&

ampersands i love.

woody allen + marx bros.

= joy in the meaning(lessness) of life

secret kitten

if you see me staring off with a thousand mile stare, this is where i've gone.

visual editions

visual editions (VE) is a brilliant publisher out of the uk founded by anna gerber + britt iverson, two women who were driven to start up VE out of their love of books and their sometimes (mischievous) urge to do things differently.  in doing so, they've broadened the niche for books that tell stories not only with words on the page, but with the visual composition of the book itself.

some might make accusations that this is a gimmicky endeavor, but there's an earnest love of where literature and art intersect that shines through in the execution of each book.  i wholeheartedly don't see gimmick in the work no matter how much excitement it stirs up.

VE has two editions out and two in production.  the first book published is a stunning republication of The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman by laurence sterne with an introduction by satirical novelist, will self. tristram shandy, a book originally published in seven volumes full of expository and visual diversions is now often found in one volume, text only, mass-market editions.  although i've yet to see the original seven volume edition of tristram shandy, i find VE's venture back to a more graphic retelling of the story both arresting and lively.

detail of tristram shandy

this morning, i opened a package that held a copy of VE's second edition, tree of codes by jonathan safran foer.  tree of codes is a novel written within a novel.  foer took his favorite book (the street of crocodiles by bruno schulz) and cut out words to leave behind another, wholly different story.

detail of tree of codes

i was blown away by the sheer beauty and weight of it, despite the amount of negative space each page holds.  trying to get my hands on a copy wasn't easy.  the u.s. rep for VE didn't have any copies, u.s. distributors didn't really carry it, and the copy ordered from england was lost in the mail.  after months of trying on my own, i emailed anna + britt.  although they were sold out of the first printing, they sent me a copy from their personal library.  how could you not love them?

anna + britt of VE

i can't wait to cuddle up with tree of codes, read and fall into the beauty of not only the words, but of the book itself.  VE has two more books in production slated for release this spring.  i'm sure i'm not the only one waiting in anticipation for what comes next.

clem

clem the meerkat only has acorn eyes for you.

it was duggie's birthday weekend, but he's the one that gave the present.

John C. Reilly & Will Ferrell's "Animal Choices" from FODPresents

thanks, dug.

a little secret...

When robert plant looks over his shoulder at 1:29, i like to pretend it's at me.


What?  It was the camera monitor?
Oh, well.  Who can blame him?

the fates will find their way

Back in October, i was lucky to happen upon a galley of The Fates Will Find Their Way by Hannah Pittard.  Although it was just sitting on a shelf in my office, i'm not sure how it made it's way there.   It's cover was lovely and immediately drew me to it.  i felt even more lucky when the story turned out to be better than i hoped... a real score.  If you're looking for a story to draw you in, don't need all your questions answered and like your narrator to be first-person plural, you'll probably dig The Fates Will Find Their Way as much as i did.

The tale of  the missing 16-year-old Nora Lindell, told collectively by the boys who knew and loved her before her disappearance, is heavy with the purity of youth and the deep melancholy of suburban dystopia.  The two make a enticing recipe for the eerie and suspenseful unfolding of Nora Lindell's possible story following the night she disappeared.  

Hannah Pittard has done something quite magical here in using this collective voice and the obsession a town has with this young woman. The obsession absorbs the boys minds as they grow into men, married with children of their own.  The magic is in Pittard's way of drawing us through the multiple possibilities of Nora's fate through this collective voice as if each one is fact; details so rich and often lovingly and tenderly thought up by this collective.  

The boys grow into men who do what they are "supposed" to do.  Most get married, have children, become doctors, and although they expect these things lead to happiness, they end up disillusioned and looking for an escape.  Their obsession with what may have happened to Nora Lindell is such an escape; where they can live vicariously through her and with her, no longer left behind.  The Fates Will Find Their Way, reminiscent of The Virgin Suicides and The Swimmer, is simply a remarkable first novel.   

Here's a fun interview with Pittard with a bookseller at Powell's.

i can't say how excited i am to host an event with her (& Teju Cole, author of Open City) Friday, February 11th, 7pm at the Odyssey Bookshop.  i hope you can make it out.