A book is divided into three sections: preparatory content (or front matter), major text, and end matter (or back matter). Pages of a book are labeled "recto" for the right-hand page and "verso" for the left-hand page. These terms come from the printing process where sheets of paper were hand-sorted after they were printed to produce a uniform look to the book.
Preparatory content includes copyright information, acknowledgments, forewords, introductions, etc. Major text consists of the chapters of the book. End matter includes tables of contents, indexes, glossaries, lists of figures and sources, and appendices. Some books have more than one type of end matter; for example, an index is found at the end of most books because it is useful for finding entries in the body of the work itself. A book with an appendix is able to include additional material that does not fit into the other categories.
Books can also be divided into paragraphs or even lines of text, depending on how large the typeface is. This is especially important when comparing manuscripts where some words or lines may be missing from one version or another.
Manuscripts are written by hand and therefore each copy is unique. Even if two manuscripts are copied from the same print edition, they will still differ since no two printers' typesetting programs will produce exactly the same document.
A book's anatomy is separated into two parts: the front matter and the back matter. As you might expect, the front matter comes before the body of work or the tale. As a result, the back matter comes after the work or tale. Not every manuscript will have all of these components. Some books have no title page or other indication of their contents except their own name.
The front matter includes such items as the title page, the copyright page, the acknowledgments page, and the foreword (if any). The title page tells us what book we are reading; it is also where we find out information about the author and how we can contact them. This page is usually but not always included with the first page of text. It may be the only page in some books if there is no copyright notice or other indication of authorship.
The back matter includes such items as the appendix, the bibliography, the index, and the coversheet. The appendix is a collection of material that doesn't fit into another category. For example, an appendix of illustrations would include photos, drawings, and posters used in the book. An appendix of sources would include articles, books, websites, etc. that were used in researching your topic. Appendices are often included at the end of a book. However, they can also be placed anywhere within the book depending on what needs to be referenced later.
The phrases RECTO and verso are used in book publishing to indicate which side of a printed page of two-sided text should be read first. The RECTO side of the page is the right-hand page in languages where books are read from left to right. The VERSO side is the left-hand page in languages where books are read from right to left.
In English books, this distinction does not usually matter since we read both sides of the page simultaneously. However, for languages that read from left to right, turning the page before reading all the way to the end of the book means missing important information. Thus, publishers place important information on the RECTO side of the page so that readers will take time to read it.
People often wonder which side of the paper money is the RECTO side. It doesn't matter because both sides have the same information. But some foreign countries do print special recto/verso versions of their bills. These versions contain additional security features or other information only available on that side of the note.
In libraries, there is a lot of talk about copyright and fair use. Fair use is a legal concept that allows for limited use of copyrighted material without having to obtain permission from its owner. Common examples include quotation of short passages in reviews or scholarly works; using small portions of a song in a film; or quoting the title of an work in an advertisement.
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