Paper Runs Thin. Shortages That Reshaped Publishing

Paper shortages could halt a printer, narrow a newspaper, delay a book, or force publishers to choose which voices reached readers first. This history follows moments when disrupted supply, war, price shocks, trade restrictions, and rising demand made paper scarce. It examines printers, publishers, readers, and governments confronting a material limit that is easy to overlook in the history of ideas.
The result is a grounded account of how publishing decisions were shaped not only by authors and censors, but also by mills, rags, transport, storage, and cost.