A Book of Books FROM THE PUBLISHER
A visual tribute to the printed word, this ode to books will be irresistible to anyone who treasures the touch of fine paper and the special allure of a clothbound volume. A Book of Books showcases Abelardo Morell's elegant black and-white photographs of unusual books - an impossibly large dictionary, illustrated volumes whose characters appear to leap off the page, and water-damaged books that take on sculptural form. Nicholson Baker has written extensively about books and libraries. His preface is the ideal complement to Morell's photographs in this beautifully produced book lover's book. Bookish quotations from literary sources including Hawthorne, Borges, Cocteau, and others accompany the photographs throughout.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
It's hard to imagine that innocent objects like a pile of dictionaries or the first page of A Tale of Two Cities would inspire sensual musings, but Morell's lush photographs of books do just that. With these 52 8" 10" duotones, Morell, who teaches photography at the Massachusetts College of Art, chronicles literary matter in its physical state at all stages of its existence: intense closeups of ink and paper fibers; sunlight falling in dots on a blank book's open pages; Escher-like details of impossibly angled landscape engravings; thick, water damaged volumes whose pages seem to undulate. "You're in the book," writes Baker, author of Vox and Double Fold: Libraries and the Assault on Paper. Book-related quotations from Nathaniel Hawthorne, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Francis Bacon and others appear in large type on facing pages, filling out this splendid portrait of the book's life. (Oct. 12) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Library Journal
In a superb display of talent, renowned photographer Morell provides a magical experience for the bibliophile and soothing engagement for photography enthusiasts. Morell transforms everyday objects-book spines, pages, illustrations, typeface, and shelves-into memorable conduits of our long connection with reading and the book. This invigorating work reaffirms the importance of books and serves as a reminder of their fragile but enduring presence in our history and psyche. Nicholson Baker, author of the controversial Double Fold: Libraries and the Assault on Paper, contributes a fitting preface; an engaging and beautifully written piece, it reveals the writer's sincere love for books. However, the stars of the volume are, undeniably, the books on which Morell focuses his camera. If they could talk, those books would thank him for rediscovering them and adding, through his genius, such grace and sentiment to the essence of their existence on the pages of yet another book. Recommended for public and academic libraries.-Edward K. Owusu-Ansah, CUNY Coll. of Staten Island Lib. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
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