Category Archives: Books

Every Book Is A Surprise

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

The Monkey’s Paw is Toronto’s self-described “most idiosyncratic secondhand bookshop”. So it’s not surprising that owner Stephen Fowler commissioned the creation of the Biblio-mat random book dispenser. The automat for books arbitrarily metes out improbably diverse titles that would normally … Continue reading →

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Book This Hotel

Posted on November 15, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

Open for just over six months, the very cool B2 Boutique Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland is rapidly becoming an aspirational lodging destination for traveling bibliophiles. Situated in the former 19th century Hürlimann Brewery, this “Hotel with a bookmark” has managed … Continue reading →

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First Book

Posted on November 7, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

First Book, a nonprofit organization that promotes reading among children of low-income families, has opened a relief fund to provide books to schools and families impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Every $2.50 donation will provide a new book to a child and … Continue reading →

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There and Back Again

Posted on November 4, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

Air New Zealand —the official airline of Middle Earth (really)—recently released a new safety video. Titled An Unexpected Briefing , the video was produced in conjunction with WETA Workshop, which created the special effects for Lord of the Rings and … Continue reading →

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Happy Halloween

Posted on October 31, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

One of the first true horror films that I saw as a child was F.W. Murnau‘s 1922 silent vampire flic Nosferatu. When I was a little older and I finally read Bram Stoker’s classic Dracula, I realized that the Murnau’s … Continue reading →

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Is Book Art Blasphemy

Posted on October 30, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

I admire the cut-out book collages of Alexander Korzer-Robinson, but still cringe a little at the evisceration of antiquarian books. He says of this work: “By using pre-existing media as a starting point, certain boundaries are set by the material, which … Continue reading →

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Bibliomania

Posted on October 29, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

Rosalie Osman is a freelance animator based in Melbourne, Australia. She describes her film Bibliomania as: A twisted fairytale about a young man obsessed with the acquisition of books to the detriment of all else. Having inherited his father’s library … Continue reading →

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Every Dot On The Map

Posted on October 21, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

“Every dot on a map interests me.” “unless the sun inside you is burning your gut, don’t do it.” Samizdat is here. Sometimes we all want to run away and live in cave.

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Pleasures of a good bookshop

Posted on October 20, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

Waterstone’s, the last large bookstore chain standing in the UK, is launching a clever print ad campaign to encourage bookshop browsing. The ads are set to run in the London Underground, in national newspapers, online and in outdoor locations. It … Continue reading →

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Or, the Whale

Posted on October 19, 2012 by Brian D. Butler

Yesterday, Google treated us to a neat Google Doodle to celebrate the 161st anniversary of the publication of Moby Dick, or, the whale, the iconic American novel by Herman Melville. If you have yet to meet the challenge of the … Continue reading →

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