Close your eyes and imagine a world without books.

What if there were no libraries, no story books, and no textbooks?

How would people learn new things?

Long ago, books were very rare.

They had to be copied by hand, one letter at a time.

It took months or even years to make just one book.

Only rich people or churches could afford them. Most

people never owned a book, and many couldn't read at all. Then one man changed everything. His

name was Johannes Gutenberg. Johannes Gutenberg was born around 620 years ago,400 in Mainz, Germany. He grew up in a large

family. His father was wealthy in a merchant and likely involved in the cloth trade, while his mother

was the daughter of a shopkeeper. Gutenberg learned about metalworking and craftsmanship

from his father. As a child, Gutenberg was curious and enjoyed

learning. Because their family had money, he likely attended a local school where he learned to read

and write in Latin, the language used for most books at the time. Mines was a busy place with many

skilled workers, and young Gutenberg paid close attention to how things were made.

This early interest in tools and materials stayed with him as he grew older and began working as a goldsmith.

Gutenberg grew up in a time when books were written by hand.

Scribes or people who copied books used pens made from feathers and ink to

write each word carefully. They worked on parchment, which was paper made from animal skins,

or sometimes on thin sheets of paper. It took a very long time to finish one book, and mistakes

could mean starting over. Artists often added colorful

pictures and decorations to make the books look beautiful. Because making books took so much

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