spine printing

Can someone explain why the printing on the spine is so that the
writing is read from the left side. That is, in a stack of books on a
shelf, you have to approach from the left side to read the spine text
that is written along the height of the book. I think it should be
readable from the right since English is read from left to right.
History on this etc? Comments please.
ron

motor man <rdoctors RemoveThis @cox.net> wrote in news:1180564036.758721.241830
@i38g2000prf.googlegroups.com:

> Can someone explain why the printing on the spine is so that the
> writing is read from the left side. That is, in a stack of books on a
> shelf, you have to approach from the left side to read the spine text
> that is written along the height of the book. I think it should be
> readable from the right since English is read from left to right.
> History on this etc? Comments please.
> ron

By convention, spine copy reads from the top down, showing the title of the
book (usually without the subtitle, if there is one,) the author's name
(often only the last name,) then the publisher (whose name is often
replaced with a logo or the publisher's "colophon.") The title and author's
name are oriented such that with the book laid face-up on a table they read
correctly (rather than being upside-down.) The author's name, if short
enough, is sometimes oriented parallel to the top of the book, as is the
publisher's name or mark, or may be printed vertically as a decorative
effect.

This orientation is also well suited to shelving, since just as English is
read from left to right, people tend to browse shelves from left to right,
so would be apt to be viewing the spine from the left. Consistent placement
of these elements also provides for a helpful visual alignment, making it
easier for eyes to locate particular items by title, author or publisher in
a line of shelved books.

Gene Warner

www.boysmindbooks.com
www.solutionsforsecretaries.com