Adventures in Stationery: A Journey Through Your Pencil Case

Description

We are surrounded by stationery: half-chewed Cristal Bics and bent paper clips, rubber bands to fiddle with or ping, blunt pencils, rubbers and Tipp-ex are integral parts of our everyday environment. So much so that we never think about where they come from, why they are the way they are - or what stories they might have to tell. But luckily, James Ward does and he's here to tell you all about the secret pull stationery exerts on our lives. After all, who remains unmoved by the sight of a pristine blu-tak slab, or the first unmarked sheet of a brand new notepad? And which of humanity's brightest ideas didn't start life on a scrap of paper, a Post-it, or in the margins of a notebook? Exploring the stories behind these everyday objects, Ward reveals tales of invention - accidental and brilliant - and bitter rivalry. He also asks the questions you never thought you had: Who is Mr Pritt? What does shatter-proof resistant mean? How many pens does Argos use? And what does design evolutions in desk organisers mean for society? This witty and entertaining book, packed with fascinating facts, will change the way you look at your desk, pencil case or stationery cupboard forever.

James Ward's London-based blog, I Like Boring Things, has featured in the Independent, Observer and on the BBC website. He is co-founder of Stationery Club and the Boring Conference, featured in the Wall Street Journal and on Radio 4. This is his first book.

An endlessly fascinating and witty book -- Shaun Usher, editor of * Letters of Note * A heartfelt paean to stationery -- Marcus Berkmann * Daily Mail * There are 1,000 fascinating, funny, silly and scientific stationery stories in this book - as many as there are uses for Blu Tack -- Iain Finlayson * Saga * This book is for anyone who perved over Stabilo Boss pens in Ryman as a youth...Nostalgia with a rubber on the end * Monocle * The books to bounce you straight into autumn: just in time for the new school term, James Ward's Adventures in Stationery explores that satisfying feeling one gets from the first fresh sheet of a Moleskine and what a particular variation of pen says about you * Vogue * Elegantly written ... James Ward has ensured we won't need another book on stationery for a very long time indeed -- Andrew Martin * Observer * Ward writes with a blend of wit, unhealthy obsession and pure love. Here is high-class pornography for the stationery enthusiast -- Alexander Gilmour * FT * James Ward investigates the drama of the desk tidy...many questions you never thought to ask when chewing your Bic are answered smartly in black ink on white paper in geeky detail -- Iain Finlayson * Times *