Key Takeaways
A book speaks in two voices
A slim paperback can tell a private story on the cover and a public story in its fine print.
The cover invites the senses
A bold confession links desire, health, creativity, and time, and it sets the mood for the pages that follow.
The barcode is not decoration
An ISBN is a global tool. It helps shops, libraries, and readers find the exact book and the exact edition.
Credits reveal a wide creative family
A single volume can carry poems, paintings, translations, and permissions from many places and many years.
A small Dutch lesson fits the theme
Reading is also a skill of small parts: short words, clear order, and a sense of when a phrase feels natural.
Story & Details
What this piece is about
In December 2025, the focus is a well-used paperback edition of Aphrodite by Isabel Allende, a book that mixes appetite and intimacy with art, recipes, and literary fragments. The small details printed around it—edition notes, credits, and codes—show how modern books travel through culture and commerce.
The author behind the title
Isabel Allende was born on August 2, 1942, in Lima, Peru (South America). She became known as a Chilean American writer, with a long career that crosses genres and readers across borders. [4]
The back-cover confession
The back cover carries a short, striking statement in which the speaker looks back with regret. The regret is not only about missed food, but also about missed love. The voice blames vanity, unfinished tasks, and strict moral habits. It then turns direct: sexuality is described as part of good health, a spark for creativity, and a piece of the soul’s path. The final line lands like a quiet shock—this truth took thirty years to learn.
The quiet machinery: edition, size, and the ISBN
This paperback is labeled as a third edition, printed in 2012 in Argentina (South America). It lists 336 pages and a compact size of 19 by 13 centimeters. The ISBN is 978-987-566-523-1, printed beside a barcode that lets scanners read the number fast and with fewer errors.
An ISBN is a structured identifier. It is designed to be unique for a specific book and a specific edition, so the right version can be ordered, sold, and cataloged. The system uses a check digit—simple math that helps catch typing mistakes. [2]
A related idea appears in barcode history: the barcode became a practical bridge between objects and information systems. A widely shared public talk on the subject, centered on David Collins (born February 11, 1936), explains how scanning changed everyday logistics and record-keeping. [1]
A library clue: a classification number
The fine print includes a Dewey-style number, Ch863. It signals that the book belongs with literature, and it points toward a shelf logic that helps libraries keep large collections usable. In the Dewey Decimal Classification, the 800s cover literature and related works about literature. [5]
Credits as a map of culture
The credits read like a passport of influences. Design and production roles are named, along with visual research support. The cover image is identified as a painting titled Flower by Ivan Loubenikoff, linked to a Paris gallery collection in France (Europe), with photography credited to David Allison.
Inside, the permissions list shows how a modern book can gather older voices:
A translation tied to Sir Richard Burton and a publisher in the United States (North America) appears in the acknowledgments, along with a credit line to Charles Fowkes. A poem by Yuko Kawano, edited and translated by Leza Lowitz with collaborators Miyuky Aoyama and Akemi Tomioka, is credited to a 1994 publisher in Berkeley, United States (North America). Several excerpts are credited to Pablo Neruda, including an ode from 1957, another from 1954, and fragments linked to a 1959 love sonnet.
This kind of page teaches an important lesson: a book is not only an author’s text. It is also a legal, artistic, and editorial meeting place where many rights and many hands must align.
Copyright and legal deposit, in plain terms
A standard warning appears: copying all or part of the work is restricted without written permission from rights holders. There is also a note about territorial rights for distribution, and a statement that the book was printed in Argentina (South America), with a legal-deposit reference to a national law number.
For a clear public explanation of that legal framework in Argentina (South America), the World Intellectual Property Organization provides an English record for Law No. 11.723, including materials and updates. [6]
A tiny Dutch phrase lesson
Dutch is built from small building blocks, and many phrases work like clean puzzles.
“ik lees”
Word-by-word: ik = I, lees = read
Natural use: a simple present statement, calm and neutral.
“ik ben aan het lezen”
Word-by-word: ik = I, ben = am, aan het = at the, lezen = reading
Natural use: a present action in progress, often used when reading is happening right now.
“veel leesplezier”
Word-by-word: veel = much, lees = read, plezier = pleasure
Natural use: a friendly wish often seen with books and messages.
Conclusions
A small object, a big network
A paperback can feel intimate, even confessional, and still carry the full weight of modern publishing.
The best kind of fine print
Edition lines, credits, and codes are not filler. They are the map that lets a book move through shops, libraries, and countries with precision.
A practical reader’s habit
Before buying, borrowing, or citing a book, checking the ISBN and the edition line can prevent confusion and save time.
Selected References
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trtuf_iX1lM
[2] https://www.isbn-international.org/content/what-isbn/10
[3] https://isabelallende.com/en/book/aphrodite/summary
[4] https://www.britannica.com/biography/Isabel-Allende
[5] https://www.oclc.org/content/dam/oclc/webdewey/help/800.pdf
[6] https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/legislation/details/21169
Appendix
Aphrodite A title drawn from the Greek goddess associated with love and desire, used here to frame a book about the senses, pleasure, and memory.
Barcode A machine-readable pattern that helps computers identify an item quickly, often used with books to connect the physical copy to its ISBN.
Check digit A final digit calculated from the other digits in an identifier, used to catch common typing or scanning errors.
Copyright A legal protection that controls copying and distribution of creative work, usually managed through rights holders and publishers.
Debolsillo A paperback imprint name printed on the book, signaling a specific publishing line and market positioning.
Dewey Decimal Classification A library classification system that organizes books by numbered subjects, with literature grouped in the 800s.
Edition A labeled version of a book, often tied to a specific print run or release stage, and important for accurate buying, citing, and collecting.
ISBN A standardized number used worldwide to identify a book and a specific edition, supporting supply chains and library cataloging.
Legal deposit A requirement in some countries that publishers provide copies of publications to designated institutions for preservation and record-keeping.
Paperback A soft-cover format designed for portability and wider distribution, often released in large print runs.
Permissions Formal approvals that allow quoted text, images, or translated material to appear in a book under agreed terms.
Translation credit A line that names the translator and related rights, acknowledging that translation is creative work with its own legal standing.
My Diary - Leonardo Cardillo 