Questions of the history of the book have long attracted the attention of researchers. The well-known role of the book, which is the most important factor in the development of the country's culture, is a sensitive barometer reflecting the slightest changes in the social movement, an indicator of the spiritual culture of society. However, there are periods of history when the book acquires extremely great importance in the development of not only the spiritual, but also the economic life of the country. Such a period in the history of pre-revolutionary Russia was the era of the Petrovsky reforms.