"For a long time I've felt that libraries and archives are a kind of poor relation of the cultural sector: they don’t have the glamour of the art gallery or the big museum. So I wanted to get across why they are so important for society.”

Richard Ovenden, rare books expert, fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and executive head of the Bodleian Libraries in Oxford, is talking about his own first book, Burning the Books: A History of Knowledge Under Attack. It’s a powerful and riveting account of how we have sought, and fought, to preserve knowledge throughout history. Among those who have ...