Category Archives: History

Happy St Patrick’s Day

Posted on March 17, 2015 by Brian D. Butler
Posted in Europe, History, Tourism | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Vienna is calling all bibliophiles

Posted on March 12, 2015 by Brian D. Butler

On April 18th, the new Literature Museum of the Austrian National Library will officially open in Vienna. The institution will document the nation’s literature with rare manuscripts, books, letters, photographs, illustrations and related objects. Situated in the heart of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Books, Europe, History, Libraries, Museums, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

It Was Snowing Butterflies

Posted on March 7, 2015 by Brian D. Butler

On its 80th anniversary, Penguin Books has launched Little Black Classics, a series of 80 titles priced at just 80p. The diminutive books include fiction and nonfiction works drawn from Penguin’s Classics list. The covers all sport a striking typographic … Continue reading →

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A book is an object fixed in time

Posted on February 28, 2015 by Brian D. Butler

Over at the Design Observer, librarian/curator/writer Timothy Young offers a damn good list of ten reasons why the printed book still matters. Here’s a stripped down version (see below) of the list. If you’re inclined, check out the fully unexpurgated … Continue reading →

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Animal Farm is still banned in Cuba

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Brian D. Butler

It seems that as long as there have been books governments have been banning them. This infographic from printerinks.co.uk takes the long view on book banning throughout history. via http://www.printerinks.com

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Who Is Eustace Tilley ?

Posted on February 18, 2015 by Brian D. Butler

This month the iconic magazine The New Yorker is celebrating its 90th anniversary. To mark the milestone, the publication is being printed with nine different covers. Popular artists, including Peter Mendelsund, Roz Chast, Carter Goodrich, and Kadir Nelson, have riffed … Continue reading →

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The Traveler’s Eye

Posted on February 15, 2015 by Brian D. Butler

Hand-tinted tourist postcards are just a sample of the delightful items that make up the current exhibition at the Smithsonian’s Arthur M. Sackler Gallery of Asian Art  in Washington, DC.  Titled “The Traveler’s Eye”, the show includes travel souvenirs, maps, photographs, … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Asia, History, Museums, Photography, Tourism, Travel Writing, USA | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Printing Is An Art Form

Posted on January 27, 2015 by Brian D. Butler

London’s Folio Society has been publishing beautifully crafted editions of great literature for nearly seven decades. Each book is a treasure of typography, printing, illustration and binding. They recently produced this wonderful video profile of master printer Stan Lane. If you … Continue reading →

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We Remember

Posted on December 21, 2014 by Brian D. Butler
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The End of an Era

Posted on December 15, 2014 by Brian D. Butler

Yesterday the German rail company Deutsche Bahn ended sleeper train service between Berlin and Paris. Once a mainstay of continental travel, the overnight route ran for nearly eighty years. Demand for the night train, which took 12 hours on the … Continue reading →

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