Writing is about communication. In our multimedia age, it co-exists with a developed oral culture of telecommunications, film and recorded sound. Through our television screens and popular press, it interrelates with sound and image in complex ways. Writing is nonetheless as important as ever as the principal conveyor of information, unlocking the secrets of human knowledge and identity.

In The British Library Guide to Writing and Scripts: History and Techniques, Michelle P. Brown surveys the many forms in which writing has evolved in East and West, the tools and materials used, and how they have influenced the development of scripts. She examines particularly the processes involved in the production of the medieval book in the West, and assesses the impact of later technological developments in communication on the current state of writing and its future.

With over 70 colour and black-and-white illustrations, The British Library Guide to Writing and Scripts: History and Techniques is one of a series of titles providing accessible and lively introductions to the practical aspects of the history of books and how they are made.