In the digital age, books have become art and artefacts

In 1855, French graphic artist and illustrator Gustave Dore conceived of a quixotic plan to publish large, expensive folio editions of "all the masterpieces in literature".

- Clement Yong

His unique selling point: They would be richly illustrated with his romanticist sketches. The language of his publishers' rejection is strikingly contemporary.

He writes: "They tried to prove to me that it was not (for) a time when the business of booksellers and publishers had extreme cheapness for its basis.

"I (based) my arguments and hopes upon the fact that, in every age when art or industry has exhibited a tendency to languish, there have always remained a few hundred individuals who have protested against so pernicious a state of affairs, and have been ready and willing to pay a handsome price for any careful and well-published work."

It must be comforting to know that, even 200 years ago, the state of book publishing was already being described with such prematurely tragic lamentations. The industry assumption then was also that people would not deign to shell out money for books.