Printing and Bookselling in Dublin 1670-1800, by James W. Phillips (Irish Academic Press, £45), is a must for anyone interested in the first golden age of Dublin's book trade. A comprehensive overview of the trade from paper-making to type design and printing, to plain and sumptuous binding, it also encompasses the people behind the vibrant print culture. We experience the pageantry of the guild processions, the lives of hack writers and hawkers, the frequent disputes between booksellers and the precarious life led by printers of seditious pamphlets and ballads, including two unfortunate printers of Swift's satirical pamphlets, jailed for libel.