Category Archives: Europe

I Want A Flybrary Too

Posted on July 18, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Dubbed  “flybraries” ,small libraries filled with books for children, is a new project from EasyJet on its European flights. Over 60,000 books in 7 different languages ​​are available free on board their aircraft. EasyJet has partnered with publisher HarperCollins for the initiative which … Continue reading →

Posted in Air Travel, Books, Europe, Libraries, Tourism | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The Shape of Our World

Posted on July 17, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

The fascinating infographic below explores how the view of our planet has evolved over the last 1,800 years. When most of us picture a world map, we likely still envision some variation of the 16th century Mercator projection even though … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, History, Maps | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Reading Cities

Posted on July 14, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

When I am planning my travels, I always spend time reading about the destinations. Those of you who follow TBTP know that I am devoted to old school travel guidebooks, but I also do my due diligence by reading both … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Books, Europe, Maps, Museums, Tourism, Travel Writing, USA, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Watching Operation Night Watch

Posted on July 13, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Rembrandt’s famous painting The Night Watch at Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum is not my favorite work from the master, or my favorite painting in the great institution. However, every time that I’m in Amsterdam somehow I find myself in front of the iconic work … Continue reading →

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This Is The End(papers)

Posted on July 12, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Those of us who are true book geeks suffer from an obsessive fascination with all aspects of books. We don’t just like reading books, or collecting books, we love the physicality of books. Some of us are into book covers. … Continue reading →

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Literary Houses

Posted on July 10, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

I have been a huge fan of British artist Su Blackwell’s  work for many years. Many of her projects involve recycling books into works of art. I recently stumbled across a wonderful older project of her’s called “Literary Houses.” Blackwell … Continue reading →

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The Original Swiss Trip

Posted on July 5, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Brooklyn-based comic artist Brian Blomerth has released his debut graphic novel titled Bicycle Day. The technicolor confection recounts the infamous day in April 1943 when Swiss chemist Albert Hoffmann dropped the first dose of LSD. After injesting 250 micrograms of lysergic acid … Continue reading →

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It’s A Big World After All

Posted on July 4, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

In 1587, Italian cartographer Urbano Monte created the largest known map of Earth. His map consists of 60 panels that were designed to be assembled into a single planisphere —a circular map that rotates about a central axis— measuring 10 … Continue reading →

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Whence Italics

Posted on June 27, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

These two books were printed at the historic Aldine Press in Venice. Founded by Aldus Manutius in 1495, it was among the most prominent and successful printing houses of the time. These works date from the early 1500s and feature … Continue reading →

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So much to read

Posted on June 23, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Les Cousins 1959, director Claude Chabrol  

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