In the late 15th and mid-16th centuries, publishers in Venice produced a genre of small books called isolarii . The original publications can be thought of as an encyclopedia of islands containing maps along with text descriptions of significant history, maritime information, mythology, and an analysis of the physical geography. Although primarily intended for sailors, isolarii were read by many audiences, including those reading for simple pleasure.

In 2020, Sebastian Clark launched an imprint called isolarii that features pocket-size books intended for the travels of the reader rather than the mariner.

“Month to month, they map the extremes of human knowledge and creative endeavor, assembling the perennial legends and emerging icons—scientists and novelists, philosophers and activists, architects and technologists, from the counterculture to the avant-garde—pioneering new ways of understanding ourselves and the Earth.”

As the publisher details, “The humanism of the past 500 years is dead. Believing man was exceptional, it opened the abyss of extinction. A new approach requires the effort of all those who tear down convention in order to preserve what is meaningful—not just environments, but irrationality, autonomy and joy.”

 isolarri has created a quirky way to produce printed books with minimal material waste. The books literally pocket-sized volumes—the size of a pack of cigarettes— that will fit in the palm of your hand and come with removable jackets.

“We really wanted to screw with scale”, says Sebastian Clark, the co-founder of publishing imprint ISOLARII, which sends out its iPhone-sized books roughly every two months to a global subscriber base. “And to make them as easy to get as possible.”

When Sebastian Clark founded Isolarii in September 2020, he had no publishing experience. Six years later, the publisher has 3,000 subscribers in 50 countries, a catalog of nearly 20 titles, and is now making its move into the traditional trade with a new line of full-sized paperbacks—dubbed Isobacks—and a co-publication deal in the works with Penguin Press.