"Where someone sets fire to books, someone will eventually set fire to people."

The wanton destruction of knowledge is often systematic, an attack by one group on another. In ancient China, there was the "burning of books"; in England, there was the Reformation's attack on the collection of books in monasteries; in Germany, there was the burning of Jewish books by the Nazis. On the other hand, there are still countless people of good will who will risk their lives for knowledge and archives that are on the brink of extinction... In addition to the political disasters facing the storage of knowledge, the book also addresses the tragedy caused by the neglect of library management, the irreparable damage caused by the will of authors and their relatives, the lack of information preservation and regulation in the digital age, and the threat of monopolies by giant technology companies. As the book says: "The repeated attacks on libraries and archives over the centuries is a worrying trend in human history that deserves our study, and the amazing efforts made to protect the knowledge held by these institutions deserve our praise."

Richard Ovenden, who since 2014 has been director of the Bodleian Library, the second largest library in the UK and the main library of the University of Oxford, gives a vivid account and reconstruction of the crisis of knowledge preservation in Book Burning: A History of Knowledge Suffering, which is not only authoritative, but also conveys the insights and concerns of a knowledge conservator. For ordinary readers, the value of this "book of books" is not only to bring us back to the historical context of the suffering of books, but also to arouse our conscious awareness of the storage and protection of knowledge, especially the crisis facing individuals and society in the era of "Internet without memory".

"Content Introduction"

The preservation of knowledge has always been an uphill struggle: the ancient Library of Alexandria was in decline due to mismanagement; The new library at Oxford was built at Sir Bodley's expense; The Nazi regime set fire to thousands of Jewish books; Kafka's manuscript may have been lost to posterity because of his will. In this book, Richard Ovenden, director of the Bodleian Library, spans 3,000 years of historical records and materials, introduces the history of knowledge suffering from the age of clay tablets to cloud data storage, and explores the current state of knowledge preservation and its impact on society. The efforts and sacrifices of many knowledgeable people, such as librarians and archivists, are also well represented in the book.

This is a fascinating history of preservation and a shocking history of human civilization. Through this book, we should understand that libraries and archives are not only places to store documents, but also closely interact with current politics, education and culture, and provide important support for the healthy functioning of society. Richard Ovenden also has an initiative for society as a whole: to build consensus for public policy and to secure the resources needed for these important knowledge-preserving institutions.

"Where someone sets fire to books, someone will eventually set fire to people."

The wanton destruction of knowledge is often systematic, an attack by one group on another. In ancient China, there was the "burning of books"; in England, there was the Reformation's attack on the collection of books in monasteries; in Germany, there was the burning of Jewish books by the Nazis. On the other hand, there are still countless people of good will who will risk their lives for knowledge and archives that are on the brink of extinction... In addition to the political disasters facing the storage of knowledge, the book also addresses the tragedy caused by the neglect of library management, the irreparable damage caused by the will of authors and their relatives, the lack of information preservation and regulation in the digital age, and the threat of monopolies by giant technology companies. As the book says: "The repeated attacks on libraries and archives over the centuries is a worrying trend in human history that deserves our study, and the amazing efforts made to protect the knowledge held by these institutions deserve our praise."

Richard Ovenden, who since 2014 has been director of the Bodleian Library, the second largest library in the UK and the main library of the University of Oxford, gives a vivid account and reconstruction of the crisis of knowledge preservation in Book Burning: A History of Knowledge Suffering, which is not only authoritative, but also conveys the insights and concerns of a knowledge conservator. For ordinary readers, the value of this "book of books" is not only to bring us back to the historical context of the suffering of books, but also to arouse our conscious awareness of the storage and protection of knowledge, especially the crisis facing individuals and society in the era of "Internet without memory".

"Content Introduction"

The preservation of knowledge has always been an uphill struggle: the ancient Library of Alexandria was in decline due to mismanagement; The new library at Oxford was built at Sir Bodley's expense; The Nazi regime set fire to thousands of Jewish books; Kafka's manuscript may have been lost to posterity because of his will. In this book, Richard Ovenden, director of the Bodleian Library, spans 3,000 years of historical records and materials, introduces the history of knowledge suffering from the age of clay tablets to cloud data storage, and explores the current state of knowledge preservation and its impact on society. The efforts and sacrifices of many knowledgeable people, such as librarians and archivists, are also well represented in the book.

This is a fascinating history of preservation and a shocking history of human civilization. Through this book, we should understand that libraries and archives are not only places to store documents, but also closely interact with current politics, education and culture, and provide important support for the healthy functioning of society. Richard Ovenden also has an initiative for society as a whole: to build consensus for public policy and to secure the resources needed for these important knowledge-preserving institutions.