Forget what you think you know about the Kindle or iPad. Marie Lebert's book rewinds the clock to the very beginning, tracing the ebook's journey from a wild idea in the 1970s to the global phenomenon it is today.

The Story

This isn't a story about corporations. It's about people. Lebert introduces us to the early pioneers—programmers, librarians, and visionary authors—who started digitizing texts on massive mainframe computers. We follow the evolution through the first dedicated e-readers (which were about as portable as a brick), the rise of the internet and free digital libraries like Project Gutenberg, and finally, the commercial explosion that put ebooks in everyone's hands. The plot is the collective struggle to solve a simple, profound problem: how do we make reading digital?

Why You Should Read It

What grabbed me was how personal it feels. Lebert connects the tech milestones to the human passion behind them. You realize the current debate about 'screen vs. paper' is decades old! The book made me appreciate my e-reader not as a slick gadget, but as the endpoint of a long, collaborative effort by book lovers who just wanted to share stories in new ways. It's a quiet tribute to open access and the stubborn belief that knowledge should be free.

Final Verdict

Perfect for curious readers who love books and technology, but aren't tech experts. If you've ever wondered about the 'how' and 'why' behind your digital library, this is your backstage pass. It's a short, fascinating look at the revolution that happened right under our noses, changing reading forever.