This volume presents a collection of essays with an overview of the century-and-a-half between the death of Chaucer in 1400 and the incorporation of the Stationers' Company in 1557. In this time of change the manuscript culture of Chaucer's day was replaced by an ambience in which printed books would become the norm. This volume traces the transition and discerns patterns of where, why and how books were written, printed, bound, acquired, read and passed from hand to hand with particular emphasis on imports and links with the Continent.