Monthly Archives: August 2020

The Narrow Road to the Deep North

Posted on August 10, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

As some readers know, much of my time is generally occupied finding and selling antiquarian travel books. Although I focus mostly on 19th and early 20th century travel guidebooks, I am interested in other travel literature and unrelated genres, as … Continue reading →

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Welkom in Amsterdam 1922

Posted on August 9, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

Utilizing archival footage from Amsterdam’s EYE Museum and artificial intelligence,  digital artist Denis Shiryaev  created the amazing video below based on early 1920s filming in Amsterdam. The colorized images offer a rare glimpse into the city’s life before it became … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Film, History, Tech, Tourism | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Bookshop Noir

Posted on August 8, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

When I stumbled upon the film noir gif below it reminded me what a pivotal role the bookshop Geiger’s Rare Books played in the noir classic. It’s been years since I’ve actually viewed the film, but I got a little … Continue reading →

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Feline Friday

Posted on August 7, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

 

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Vacation in a Box

Posted on August 6, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

Thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, most of us have been forced to postpone our summer vacation plans, but IKEA in Dubai has come up with a clever idea to offer “vacations in a box” to help send customers to far-flung … Continue reading →

Posted in Air Travel, Art, Asia, Europe, Middle East, Tourism | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Not in the Nick of time

Posted on August 5, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

I recently read that there is a prequel to The Great Gatsby scheduled for publication in January 2021 when the copyright expires on F.Scott Fitzgerald’s great American novel. On January 1, 2021, the iconic book enters the public domain in … Continue reading →

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August Everything Is Wrong

Posted on August 4, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

“August” by Mary Oliver Our neighbor, tall and blonde and vigorous, the mother of many children, is sick. We did not know she was sick, but she has come to the fence, walking like a woman who is balancing a … Continue reading →

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Fantastic Fonts

Posted on August 3, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

  As an antiquarian book collector, I’ve always been fascinated by the astonishing variations in fonts and typefaces. These days we are so overwhelmed by the variety of fonts that we see both in print and online that we often … Continue reading →

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The Bookshop Sketch

Posted on August 2, 2020 by Brian D. Butler
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If you want to understand a poem

Posted on August 1, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

h/t Grant Snider  

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