light7

this is an aperture book from 1971. it's a book/exhibition catalog. aperture was the creation of minor white, ansel adams, dorothea lange and a few others. when i was in university, aperture was spoken of with a reverence usually reserved for holy books. i've come across old editions from time to time and they seem to be getting harder and harder to find. aperture does still publish some fantastic books and a magazine.

this book is a catalog of an exhibition titled, "light 7," or light to the 7th power, that was displayed at MIT's hayden gallery. the title is the them and some wonderful photographers are included: dorothy norman, lotte jacobi, eugene meatyard (one of my favorites), don worth, ansel adams and minor white. all of the photos are black and white and there is also some text and quotes included, which are really interesting. here light is used as metaphor, medium and philosophy rounding out the whole exhibition. wish i could've been there!

light7: an aperture book
photographs from an exhibition on a theme edited by minor white
1971, aperture, inc., new york

love is a special way of feeling

i remember reading joan walsh anglund's books as a kid. i think she is the first illustrator that i really enjoyed, recognized and followed. she is also the origin of my love for hand drawn type. i loved (and still do) how everything is hand done and that there were tiny imperfections in each illustration. an overdrawn line here, shaky lines, uneven lines there...this is what makes her books special to me. also her dedications were hand written with a little drawing meant for just that person. on top of that, they are also super cute and warm and fuzzy and all that.

love is a special way of feeling by joan walsh anglund
1960, harcourt, brace and world, inc., new york

growing up

back on the growing up theme...books with baby animals are abundant and always pleasing! here are some other rand mcnally elf books.

growing up by jean fritz
a rand mcnally elf book, 1962, rand mcnally and co., chicago
illustrated by elizabeth webbe

crossing the bar

i've been collecting antique tennyson books for ages...i was super pleased to find this little book illustrating his poem, crossing the bar. the whole book is lithograph by a small publisher with gold accents and gorgeous illustrations. it's really a lovely little thing and i will gladly add it to my collection.
here is the poem within:

Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea.
But such a tide as moving
seems asleep,
Too full for
sound and foam,
When that which
drew from out
the boundless deep
Turns again home.
Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be
no sadness of farewell,
When I embark;
For tho' from out
our bourne of Time and Place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see
my Pilot face to face
When I have crost the bar.

(how lovely would this be paired with ezra pounds' the river merchant's wife: a letter? ~perhaps my favorite poem of all~)

crossing the bar by alfred lord tennyson
circa 1900, the hayes lithographing co., buffalo, new york
illustrator not credited

the wonderful story of how you were born

i love the cover of this book...how the back looks like the back of the children's heads and the writing is reversed. very clever! this book actually includes the words vagina, penis, and testicles...i almost giggled like a little girl. but truly i was surprised since this book was published in 1959. this is actually a revised edition (it was originally published in 1952). i just figured everything in the '50s was storks and cabbages. the lithograph illustrations are lovely too, and it really is very informative.

the wonderful story of how you were born by sidonie matsner gruenberg
revised edition, 1959, doubleday & company, inc., new york
illustrated by hildegard woodward

there is nothing like a cat

there is nothing like a cat...i can attest to that, having 5 of my own. 2 too many if you ask me, but they are lovely so i can't complain!
anyways, i love the expressions of her illustrations...you can tell she knew cats well...and the endpapers are darling. i'm glad i found this one!

there is nothing like a cat by rosalind welcher
first edition, 1968, panda prints, inc., new york

round up

the new york review of books talks about the lost pleasure of browsing...interesting to ponder, it's the same reason i haven't purchased a kindle...i just love the feel of a good book...via automatism.

the mccune collection is a fantastic collection of rare books including the kelmscott chaucer, a gorgeous version designed by william morris with woodcut illustrations by edward burne-jones...via bibliodyssey.

also via bibliodyssey is the truly lovely victorian blood book...which originally belonged to evelyn waugh. speaking of, have you read the loved one or seen the movie? so good!


luisa frascati by leopoldo lugones on the fantastic a journey round my skull.

book by its cover shares the new moomin book reprinted by drawn & quarterly.

a ton of interesting endpapers on drawger...via cafe cartolina.

book lovers never go to bed alone...a tumblr of people's bookshelves!

artist julianna swaney shares some inspirations on her blog rare bird...illustrations from the brambley hedge.

i've also added some new links to the sidebar:
we heart books * the new york review of books * bees knees reads * nordic voices * the mccune collection * children's illustration *