Rock The Nation (1986)

Rock The Nation
Black by Popular Demand
Students of the Genesis School, Inc.
Kansas City, Kansas
(c)1986

This staple-bound chapbook was sent to me a by poet-friend of mine who lives in the Midwest. It came from a library purge. Genesis school was/is an early charter school which presented an alternative educational experience. The poets in this collection are from the school. The wrap-around image on the cover is from a mural painted in the school.

The Hopi Indians by Ruth Deette Simpson (1971)

The Hopi Indians
Ruth Deette Simpson
Southwest Museum
Los Angeles, CA
(c)1971

This is an informative 91 page chapbook with B&W photos and illustrations throughout. 3rd printing. Handsome, handy and nicely done. This easily could have been a book with a spine - that's an argument that I have made before - but in this case, no matter. It's a great little find. I suppose ideal for the intrepid adventurer keen on walking the lands where the Hopi once lived.

After Robinson Has Gone by Kathleen Rooney (2010)

After Robinson Has Gone
Kathleen Rooney
Greying Ghost Press
Salem, MA
(c)2010

Staple-bound chapbook. Cover a movie poster folded and stapled, black plastic under-cover. I have received a packet from Greying Ghost in the past when purchasing one of their items. They are ephemeral-driven. Kitsch or classic, not sure. Intentionally historic or merely whiffing the past, not sure. Publishing good poetry, sometimes. These people are hopefully enjoying the heck out of their efforts, that much as the barest minimum. And they must be - every copy has a different movie poster cover!

#35 of 100 printed. This is less of a review than an acknowledgment. If you are familiar with Kathleen's work, you ought to get a copy of this chapbook!

christmas comes early

i "won" a lot of books on ebay the other day. Treasure trove! I will be going through it for weeks!

thanks for tagging along on my meandering journey through the byways & foot paths of chapbook publishing and some of the incredible finds along the way. It's been more than fun.


stevenallenmay

Each H by Samuel Amadon (2009)

Various chapbooks by Samuel Amadon
Each H (2009) Ugly Duckling Presse
Spy Poem (2008) Projective Industries
Goodnight Lung (2006) Octopus Books

Beware! I am taking over and revising completely the 2011 rather pathetic review I did for Each H even though I very much like the work of UDP. I got to bring UDP to Robin's Bookstore in Philadelphia back in the day. They were doing a "anti-reading" event and it was great, really, for the 3 people there who saw it. It was a Friday night in Philly, who does a weird poetry event in Philly? I mean, 'attends'.

I didn't have a lot positive to say about Amadon's effort with UDP or their effort for him. A bit of a dud compared to many of the other things they have published. It felt rushed to me. BUT - I did learn the name Samuel Amadon because of it so that was worth it. No, I mean, not that night in Philly but a few years later when UDP really started cranking out their marvelous chapbooks.

Then I got Spy Poem which came from a Santa Claus in Upstate New York who dropped three bags of treasure on me. I had not heard of this press either but "Hey - remember Samuel Amadon 'Each H'? Have to read that." Well, it misappeared before I read it but I can read this one. And I do, and it's good. Okay, on the cover is a very small Star of David and a slightly larger Sickle and Hammer from the USSR but when reading this I see a rapper with hand gestures rocking these words. They were meant for the stage first, has to be. Pauses to breathe (and think) then another wind up and BOOM!

Back into the vaults with you, a keeper!

And finally, a double surprise for me was realizing that one of the 8 books I got from Octopus Books was in fact written by Samuel Amadon. A definite thread flows from his work. All 3 books are like from the same larger manuscript.

Faster Than the Limiteds by Thomas R. Bullard (1991)

Faster Than the Limiteds
The Chicago-New York Electric Air Line Railroads and Its Subsidiaries
Thomas R Bullard
Privately Printed
Oak Park, IL
(c)1991


This is an oversized chapbook of 84 pages. It's staple bound, thus the distinction. The author of this book has done a marvelous job detailing the subject with graphs, B&W photos and illustrations of some of the electric train cars used. It's really a wonderful book for those train buffs who have an interest in this field. Bullard has one enthralled with the subject from the beginning. It is stuffed with facts and pictures, a joy indeed for the people reading it.

"Spermy": A Story For Little Children
Lois B. Chesebrough
The Marine Historical Association, Inc.
Mystic, CT
(c) 1950

This is a darling little kids chapbooks about sperm whales. Nice illustrations. A very cute chapbook. Published in 1950, printed at Mystic Seaport, near the dawn of the mimeograph era. Yet this is not a cheaply made chapbook. It's been lovingly put together. And for kids who LOVE whales, this is a handsome little book indeed.

Rope as Witness by Melissa Tuckey (2007)

Rope as Witness
Melissa Tuckey
Pudding House Publications
Columbus, OH
(c)2007

Tuckey was part of the group of Anti-Iraq & Afghanistan war movement in Washington DC that led to the formation of Split This Rock festival. Her work appeared in D.C. Poets Against the War(2004) and she served as Events Coordinator at the original Split This Rock festival in 2008. This collection is a great starting point to her work.

At the same time, I won't hide my disgust with anything published by Pudding House Publications. What they do is simply not my cup of tea. Blah! SAVE A FOREST!

Your Introduction to Sovereign Hill, printed in Australia

Your Introduction to Sovereign Hill
Guide to the Goldmining Township
Ballarat Historical Park Association
Ballarat, Victoria, Australia
(c)1987

This very handsome 56 page booklet is a historical account of the town and the region at the time of the goldmining operations that occurred there in the 1850's. It's a beautiful booklet. Many color and B&W plates. If one were to be visiting that part of Australia, and was at all curious about the local history : this is definitely the ticket!

Poet sending gifts (2)

A poet/friend from the midwest sent me a packet of chapbooks that he managed to save from a potential purging. Two of the items deal with the same theme so I decided to speak about them as a group:

Beginnings Endings and Somewhere-in-Between
Judy Clouston
Potpourri Publications
Praire Village, Kansas
(c)1992

Plays by Young Artists
An Anthology
Young Artist Wordshops
De Pere, Wisconsin
(c)1988


Each of these chapbooks show the bravery of those dealing with disabilities as well as the commitment of the entities that published the work. I have a lot of respect for everyone involved.

3 chapbooks from Kamini Press

Somehow the publisher of Kamini Press found out about me and began sending me review copies of his handsome chapbooks. Kamini Press splits its time between Sweden and an island in Greece. They have been around since 2007, I believe, and have published an array of interesting British and American poets. I like the look of each one with its unique watercolor cover image. The most recent that I have received are:

Battle Scars
John Bennet
(c)2010

The Poet Tree
t. kilgore splake
(c)2010

Out of the Woods into the Sun
Guy Beining
(c)2011

for complete information about the Press go to: Kamini Press

Igitur by Stephane Mallarme translated by Jack Hirschman (1974)

A poet-friend of mine was purging some chapbooks recently and sent me two. They sat on a pile of things I needed to read, review, catalog, post for sale: something had to be done with this pile and yet it kept growing! Anyway, these chapbooks were in the pile and I was watching a film on Netflix called “The Cool School” about the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles and the artists shown there. The narrator mentioned an incident that took place in 1964 where the vice police arrested an artist whose work was on display at the Fergus, a Wallace Berman and – wait a minute, I thought, wait a cottonpickin’ minute – I frantically went through my pile and there it was :

Igitur
Stephane Mallarme
Translated into English by Jack Hirschman
With cover by W. Berman
Printed at the Press of the Pegacycle Lady
Los Angeles, CA
©1974

W. Berman! Wallace Berman! The father of west coast assemblage art! The bloke arrested in 1964 and found guilty! I have something with his name on it and a cover image he created! Limited edition! #343 of 500 printed! 21 pages, hand-sewn. Mallarme, Hirschman, Berman … all I need is the name of the printer and I will have a complete set!

some bio info on Jack Hirschman

some bio info on Wallace Berman

some bibliography info on The Press of the Pegacycle Lady

2 items picked up at Occupy Baltimore

as it happened, in the midst of the political upheaval now spreading across the country, that I was in Baltimore overnight last week at a hotel within walking distance to the Occupy Baltimore site. There I found some FREE items. I donated some cash to the cause and took :

Queers Read This
published anonymously by queers
July, 2009


The Straight Mind & One Is Not Born a Woman
Monique Wittig
Pink and Black Distro


These both represent the anonymous nature of what I like to call Kinko's publishing. Publishing done on the most cheap. Nameless, faceless, mass produced information that would otherwise be overlooked or suppressed. The fact that Gay politics is being tied to the Occupy Wall Street movement has more to do with the multiple grievances that have not been given voice since the financial collapse of 2007.

Both of the "broadsides" are reprints of previously published material. The Monique Wittig one in particular is important in that introduces a new generation of Americans to her vital work.

two versions of "The Reach" by Robie Liscomb

The Reach
Robie Liscomb
Pentagram Press
Wisconsin
©1979

The Reach
Fathom Press
©1977

Two version of the same poem, I happened to track down Robie Liscomb over the summer and from one of our correspondence comes this description of the versions, “At first I assumed that the version of The Reach that you have is the summer 1979 printing in Japanese paper wrappers containing just the one poem. This was printed by Michael Tarachow of Pentagram Press in Markesan, WI, as a going-away present for me, as my wife and I were about to leave Chicago to live in Taiwan.

I wrote the poem on Jan. 1, 1977, in Chicago and it was first published in what I remember as the first piece published by my Fathom Press (in collaboration with Richard Lin Bodien) in spring of 1977. That little book, identified as “journal II sp 77/baolin books/fathom press” contained poems by Richard, me and Stephen Field. Actually, now that I think of it, your email probably references THIS chapbook rather than the later printing of the poem.

I got to know Richard as he was the husband of Carol Lin Bodien who has a graduate student in Indian art history at the University of Chicago, where my wife, Kathlyn, was a grad student in Chinese art history. I was starting my press and had just purchased a little Kelsey tabletop press and some type and Richard and I wanted to collaborate on a printing project. Stephen Field was a friend of Richard’s as was Sarah Burnham Mertz, whose limited-edition etching was used as the wraparound cover.

The typeface is Century Old Style, the only type I had on-hand, as it came with the press, which I bought from the daughter of a printer whose father gave it to her as a present. The text paper is something called Tweedweave that we found at a local paper supplier’s warehouse. I’m not sure whose awkward calligraphy is reproduced. All in all, I consider this to be a rather pedestrian effort, except for the etching, which I quite like.”

And that’s about all one has to say about that – seek and collect! These are incredible chapbooks!

coincidence is the better part of mystery

Noting these two chapbooks: hope you see the same pattern on cover as I have.

The Reach
Robie Liscomb
Petagram Press
Wisconsin
(c)1979

A Calendar
Robert Creeley
Morning Coffee Chapbook Five
West Branch, Iowa
(c)1984


So, my curiosity was piqued when I looked at these books - one was buried in a lovely stack of books sent to me by Robie Liscomb and the other, a recent find on Ebay, one of the few chapbooks produced during the transition from Toothpaste Press to Coffee House Press. The Reach came first. It's just interesting to me that both publishers used the identical cover stock. One horizontal and the other diagonal.

2 Poems by Jeffrey Wright (1982)

2 Poems by Jeffrey C Wright
Drawings by Yvonne Jacquette
The Toothpaste Press
West Branch, Iowa
(c)1982

Very handsome chapbook with ink drawings by Yvonne Jacquette. Signed by author and illustrator. #73 of 375 printed. Designed and printed by Allan Kornblum.

from an email exchange I had with Allan Kornblum, founder of Toothpaste Press & Coffee House Press, "I’m also particularly fond of 2: Poems by Jeffrey Wright and Drawings by Yvonne Jacquette. I finished the latter just before a book fair. The ink coverage was so intense, that we actually baked the pages in the oven at 200 degrees for an hour, to help dry the ink so we could sew them up and bring them to the fair." Beautifully done, rare and worth the search!

Here By Choice Agnetha Falk (1980)

Here by Choice
Agnetha Falk
Trigram Press
West Yorkshire, England
(c) 1980

It was nearly a year ago now that I discovered Asa Benveniste and his work. I almost launched into posting info about him and his Press again here when I Google-checked myself. Instead, I will write about a book that I came across sometime later, this chapbook published by Trigram Press! Agnetha Falk was Asa's partner and this book came out in 1980. I got it from a gentleman in England, where Asa lived most of his adult life and where he is buried.

This was Agnetha's first published collection of poems. The image on the front cover comes from a drawing by Ms. Falk. 24 pages. Staple-bound. Ms. Falk originally came from Stockholm. From the publisher Henry Denander I learned that Agnetha was also married to Jack Hirschman. He had met them in Stockholm at a reading once.

Almost Perfect Forms by Michael Stewart (2009)

Almost Perfect Forms
Michael Stewart
Dossier Series
Ugly Ducking Presse
Brooklyn, NY
(c)2009

The Dossier Series is a relatively new direction for UDP to venture into. This particular effort looks like a dossier in fact. Visually interesting. However, I think the effort is wasted on the subject matter. The word "and" as constellations? really? patterns on the page or in the sky or ???? Not sure.

The work here might have made its way into Stewart 2011 book The Hieroglyphics published by Mud Luscious Press. I can't rightly say. Best to check it out yourself

Annick Press, Ltd. Willowdale, Ontario, CANADA

Henry and the Cow Problem
Iona Whishaw & Chum McLeod
Annick Press
Willowdale, Ontario, Canada
(c)1995

Jonathan Cleaned Up-The He Heard A Sound
Robert Munsch & Michael Martchenko
Annick Press

(c)2002

The Paper Bag Princesss
Robert Munsch & Michael Martchenko
Annick Press

(c)2003


I found these three mini booklets in the bottom of a bag of books that had been donated to the local library. Wonderful little kids books. 3 1/2 X 3 1/2. Fully colored illustrations. All of them were in their multiple reprintings. Great little booklets.

Somewhere Music, Somehow Song (1981)

Somewhere Music, Somehow Song
Michael Tarachow
The Fathom Press
Chicago, IL
(c)1981

A few months ago I won a lot of small press books on Ebay and one of the items was by Robie Liscomb. It was published by Fathom Press. So, I sought out and found Robie Liscomb and he gave me a taste of the history of Fathom Press and shortly after indulged me greatly with a fantastic packet of work by Fathom Press which Liscomb was intimately involved with. Among the items sent to me was this fantastic little chapbook by Michael Tarachow.

Beautifully made using a letterpress in February 1981, this book was done by Tarachow and Liscomb using handmade paper and images of pressed plants from around "the house". Money from NEA was used in the making of this chapbook and I must say it was money well spent. The backstory involving the participants, their mutually interwoven Presses, and their histories will be told in greater detail as I go through the treasure trove of chapbooks received from Liscomb.

Handmade green endsheets. Unpaginated. One of 240 made. It's an incredible find.