The first book published is thought to be the Epic of Gilgamesh, written at about 3000 BC in cuneiform, an alphabet based on symbols.

Johannes Gutenberg is often credited as the inventor of the printing press in 1454. However, the Chinese actually printed from movable type in 1040. Gutenberg was unaware of the Chinese printing methods.

Sumerians invented writing in the 4th century BC.

William Shakespeare wrote his first play The Taming of the Shrew in 1593.

The first illustrated book for children was published in Germany in 1658.

The first novel sold through a vending machine—at the Paris Metro—was Murder on the Orient Express.

The largest web bookshop, Amazon.com, stores almost 3 million books.

When Jonathan Swift published Gulliver’s Travels in 1726, he intended it as a satire on the ferociousness of human nature. Today it is enjoyed as a children’s story.