glue edges of the text block are attached to a piece of
cloth lining to form the spine. Double-fan adhesive bound books can
open completely flat and have a wide margin. However, certain types
of paper do not hold adhesive well, and with wear and tear, the
pages can come loose.

Modern paperback spines
Punch and Bind
Different types of the
punch and bind binding include:
- Wire binding is
also known as Twin Loop or Double Loop binding and involves the use
of a "C" shaped wire spine that is squeezed into a round shape
using a wire closing device. Wire bound books are made of
individual sheets, each punched with a line of round or square
holes on the binding edge. This type of binding uses either a 3:1
pitch hole pattern with three holes per inch or a 2:1 pitch hole
pattern with two holes per inch. The three to one hole pattern is
used for smaller books that are up to 9/16" in diameter while the
2:1 pattern is normally used for larger books as the holes are
slightly bigger to accommodate slightly thicker, stronger wire.
Once punched, the back cover is then placed on to the front cover
ready for the wire binding elements (double loop wire) to be
inserted. The wire is then placed through the holes. The next step
involves the binder holding the book by its pages and inserting the
wire into a "closer" which is basically a vise that crimps the wire
closed and into its round shape. The back page can then be turned
back to its correct position, thus hiding the spine of the
book.
- Comb Binding uses
a 9/16" pitch rectangular hole pattern punched near the bound edge.
A curled plastic "comb" is fed through the slits to hold the sheets
together. Comb binding allows a book to be disassembled and
reassembled by hand without damage. Comb supplies are typically
available in a wide range of colors and diameters. The supplies
themselves can be re-used or recycled. In the United States, comb
binding is often referred to as 19-ring binding because it uses a
total of 19 holes along the 11-inch side of a sheet of paper.
- VeloBind is used to
permanently rivet pages together using a plastic strip on the front
and back of the document. Sheets for the document are punched with
a line of holes near the bound edge. A series of pins attached to a
plastic strip called a Comb feeds through the holes to the other
side and then goes through another plastic strip called the
receiving strip. The excess portion of the pins is cut off and the
plastic heat-sealed to create a relatively flat bind method.
VeloBind provides a more permanent bind than comb-binding, but is
primarily used for business and legal presentations and small
publications.
- Spiral binding
or coil binding is
commonly used for atlases and other publications where it is
necessary or desirable to be able to open the publication back on
itself without breaking the spine. There are several types but
basically it is made by punching holes along the entire length of
the spine of the page and winding a wire helix
(like a spring) through the holes to provide a fully flexible hinge
at the spine. Spiral coil binding uses a number of different hole
patterns for binding documents. The most common hole pattern used
with this style is 4:1 pitch (4 holes per inch). However, spiral
coil spines are also available for use with 3:1 pitch, 5:1 pitch
and 0.400-hole patterns.
- GBC Proclick is a
relatively new binding style that was originally designed for use
with a 3:1 pitch wire binding hole pattern. This type of binding
uses an element that snaps shut and can be easily opened for
editing purposes. The editing abilities of this style make it
popular with direct sales organizations and mobile offices.
Proclick is manufactured exclusively by the
General Binding
Corporation.
- ZipBind is also manufactured by the General Binding Corporation and
offers easy editing. However, the binding spines for this style are
designed to work with the 9/16" plastic comb binding hole pattern.
Like Proclick, Zipbind spines can easily be
opened and closed without the need for a binding machine. Thus the
addition and deletion of pages is a simple process provided that
the pages have already been punched.
Thermally activated binding
Some of the different types of thermally activated binding include:
- Perfect binding is often used, and gives a
result similar to paperback books. National
Geographic is perhaps the best known of this type. Paperback or soft cover books are also normally
bound using perfect binding. They usually consist of various
sections with a cover made from heavier paper, glued together at
the spine with a strong flexible glue. The sections are rough-cut
in the back to make them absorb the hot glue. The other three sides
are then face trimmed. This is what allows the magazine or
paperback book to be opened. Mass
market paperbacks (pulp paperbacks) are small (16mo
size), cheaply made and often fall apart after much handling or
several years. Trade paperbacks are
more sturdily made, usually larger, and more expensive.
- Thermal Binding uses a one piece cover with
glue down the spine to quickly and easily bind documents without
the need for punching. Individuals usually purchase "thermal
covers" or "therm-a-bind covers" which are usually made to fit a
standard letter size sheet of paper and come with a glue channel
down the spine. The paper is placed in the cover, heated in a
machine (basically a griddle), and when the glue cools, it adheres
the paper to the spine. Thermal glue strips can also be purchased
separately for individuals that wish to use customized/original
covers. However, creating documents using thermal binding glue
strips can be a tedious process which requires a scoring device and
a large format printer.
- A cardboard article looks like a hardbound
book at first sight, but it is really a paperback with hard covers.
Many books that are sold as hardcover are actually
of this type. The Modern Library
series is an example. This type of document is usually bound with
thermal adhesive glue using a perfect binding machine.
- Tape Binding refers to a system that wraps and
glues a piece of tape around the base of the document. A tape
binding machine such as the Powis Parker Fastback or Standard
Accubind system will usually be used to complete the binding
process and to activate the thermal adhesive on the glue strip.
However, some users also refer to Tape Binding as the process of
adding a colored tape to the edge of a mechanically fastened
(stapled or stitched) document.
- Unibind is a variety of thermal binding that
uses a special steel channel with resin rather than glue inside of
it to give it a more sturdy bind to hold the pages in place.
Unibind can be used to bind soft covered documents with a look that
is similar to perfect binding. It can also be used for binding
hardcover books and photo books. Like Thermal Binding, unibind
usually requires you to purchase a one piece coverset to bind your
documents. However, Unibind also offers SteelBack spines that allow
you to use your own covers in the binding process. The majority of
Unibinds covers can be printed on as well to give documents a
unique finish.
Stitched or Sewn Binding
Types of stitched or sewn bindings:
- A sewn book is constructed in the same way as
a hardbound book, except that it lacks the hard covers. The binding
is as durable as that of a hardbound book.
- Stapling through the
centerfold, also called
saddle-stitching, joins a set of nested folios into a
single magazine issue; most American
comic books are well-known examples of this
type.
- Magazines are considered more ephemeral
than books, and less durable means of binding them are usual. In
general, the cover papers of magazines will be the same as the
inner pages (self-cover) or only slightly heavier (soft cover).
Most magazines are stapled or saddle-stitched; however, some are
bound with perfect binding and use thermally activated
adhesive.
Modern hand binding

Hardbound book spine stitching.

Traditionally sewn book opened
flat.

Halfbound book with leather and marble
paper.
Modern bookbinding by hand can be seen as two closely allied
fields: the creation of new bindings, and the repair of existing
bindings. Bookbinders are often active in both fields. Bookbinders
can learn the craft through
apprenticeship; by attending specialized
trade schools; by taking classes in the course of university
studies, or by a combination of those methods. Some European
countries offer a
Master Bookbinder certification, though
no such certification exists in the United States. MFA programs
that specialize in the 'Book Arts,' (hand paper-making, printmaking
and bookbinding) are available through certain colleges and
universities.
Hand bookbinders create new bindings that run the gamut from
historical book structures made with traditional materials to
modern structures made with 21st century materials, and from basic
cloth-case bindings to valuable full-leather fine bindings. Repairs
to existing books also encompass a broad range of techniques, from
minimally invasive conservation of a historic book to the full
restoration and rebinding of a text.
Though almost any existing book can be repaired to some extent,
only books that were originally sewn can be rebound by resewing.
Repairs or restorations are often done to emulate the style of the
original binding. For new works, some publishers print unbound
manuscripts which a binder can collate and bind, but often an
existing commercially-bound book is
pulled, or taken
apart, in order to be given a new binding. Once the textblock of
the book has been pulled, it can be rebound in almost any
structure; a modern suspense novel, for instance, could be rebound
to look like a 16
th-century manuscript. Bookbinders may
bind several copies of the same text, giving each copy a unique
appearance.
Hand bookbinders use a variety of specialized hand tools, the most
emblematic of which is the
bonefolder, a
flat, tapered, polished piece of bone used to crease paper and
apply pressure. Additional tools common to hand bookbinding include
a variety of knives and hammers, as well as brass tools used during
finishing.
When creating new work, modern hand binders often work on
commission, creating bindings for specific books or collections.
Books can be bound in many different materials. Some of the more
common materials for covers are
leather,
decorative
paper, and
cloth (see also:
buckram).
Those bindings that are made with exceptionally high craftsmanship,
and that are made of particularly high-quality materials
(especially full leather bindings), are known as
fine or
extra bindings.
Conservation and restoration
Conservation and restoration are practices intended to repair
damage to an existing book. While they share methods, their goals
differ. The goal of conservation is to slow the book's decay and
restore it to a usable state while altering its physical properties
as little as possible; the goal of restoration, however, is to
return the book to a previous state as envisioned by the restorer,
often imagined as the original state of the book. In either case,
the modern standard for conservation and restoration is
"reversibility." That is, any repair should be done in such a way
that it can be un-done if and when a better technique is developed
in the future. It is, in effect, bookbinders echo the physicians'
creed, "First, do no harm."

Rebacking saving original spine,
showing one volume finished and one untouched
Books requiring conservation treatment run the gamut from the very
earliest of texts to books with modern bindings that have undergone
heavy usage. For each book, the conservator must choose a course of
treatment that takes into account the book's value, whether it
comes from the binding, the text, the
provenance, or some combination of the three.
Many professional book and paper conservators in the United States
are members of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic
and Artistic Works (AIC), whose guidelines, set forth in the AIC's
Code of Ethics, are generally considered to
outline an appropriate approach to the treatment of rare or
valuable materials.
In restoration hand binding, the pages and book covers are often
hundreds of years old, and the handling of these pages has to be
undertaken with great care and a delicate hand. The binding
archival process can extend a book’s life for many decades and is
necessary to preserve books that sometimes are limited to a small
handful of remaining copies worldwide.
The first step in saving and preserving a book is its
deconstruction. The text need to be separated from the covers and,
only if necessary, the stitching removed. This is done as
delicately as possible. All page restoration is done at this point,
be it the removal of
foxing, ink stains, page
tears, etc. Various techniques are employed to repair the various
types of page damage that might have occurred during the life of
the book.

Geneva Bible, 1603, rebound in the
style of Elizabeth I's Book binder.
Master Bookbinders are qualified to undertake restoration and
traditional hand binding, and use great care to make sure this
process does not further damage the pages. The pages are added as
groups of page signatures, which when collated are beaten flat and
pressed.
The preparation of the "foundations" of the book could mean the
difference between a beautiful work of art and a useless stack of
paper and leather.
The sections are then hand-sewn in the style of its period into
book form.
The next step is the creation of the book cover; vegetable tanned
leather, dyed with natural dyes, and hand-marbled papers can be
used. Finally the cover is hand-tooled in gold leaf. The design of
the book cover involves such hand-tooling, where an extremely thin
layer of gold is applied to the cover. Such designs can be
lettering, symbols, or floral designs, depending on the nature of
any particular project.
Terms and techniques
- A leaf or folio is a single complete page,
front and back, in a finished book.
- The recto side of a leaf faces
left when the leaf is held straight up from the spine (that is, an
odd-numbered page).
- The verso side of a leaf faces
right when the leaf is held straight up from the spine (or an
even-numbered page).
- A bifolio is a single sheet folded in half to make two
leaves. Each half of the bifolio is a folio, though the
terms are often used interchangeably.
- A section, sometimes called a gathering, or,
especially if unprinted, a quire, is a group of bifolios
nested together as a single unit. In a completed book, each section
is sewn through its fold. Depending of how many bifolios a section
is made of, it could be called:
- duernion - two bifolios, producing four leaves;
- ternion - three bifolios, producing six leaves;
- quaternion - four bifolios, producing eight
leaves;
- quinternion - five bifolios, producing ten
leaves;
- sextern or sexternion - six bifolios,
producing twelve leaves.
- A codex is a series of one or
more sections sewn through their folds, and linked together by the
sewing thread.
- A signature is a section that contains text. Though
the term signature technically refers to the signature mark, traditionally a letter or
number printed on the first leaf of a section in order to
facilitate collation, the distinction is rarely made today.
- Folio, quarto, and so on may also refer to
the size of the finished book, based on the size of sheet that an
early paper maker could conveniently turn out with a manual press.
Paper sizes could vary considerably, and the finished size was also
affected by how the pages were trimmed, so the sizes given are
rough values only.
- A folio volume is typically or
more in height, the largest sort of regular book.
- A quarto volume is typically about by ,
roughly the size of most modern magazines. A sheet folded in
quarto (also 4to or 4º) is folded in half twice at right
angles to make four leaves. Also called: eight-page signature.
- An octavo volume is typically about by ,
the size of most modern digest
magazines or trade paperbacks. A sheet folded in
octavo (also 8vo or 8º) is folded in half 3 times to make 8
leaves. Also called: sixteen-page signature.
- A sextodecimo volume is about by , the size of most mass market
paperbacks. A sheet folded in sextodecimo (also 16mo or
16º) is folded in half 4 times to make 16 leaves. Also called:
32-page signature.
- Duodecimo or 12mo, 24mo, 32mo, and even 64mo are other
possible sizes. Modern paper mills can produce very large sheets,
so a modern printer will often print 64 or 128 pages on a single
sheet.
- A quire is a set of leaves which are stitched
together. This is most often a single signature, but may be several
nested signatures. The quires for a single book are arranged in
order and then stitched together as a set.
- Trimming allows the leaves of the bound book to be
turned. A sheet folded in quarto will have folds at the spine and
also across the top, so the top folds must be trimmed away before
the leaves can be turned. A signature folded in octavo or greater
may also require that the other two sides be trimmed. Deckle
Edge, or Uncut books are untrimmed or incompletely
trimmed, and may be of special interest to book collectors.
Spine orientation and titling conventions

The spine of the book is an important
aspect in book design, especially in the cover design.
When the books are stacked up or stored in a shelf, the spine
is the only visible surface that contains the information about the
book.
Obviously in a book store the details on the spine are what
initially attract the attention.

Without a spine, the entire book can
unfold into a flat sheet.
In left-to-right read languages (like English), books are bound on
the left side of the cover; looking from on top, the pages increase
counter-clockwise. In right-to-left languages, books are bound on
the right. In both cases, this is so the end of a page coincides
with where you flip.
(Some English-language books are bound on the right side of the
cover. By far the most common examples are English-language
translations of
Japanese comic books. Since
the art is laid out to be read right-to-left, this allows the art
to be published "unflipped".)
In Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, literary books are written
top-to-bottom, right-to-left, and thus are bound on the right,
while text books are written left-to-right, top-to-bottom, and thus
are bound on the left.
Early books did not have titles on their spines; rather, they were
shelved flat with their spines inward, and titles written with ink
along their fore edges. Modern books, however, have their titles on
their spines. In languages with Chinese-influenced writing systems,
this is naturally written top-to-bottom (as the characters don't
change orientation, and the language is generally written
top-to-bottom), but in left-to-right (and right-to-left) languages,
the spine is usually too narrow for the title to fit in its natural
orientation, and conventions differ. In the United States and the
United Kingdom, titles are usually written top-to-bottom, and this
practice is reflected in an industry standard; when placed on a
table with the front cover upwards, the title is correctly oriented
left-to-right on the spine. In continental Europe, the general
convention is to print titles bottom-to-top on the spine.
See also
References
- Al-Hassani, Woodcock and Saoud, "1001 Inventions, Muslim
heritage in Our World", FSTC Publishing, 2006, reprinted 2007,
pp.218-219.
- Baker, Don, "The golden age of Islamic bookbinding", Ahlan
Wasahlan, (Public Relations Div., Saudi Arabian Airlines,
Jeddah), 1984. pp. 13-15, at p.13
- Historical Bindings Teaching Set
- Such as the: Centro
del bel Libro, The Camberwell College of Arts,
The London College of Communication, and The North Bennet Street
School
- Such as: Columbia College Chicago, the University of
Alabama, - Nova
Scotia College of Art and Design and the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.
- ANSI/NISO Z39.41 - Printed Information on
Spines NISO Standards - National Information Standards
Organization. Section 6.
Further Reading
- Brenni, Vito J., compiler. Bookbinding: A Guide to the
Literature. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1982. ISBN 0-313-23718-2
- Diehl, Edith. Bookbinding: Its Background and Technique. New
York: Dover Publications, 1980. ISBN 0-486-24020-7. (Originally
published by Rinehart & Company, 1946 in two volumes.)
- Gross, Henry. Simplified Bookbinding. New York: Van Nostrand
Reinhold, ISBN 0-442-22898-8
- Ikegami, Kojiro. Japanese Bookbinding: Instructions from a
Master Craftsman / adapted by Barbara Stephan. New York:
Weatherhill, 1986. ISBN 0-8348-019896-5. (Originally published as
Hon no tsukuriikata.)
- Johnson, Arthur W. Manual of Bookbinding. New York: Charles
Scribner's Sons, 1978. ISBN 0-684-15332-7
- Johnson, Arthur W. The Practical Guide to Craft Bookbinding.
London: Thames and Hudson, 1985. ISBN 0-500-27360-X
- Lewis, A.W. Basic Bookbinding. New York: Dover Publications,
1957. ISBN 0-486-20169-4. (Originally published by B.T. Batsford,
1952)
- Smith, Keith A. Non-adhesive Binding: Books Without Paste or
Glue. Fairport, NY: Sigma Foundation, 1992. ISBN 0-927159-04-X
- Zeier, Franz. Books, Boxes and Portfolios: Binding
Construction, and Design Step-by-Step. New York: Design Press,
1990. ISBN 0-8306-3483-5
External links