We love books. We take them to bed with us. We display them on our bookshelves. We write our names in them. They weigh down our suitcases when we go on holiday. We take them for granted. But there's much more to them than meets the eye. From how books feel and smell, to burned books, banned books and books that create nations, The Secret Life of Books is about everything beyond the words on a page. It's about how books - and readers - have evolved over time. And about how books still have the power to change our lives. 'A real treasure trove for book lovers' ALEXANDER McCALL SMITH 'Every sentence is utterly captivating ... probably the most compulsive text ever penned about what it means to handle and possess a book' CHRISTOPHER DE HAMEL, author of Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts 'Wonderfully insightful' ALBERTO MANGUEL, author of A History of Reading