THE OLD SCHOOL PRESS

An occasional newsletter about books and events 
April 2018
 

In this newsletter . . .

a note about data protection

a new ephemeron: Cold Comfort Library

a past favourite: A Long Story

copies of out-of-print titles available

   

The General Data Protection Regulation

and what we are doing about it

comes into force on 25 May 2018


From 25 May 2018 a stronger regulation will be in force to protect individuals' data - the GDPR. It requires us, in particular, to ask for your explicit consent to keep your data for declared purposes.

So, in a future email we'll be asking you to say whether or not you are content for us to keep your name and email address for the purpose of sending you these emails and generally keeping in touch.

We hope you'll stay with us, but either way please do respond to the email. Thanks!

 
 

we've just printed
 Cold Comfort Library

An ephemeral item

Copies available now


Every now and then one comes across a short text that takes one's fancy and merits a small printing. I came across this extract about working conditions at the Bodleian Library in Oxford from a book of 1888, and Cold Comfort Library is the result.


This short text on eight pages is hand-set in 14pt Fournier and printed on an antique laid paper, probably French, part of the stock I rescued from St Hugh's Charterhouse monastery print-shop some years ago. Forty copies have Fabriano wrappers and sixty have Canson wrappers - it's always good to use up those small stocks of paper! £12 a copy for postage to the UK. £10 plus postage at cost elsewhere.

 
 

the story of
 A Long Story

Two illustrious names in one book: Andrew Motion and Simon Brett

Copies available now


There's a story behind our publication A Long Story.

We were on the M4 listening to the radio - Radio 3 perhaps. The then Poet Laureate Andrew Motion was reading an essay on Bob Dylan. As someone who grew up in the 60s and for whom Dylan (pre-electric of course) was important, I wrote to Motion to ask if he would let me print his essay. Alas that was not to be.


However, he did have an extended, four-part poem that I could print and publish. And thus began work on A Long Story.

I like italics for poetry (though we rarely publish poetry now) and Fournier italic has a pleasant reading quality even in quantity, a property that few italics possess. So the choice of type was made quickly and this was to be the second major use of a substantial fount that I had earlier had cast.

It was time too for some wood-engravings and I approached Simon Brett who had engraved a fine set of small engravings for our second book, The Fruits of Jane Austen (see below), and also for Punting to Islip. His images for both had been so well reflective of the subject matter that he was first stop for A Long Story. Each of the four parts prompted from him a tall engraving that scanned from the near to the far, echoing the dimension of time in Motion's words.

The engravings were printed on a substantial Magnani which I damped before printing. To complete the assemblage, a delicious hand-made paper from the Larroque mill covered the boards, and teh title is debossed in gold on the front copper.

We still have copies available - a modest £72 for four splendid engravings by Simon Brett and a fine work by Andrew Motion.

   


we have
  Copies of some O/P books for sale

First come first served

 


If you are interested in any of the following please email us and/or call +44 (0)1297 24689. Postage and packing will be extra at cost. You can read details of each of the titles HERE.

  • Winter Light: one of the lettered copies in very good condition - £400.

  • The Fruits of Jane Austen: our second book, printed in Caslon Old Face on Fabriano Artistico, in near fine condition - £70.

  • Venice Visited: a copy from our original edition, printed in Caslon Old Face on Sheepstor HMP and with pochoir by John Thornton, in near fine condition - £150.

  • Venice Approached: a copy of our first book, set in 24pt Bembo italic; the black wrapper is not in great shape but the internals are very good - £30. I can send photos if useful.

click to step to the next newsletter

click to see an index of our newsletters

Copyright © Martyn Ould 2018