A Guide to Early Printed Books and Manuscripts provides an introduction to the language and concepts employed in bibliographical studies and textual scholarship as they pertain to early modern manuscripts and printed texts 

Winner, Honourable Mention for Literature, Language and Linguistics, American Publishers Prose Awards, 2010
Based almost exclusively on new primary research
Explains the complex process of viewing documents as artefacts, showing readers how to describe documents properly and how to read their physical properties
Demonstrates how to use the information gleaned as a tool for studying the transmission of literary documents
Makes clear why such matters are important and the purposes to which such information is put
Features illustrations that are carefully chosen for their unfamiliarity in order to keep the discussion fresh