The second article in a series of publications devoted to the genesis and evolution of theoretical book studies in Russia examines some aspects of the formation of the communication paradigm of the St. Petersburg school of book studies, which is inextricably linked with the research activities of professor M. N. Kufaev. A multi-aspect analysis of one of his program works, "The Book in the Process of Communication", is presented; a number of areas of bibliological research in line with the communication paradigm outlined by the scientist are identified: the theory and history of international book relations, issues of authorial activity in interaction and interdependence with the reader and the reading environment, problems of reading activity as an individual and social phenomenon at the same time, book culture. The author’s conceptual model of the formation of socially shared meanings is proposed, based on a cyclical approach to understanding author and reader activity, presented in the monograph under study.