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THE BIBLIO FILE is a podcast about "the book," and an inquiry into the wider world of book culture. Hosted by Nigel Beale it features wide ranging, long-form conversations with best practitioners inside the book trade and out - from writer to reader. Why listen? The hope is that it will help you to read, write, publish, edit, design, and collect better, and improve how you communicate serious, big, necessary, new, good ideas and stories...

Feedback or suggestions? Please email notabenebeale@gmail.com 

Jun 20, 2022

Why did I interview Mark Andrews? Because he's a fellow Canadian, he's an exceptional book collector who brings an engineer's mind to the task, and he's just published a beautiful book featuring selections from his book collection, entitled The Science and Engineering of Water; An illustrated catalogue of books and manuscripts on Italian hydraulics, 1500 - 1800; it's exemplary. Exactly the kind of thing every book collector should think about doing - in some iteration - with his/her/their own collection.  
 
​Mark's catalogue ​explores the development of science and engineering through the early modern period​ by presenting 367 printed books, manuscripts and maps​ in chronological order​. They highlight the relationship between the evolution of ideas and the authors who documented th​e​se ideas. Drawing from Mark​'s larger collection of civil engineering​ titles, ​it's filled with​ illustrations and diagrams​ (nearly 1000), ​from books that were used as working ​tools by Italian scientists, engineers, and builders​ from the early 1500s to the ​end of the 1700s.
 
​Trust me. While books on Italian hydraulics may not sound exactly riveting, they are. At least, they are when Mark talks about them.