Author Archives: Brian D. Butler

Book Purge Pain

Posted on October 13, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

Every four or five years I attempt a thinning out of my personal library through a merciless book purge. Last year I managed to ruthlessly select about 300 titles and donate the lot to my local library for the annual … Continue reading →

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Literary Revisionism

Posted on October 12, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

 

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Release the kraken

Posted on October 11, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

British street artists Luke Egan and Pete Hamilton—aka Filthy Luker and Pedro Estrellos—visited the historic Philadelphia Navy Yard this week and installed a gigantic inflatable sculpture in an abandoned warehouse on the Delaware River waterfront. The twenty purple, blue , … Continue reading →

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Shakespeare & Co. branches out

Posted on October 10, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

We had some very exciting bookstore news here in Philadelphia with the soft opening of the new Shakespeare & Co. bookshop in the heart of the city. Located in the ritzy Rittenhouse Square neighborhood on Walnut Street, the store occupies the former … Continue reading →

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Cherish Your Book Scorpions

Posted on October 9, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

  As a collector and seller of antiquarian and secondhand books, I often discover the remains of dead book scorpions. The tiny arachnids are actually pseudoscorpions and are the book lover’s friend and mostly unseen companions. Although they are harmless … Continue reading →

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Philadelphia Pulse

Posted on October 8, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

Over the past few years, the once drab plaza around Philadelphia’s magnificent Second Empire-style 19th century City Hall has been transformed into a welcoming gathering place. Last month, the newest component of the Dilworth Park project was launched with the … Continue reading →

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Piles of French Novels

Posted on October 7, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

Vincent Van Gogh Piles of French Novels 1887  

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The Circle of Classified Knowledge

Posted on October 6, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

Those of you who visit TBTP on a regular basis know that I am excessively fond of infographics of all sorts. I am particularly interested in early examples of the form. This wonderful set of graphics was created for a … Continue reading →

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According to Philip Pullman

Posted on October 5, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

Illustrations ©Nathan Gelgud  

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Into The Wild

Posted on October 4, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

The South Africa-based design studio Muti has released a killer series of book cover redesigns for group of iconic novels. I love the fresh typography and the great color palette.

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