Book consists of written or printed sheets of paper or some other material fastened together along one edge so it can be opened at any point. Most books have a protective cover. Books are a reasonably inexpensive and convenient way to store, transport, and find knowledge and information. The book thus ranks as one of humanity's greatest inventions.
People have used books in some form for more than 5,000 years. In ancient times, people wrote on clay tablets, strips of wood, or other materials. The term book comes from the early English word boc, which means tablet or written sheets. The first printed books in Europe appeared during the mid-1400's. Since then, millions of books have been printed on almost every subject and in every written language. Young readers are familiar with storybooks, textbooks, workbooks, and comic books. We often consult almanacs, dictionaries, encyclopedias, and telephone books for reference. We read novels, books of poetry, and printed versions of plays for entertainment.
