Paging Piketty

       I got my copy of Thomas Piketty's Capital in the Twenty-First Century just over a month ago and have been impressed and intrigued by it. I've been meaning to offer review-coverage but, quite honestly, have been a bit overwhelmed by the attention it's received (and have to wonder whether I can really add anything to what's already out there). Now it's number one at Amazon, apparently/possibly publisher Harvard University Press' biggest seller ever ... and a book in translation ! (See their publicity page, or get your copy at Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk.)
       Leaving aside the economic arguments -- already debated ... well, yes, ad nauseam (though, yes, it's important enough that it's worth continued debate) -- one thing has struck me about the coverage is ... the claims about how big a book it actually is. Consider the various claims:

• a lengthy (577 pages) study
• 577 pages of text, 75 pages of notes
• 640 pages
• Piketty's 671-page tome
• Piketty's 685-page tome
• 696 pages
• 700-page book
• more than 700 pages long

       Mind you, the French original gets similar treatment -- if not quite as bad:

• un essai ardu de 900 pages
• les 950 pages
• 976 pages
• près de 1.000 pages dans l'édition française

       When posting page-totals of books under review at the complete review I count (only) the pages of text, not the notes. (The number is nevertheless often inexact: many texts don't being on 'page 1', but I don't deduct the outstanding pages.)
       So what's the deal with the Piketty ? The Harvard University Press edition is the only English-language edition. It has:

• 2 pages of Acknowledgments (pp.vii-viii)
• 577 pages of text (pp. 1-577)
• 77 pages of notes (pp. 579-655)
• 8 pages of 'Contents in Detail (pp. 657-664)
• 5 page listing 'Tables and Illustrations (pp. 665-669)
• 15 pages of an Index (pp. 671-685)

       So, to me, the book has 577 pages (the text proper). Okay, I can be sold on 653/655, since the Notes certainly are important (and readable -- they're not just bibliographic) supporting material. But anything beyond/other than that is silly. I have to include the blank last and unnumbered page, and all the front-matter to get to Harvard University Press' own official tally of 696 pages (okay, that is truly every last and unprinted page in the book ...), and nothing gets me to 700 or beyond. Or 671. What's so odd is how few of the page-totals make any sense at all.
       Anyway, don't let yourself be put off by .... however many pages there are -- it's surprisingly/agreeably readable.