The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to books:
Book – set of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of ink, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side.
A book is a medium for a collection of words and/or pictures to represent knowledge, often manifested in bound paper and ink, or in electronic format as e-books.
Books can be described as all of the following:
Type of publication
Format of literature
Physical types of books not to be confused with literary genres or types of literature.
Advance copy – a free promotional copy of a book given by a publisher to booksellers, librarians, journalists, or others, or as a contest or school prize, before the book is printed for mass distribution.
Alphabet book – a book primarily designed for young children representing letters of the alphabet with corresponding words and/or images.
Alternative formats – another version of a standard printed book such as audio, braille, electronic or large print versions
Audiobook – a recorded reading of a physical book
Autograph book – a book for collecting the autographs of others
Confession album – a type of autograph book with set of questions
Banned book – a book or other printed works which are prohibited by law or to which free access is not permitted by other means
Bestseller – a book that is included on a list of top-selling or frequently-borrowed titles
Blook – a printed book that contains or is based on content from a blog
Board book – a type of book printed on thick paperboard generally for children
Book-and-record set – a set consisting of a picture storybook and an accompanying recording
Book series – sequence of books that are formally identified together as a group
Booklet – a small book or group of pages
Chapbook – an early type of cheap popular literature printed in early modern Europe in booklet format
Tract – booklets used for religious and political purposes
Boxed Set – a compilation of books packaged in a box, for sale as a single unit
Braille book – a book that is traditionally written with embossed paper for the blind or visually impaired
Chapter book – a story book intended for intermediate readers, generally age 7-10
Codex – a bound book constructed of a number of sheets of paper, vellum, papyrus, or similar materials
Coffee table book – an oversized, usually hard-covered book whose purpose is for display on a table
Coloring book – a book containing line art to which a reader may add color using crayons, colored pencils, marker pens, paint or other artistic media
Comic book – a book or magazine that consists of comic art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes
Comedia suelta – an individual printing of a play
Condolence book – a book in which people may record their condolences after a death or great tragedy.
Cookbook – a collection of recipes
Diary and Journals – a private collection of thoughts or feelings, remembrances including comments on current events in book format
Commonplace book – writing information into books in order to compile knowledge
Dream diary – a diary for recording dreams
Personal Diary – a record (originally in handwritten format) with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period
Scrapbook – is a method, an art for preserving, presenting, arranging personal and family history in the form of a book
Travelogue or Travel Journal – is a record made by a traveller, sometimes in diary form, of the traveler's experiences, written during the course of the journey and later edited for publication
E-Book or Electronic Book is a book made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both readable onelectronic devices
Edited volume or collection – a collection of scholarly or scientific chapters written by different authors in book form
Exhibition catalogue – a book which is either a printed list of exhibits at an art exhibition or a directory of exhibitors at a trade fair or business-to-business event
Festival book – a book that commemorate a notable event such as a royal entry, coronation or wedding
First Edition a book from the first print run
Festschrift – a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during his or her lifetime
Flip book – a book with a series of pictures that vary gradually from one page to the next, so that when the pages are turned rapidly, the pictures appear to animate by simulating motion or some other change
Hardcover – a book bound with rigid protective covers (typically of cardboard covered with buckram or other cloth, heavy paper, or occasionally leather) with a sewn spine.
Illuminated manuscript – a book in which the text is supplemented with such decoration as initials, borders (marginalia) and miniature illustrations
Incunable – an early printed book (before 1501)
Instant book – a book that has been produced and published very quickly to meet market demand
Interactive children's book – a subset of children's books that require participation and interaction by the reader
Large-print book – a book with large text for the visually impaired
Limited edition book – book that is released in a limited quantity print run
Liturgical book – a book published by the authority of a church, that contains the text and directions for the liturgy of its official religious services.
Magazine – a collection of written articles published on a schedule
Mapback – an early form of a paperback with a printed map on the back cover
Midlist – a book that is not a bestseller, but has strong enough sales to justify its publication
Miniature book – a very small book
Miscellany – a collection of various pieces of writing by different authors
Monograph – a book on a single subject or an aspect of a subject, usually by a single author
Networked book or Open book – a book that is written, edited, and read in a networked environment (such as Wikipedia)
Novelization – a book that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, comic strip or video game
Online book – a book that is only available to be read on the Internet
Orihon – long rolls consisting of sheets of paper pasted together began to be folded alternately one way and the other to produce an effect like a concertina
Out-of-print book – a book no longer being actively published
Paperback – book characterized by a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples
Mass-market paperback – small, usually non-illustrated, inexpensive bookbinding format
Trade paperback – a higher-quality paperback book
Personalized book – a book that has been customized for someone, containing personalized text, customized illustrations, or variables, based on the characteristics of that person
Photobook – a book consisting mainly of photographs
Picture book – a book that combines visual and written text and often aimed at children
Pop-up book or Movable book – a three-dimensional book
Punch out book – a book printed on stiff card or cardboard usually comprising several pages of perforated, colorfully printed figures or shapes
Reference Book
Catalogue raisonné – annotated listing of all the known artworks by an artist either in a particular medium or all media
Encyclopedia – a type of reference work or compendium holding a comprehensive summary of information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge
Herbal – a book containing the names and descriptions of plants
Remaindered book –a liquidated book
Samut khoi – a folding-book manuscript
Scroll – a pre-cursor to the book which is a roll of papyrus, parchment or paper containing writing
Song Book or Chansonnier – a book containing lyrics and notes for songs
Choirbook – a large format song book
Table-book – printed book which is arranged so that all the parts of a piece of music can be read from it while seated around a table
Sticker album – a book in which a person sticks collectable stickers in designated sections
Tankōbon – Japanese term for a book that is a stand-alone story and not part of a series
Textbook – manual of instruction in any branch of study
Tie-in – a book based on a media property such as a film, video game, television series, board game, web site, role-playing game or literary property that serve as cross-promotion
Used book – a previously owned book
Volume (bibliography) – a single book that is part of a larger collection
Wallbook – large printed book that is designed also to be mounted on a wall
Yearbook – a book that is published annually
Book size – the dimensions of a book
Leaf – a single sheet, the left-hand page of which is the verso, and right-hand page is the recto
Page – one side of a leaf of paper.
Ink – a type of pigment used to write letters upon the pages of a book
Paper – a material that easily absorbs ink, made from ground plant cellulose.
Parchment – a heavier alternative to paper, often made of reeds, cotton, or animal hide.
Book cover – protective covering used to bind together the pages of a book.
Dust jacket – detachable outer cover, usually made of paper and printed with text and illustrations. This outer cover has folded flaps that hold it to the front and back book covers.
Literature (outline) – prose, written oral, including fiction and non-fiction, drama and poetry.
Fiction (outline) – classification for any story or universe derived from imagination—and not based strictly on history or fact
Literary Fiction (outline) – type of fiction that focuses more on analyzing the human condition than on plot
Genre Fiction – plot-driven fictional works written with the intent of fitting into a specific literary genre
Non-fiction – type of content whose creator (in good faith) assumes responsibility for the truth or accuracy of events, people, or information presented.
Book design – the common structural parts of a book include:
Front cover: hardbound or softcover (paperback); the spine is the binding that joins the front and rear covers where the pages hinge.
Front endpaper – the endpapers of a book are pages that consist of a double-size sheet folded, the front endpaper and the flyleaf.
Flyleaf: The blank leaf or leaves following the front free endpaper.
Front matter – the first section of a book
Frontispiece – a decorative illustration on the verso facing the title page
Title page – repeats the title and author as printed on the cover or spine.
Copyright page: – typically verso of title page: shows copyright owner/date, credits, edition/printing, cataloguing details
Table of contents – a list of the chapter headings and nested sub-headings with their respective page numbers
List of figures – often included in technical books, a list of drawings or depictions in the book
List of tables – often included in technical books, a list of data in rows and columns, or possibly in more complex structure.
Dedication – an inscription which is the expression of friendly connection or thanks by the author towards another person.
Acknowledgments – a place in the book where the author gives expression of gratitude for assistance in creating an original work. This may also be placed in Back Matter.
Foreword – a short piece of writing sometimes placed at the beginning of a book and typically written by someone other than the primary author.
Preface – a short introduction to a book written by the work's author. The preface usually describes how the book came into being and may contain thanks or acknowledgments.
Introduction – the beginning section that states the purpose and the goals of the book
Body – the main text or contents of the book, the pages often collected or folded into signatures; the pages are usually numbered sequentially, and often divided into chapters.
Back matter – also known as end matter is the final section of the book it can contain a number of items
Epilogue – a piece of writing at the end of the a book which brings closure to the work.
Afterword – a piece of writing covering the story of how the book came into being
Appendix – supplemental addition to the given work that details information found in the body
Glossary – a set of definitions of words important to the work.
Index – a list of terms and references used in the text often with page numbers to where the terms can be found in the work.
Notes – a list of author comments or citations of a reference work, these may also be found within the main text at the bottom of a page.
Bibliography – a list of the works consulted when writing the body
Colophon – a brief description with production notes relevant to the edition and may include a printer's mark or logotype.
Flyleaf: The blank leaf or leaves (if any) preceding the back free endpaper.
Rear endpaper – the endpapers of a book are pages that consist of a double-size sheet folded, the rear end or backend paper the first of which is a flyleaf.
Back Cover – the back cover of a book which usually contains biographical matter, a summary of the book as well as the ISBN and publisher's price for the book.
Bibliography – the academic study of books as physical and cultural objects.
Enumerative bibliography – the organized listing of books
Descriptive bibliography – description of books as physical objects
Analytical bibliography – examination of the physical features of book as artifact
List of bibliographies – list of bibliographies on Wikipedia
Literature – any single body of written works
Library
Library science
Library management
Bliss bibliographic classification (BC)
Chinese Library Classification (CLC)
Colon Classification
Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC)
Harvard-Yenching Classification
Library of Congress Classification (LCC)
New Classification Scheme for Chinese Libraries
Universal Decimal Classification (UDC)
History of books
History of writing
History of scrolls
History of the codex
List of codices
Aztec codices
Maya codices
History of printing
Moveable type
Developments
Woodblock printing (200)
Movable type (1040)
Printing press (1454)
Etching (ca. 1500)
Mezzotint (1642)
Aquatint (1768)
Lithography (1796)
Chromolithography (1837)
Rotary press (1843)
Offset printing (1875)
Hectograph (19th century)
Hot metal typesetting (1886)
Mimeograph (1890)
Screen printing (1907)
Spirit duplicator (1923)
Dye-sublimation (1957)
Phototypesetting (1960s)
Dot matrix printer (1964)
Laser printing (1969)
Thermal printing (ca. 1972)
Inkjet printing (1976)
Stereolithography (1986)
Digital press (1993)
3D printing (ca. 2003)
Book publishing –
Writing –
Author –
Editing –
Graphic Design
Printing –
Bookbinding –
Bookselling –
Lists of publishing companies
Libraries –
List of libraries
Bookcase
Home Library
Book censorship
Book burning
List of books banned by governments
Book censorship by country
Book censorship in Canada
Book censorship in Germany
Book censorship in Iran
Book censorship in the Republic of Ireland
Book censorship in the United States
Bibliophilia
Book collecting
Book review
Lists of books
Lists of books by subject
Lists of books by writer
Lists of novels
Lists of controversial books
List of banned books
List of book titles taken from literature
American Booksellers Association (ABA)
Antiquarian Bookseller's Association of America (ABAA)
New York Review of Books – an American magazine containing lietary criticism, and discussions of the contents of various books.
Johannes Gutenberg – inventor of movable type.
Lord Stanhope – built a press out of cast iron, reducing force required by 90%, doubling the size of the printed area.