Some radical pundits predicted the end of books, saying we’d download special files to a small handheld computer that displayed the pages of a book and read it like we do on paper. At the time, the technology was in its infancy.

Young has good access to editorial movers and shakers on two continents, but he’s more interested in the process and people that determine what ends up on the page than the bombshells about bloodthirsty and opportunistic journalists you’re hoping for.

Because of the overwhelming number of books targeted at women, it’s tempting to think a female aesthetic takes hold once a book enters the machinery of publishing. After all, women occupy marketing and editorial positions in overwhelming numbers.