John Sutherland

Looking at Books by John Sutherland – essay

John Sutherland on the Folio Society illustration competition — and the future of print

One of Finn Dean’s winning illustrations for the Folio Society’s Brave New World. Getty Images | Shutterstock | iStock | Alamy 
issue 27 July 2013

The sexy thing this summer, as the TV ads tell us, is the e-book. Forget those old 1,000-page blockbusters, two of which would put you over Mr Ryan’s weight limit. Sand, sun, surf — and Kindle. The traditional ‘beach book’ is as obsolete as the Victorian bathing machine.

The printed codex has had a long run — it is half a millennium since William Caxton set up his stall around St Paul’s.

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