Martin begins with a sweeping look at the revolutionary role played by the new technology of printing in Renaissance and Reformation Europe. Shifting the focus to France, he then examines the political implications of publishing in the reign of Francis I, and includes such topics as the founding of royal and university libraries, the role of church-state relations, Richelieu's cultural program, and censorship.

In revealing case studies of Rouen and Grenoble, Martin pinpoints precisely which books were sold and to which social groups, and he explains why the initially successful printers of Rouen were eventually forced out of business by the Parisian courts.

Martin also casts a discerning eye on early graphic design - from the first illustrated "coffee table" books purchased by the newly rich to the invention of the paragraph to facilitate reading. And he shows how attempts by the French government to suppress and control publication were eventually thwarted by free market forces from Amsterdam and Neufchatel.