Lyra's Press -- The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

This will be a Lyra’s Classics title and I hope we will be able to do the pre-order for it sometime in April. I would like the printing process to be completed (or as close to completed as possible) before we do the sale, so the timing will depend on that. I will update you as and when I have more information for you.

As with all Classics titles, there will only be Numbered and Lettered editions. There will be NO Standard edition. The limitation for the Numbered edition will be 250, with 150 being offered to current Lyra’s Classics rights holders first. All 26 copies of the Lettered edition will be offered to current Lyra's Classics rights holders first. After this, any available copies of either edition will be sold by lottery. Everything will work in the same way as the last Classics title (A Christmas Carol).


The original illustrations by William Wallace Denslow are iconic, no doubt. That said, Gregory Manchess' illustrations are gorgeous --

Oh, I do like that art!

I'm perplexed by the flood of YA fine press but I guess the demand is there.

>3 LBShoreBook: I remember reading Wizard of Oz years ago! The Oz books are definitely for children, and are reminiscent of fairy tales. I consider YA to be for teenagers. That said, they are nevertheless iconic American books that have universal appeal, so yeah, I can understand publishing a fine press edition of Wizard of Oz which I'm going to guess will sell out quickly :)

Don't think I'll be purchasing an original any time soon --

>3 LBShoreBook: >4 astropi: I think the popularity of similar works in fine press is enough to demonstrate that it is not, primarily, children or young adults reading these works, and that they appeal to all ages.

It makes for a rather arbitrary categorization regardless of who they were originally written for.

>5 NathanOv: Indeed, very fair point. Wizard of Oz like Winnie-the-Pooh while written for children, has universal appeal.

As a certified Old Fart, I can tell you that Oz and Pooh, along with The Secret Garden & Wind in the Willows, are of great interest to all ages and we OFs enjoy re-reading them from time to time.

In fact, Secret Garden was my late wife's favorite book alongside LotR, and we have several editions of it. She collected them for the illustrations, but did so because it was, indeed, her favorite.

I’m generally a fan of Lyra’s work, but the illustrations aren’t doing it for me this time around. That’s not to say they aren’t extremely well executed and don’t demonstrate a very high level of artistic skill, but they are a bit too realistic and lack the whimsy for which I believe the content calls. These books that we collect are obviously publications for adults (fine press collectors), but I still think that at least the interior design should reflect the story. While The Wizard of Oz is a true classic that can be enjoyed by all ages, there’s no denying that it is a children’s book. The choice of art (and possibly artist) in this case misses the mark for me.

I can point to many other recent fine press examples that I believe are much more successful in delivering an appropriately mature and luxurious product while retaining the child-like artwork aesthetic: Conversation Tree Peter Pan, Hand & Eye Wind in the Willows, Amaranthine Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland…just to name a few.

Because I can’t get past the tonal disconnect between story and illustrations, I think I’ll be passing on this one.

I generally like Gregory Manchess' painting style. While not all eight illustrations released so far quite manage to light my fire, some of them are mighty impressive (e.g., the frontis), so I plan on keeping my Classics rights (unless the price is through the roof, that is). The next title, Doyle's The Lost World, is interesting enough, as well.

I like the illustrations, but don't expect to get the book due to the rights plus lottery system. Fortunately, it's not that important to me, as it would be with another Gaiman.

>8 Nightcrawl: In some ways I wished Lyra had published the original illustrations. Then again, they were going for something new and different and I respect that. The only other fine press edition I'm aware of is the Pennyroyal Press edition which is some $2500+

I love Barry Moser's work, I really do. That said, it's debatable how well it works for the Wizard of Oz, since the Yellow Brick Road, well it's not exactly yellow --


Also, I think his work tends to be the most "realistic" interpretation of Oz, here's Dorothy --


Absolutely masterful work by Moser, as usual! But again, to each their own. The more I examine Manchess' illustrations the more they grow on me. I'm guessing the cover will be amazing, and will have a Yellow Brick Road -- has to be, right?

Isn’t there an interpretation that the Wizard of Oz is about the gold standard. Dorothy wore silver (not ruby) slippers representing the silver standard. The Emerald City represents DC and the color green refers to the color of US paper currency. OZ, or an ounce of gold, is a fraud, thus making the argument that a switch from a silver based currency to one based upon gold is a false panacea.

>13 kdweber: That's curiously compelling, though unless there's documentation stating it outright from the author, it may just be one of those theories that happens to line up elegantly. But it's a nice theory, as long as there isn't something nasty under it, like the Wicked Witch of the West is supposed to be Jewish or the bellhop-attired Winged Monkeys meant to portray menial-employment African Americans.

I've heard that the novels were intended to be a sort of literary equivalent to the original Graham crackers - fortifying but not containing anything strong or unpleasant, and thus ending up a bit bland.

>8 Nightcrawl: Thanks for sharing your opinion and explaining it so well. I do like the art myself, but everyone has different tastes.

>12 astropi:

Thanks for sharing! I love Moser’s work, but Oz is one of the major Pennyroyal publications of which I’m least familiar.

>15 What_What: I’m glad that the general reception seems to be overwhelmingly positive. My opinion is definitely the exception and not the rule…and all for the better because I love Lyra and hope the demand is high for this one!

>13 kdweber: Absolutely, I had heard that long ago. From Wikipedia:
Many decades after its publication, Baum's work gave rise to a number of political interpretations, particularly in regards to the 19th-century Populist movement in the United States. In a 1964 American Quarterly article titled "The Wizard of Oz: Parable on Populism", educator Henry Littlefield posited that the book served an allegory for the late 19th-century bimetallism debate regarding monetary policy. Littlefield's thesis achieved some support but was widely criticized by others. Other political interpretations soon followed. In 1971, historian Richard J. Jensen theorized in The Winning of the Midwest that "Oz" was derived from the common abbreviation for "ounce", used for denoting quantities of gold and silver.

Also from Wikipedia:
Local legend has it that Oz, also known as the Emerald City, was inspired by a prominent castle-like building in the community of Castle Park near Holland, Michigan, where Baum lived during the summer. The yellow brick road was derived from a road at that time paved by yellow bricks, located in Peekskill, New York, where Baum attended the Peekskill Military Academy. Baum scholars often refer to the 1893 Chicago World's Fair (the "White City") as an inspiration for the Emerald City. Other legends suggest that the inspiration came from the Hotel Del Coronado near San Diego, California. Baum was a frequent guest at the hotel and had written several of the Oz books there.In a 1903 interview with The Publishers' Weekly, Baum said that the name "Oz" came from his file cabinet labeled "O–Z".

The usual flipper on the Lyra's boards will be pumping this one up before offering it for sale at some crazy mark up. It looks like a nice treatment of a book that holds little interest for me but there will no doubt be plenty of interest among the shelfie fans.

>19 wooter: Right, that's because there's only two types of people in the world - those who aren't interested, like yourself, and those who're only interested so they can take pretty shelfies.

Lyra's has an Oz update:

This is just an email to give you a little pre-warning: I will be releasing all details about The Wonderful Wizard of Oz early next week.

I will send out another email next week when everything is live on the website. After that, you will be able to view the bindings of both editions as well as read the production details and see prices etc. The website will also detail how the sale of this title will work.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is the next title in the Lyra's Classics imprint and is the follow up to A Christmas Carol.

More detailed information will follow next week but, in brief, the plan is to send out all rights holder emails on Friday the 19th of April. Rights holders will have until Tuesday the 23rd of April to secure their copies.

All other copies will be available by lottery only. The lottery forms for all remaining copies will open on the website on Friday the 26th of April and will be available there until Sunday the 28th of April when the forms close. I will then send out emails to successful applicants on the 29th of April.

In total, there will be 250 copies of the Numbered edition. The first 150 copies (numbers 1-150) are reserved for Lyra’s Classics rights holders. The other 100 copies (numbers 151-250) will be available to anyone else and will not carry rights to the next book.

There will, as always, be 26 copies of the Lettered edition, all of which will be offered to current rights holders first.

There will be at least 100 copies of the Numbered edition available for the lottery, the exact number depending on how many rights holders decide not to purchase their copy. There is a possibility that there might also be a Lettered edition lottery. If so, both lotteries will be held at the same time.

Lottery only - thank goodness I'm not really interested in this book.

Those are beautiful illustrations! I will say, she looks a bit more like Alice in Wonderland than Dorothy, at least in my mind :)
Of course I'm biased because I can not help but think of Judy Garland...

Edit: did a bit of digging --
https://www.reddit.com/r/wizardofoz/comments/tyo7z0/is_dorothys_hair_colour_ever...

W. W. Denslow drew her with reddish-brown hair, and John R. Neill as a blonde. Since Neill drew her in thirty-five books, that's really taken hold with a lot of long-term book fans. But Baum not only never mentions a hair color, he doesn't even mention a skin color. So I don't have a problem with any depiction of Dorothy. One early Japanese translation even shows her as Asian. (I don't recall any of the other authors mentioning hair color, but if it was, it was only in passing.)

Details are up on Lyra’s website. The books look amazing.

Numbered: https://www.lyrasbooks.com/shop/wizard-of-oz/wizard-of-oz-numbered-edition/

Lettered: https://www.lyrasbooks.com/shop/wizard-of-oz/the-wonderful-wizard-of-oz-lettered...

Wow, I have not been paying attention to this one because I don't particularly care about Oz. But that numbered edition is stunning, so I guess I'm entering the lottery now.

Love the design for the numbered edition! I was interested in this work so I'm glad to see this is turning out so well! Crossing my fingers on a lottery win. Not really vibing with the design of the lettered this time around but I hope those who are able to get it enjoy their time with it!

>24 jsg1976: Still on the fence about the lottery, but the few interior samples look nice and I love that numbered slipcase.

Not sure about the big “Oz” on the spine or the cover, but that’s also not a dealbreaker.

>24 jsg1976: Oo, those are gorgeous designs! Love the mixed leathers and the marbling, especially.

>27 CapybaraMan: I LOVE the lettered design! It's beyond my price range, and I'm not in the lottery for that anyway, AND I think it will sell out. But, I do think it's fabulous. The numbered is gorgeous too of course!

This will undoubtedly be one of the "great" Oz books... did anyone but me think that was clever :)

Here are some thoughts on Oz books I have seen over the years:
The original edition from 1900 will always be "the one" -- but obviously unaffordable to mere mortals.

The Pennyroyal Press is magnificent, I love Barry Moser, but as I said previously, I don't think the illustrations (wood engravings) are quite apropos for Oz.

Easton Press produced a 6-volume set -- here is a picture I found on the web --

I really like the covers, I thought they did a fabulous job. It was always a decently pricey set, and it's still pricey but reasonable -- the 6-volume set can be purchased for around $1k. It includes the iconic Denslow illustrations. In many ways, I wish they had published all 14 Oz books, but alas. Interestingly enough they also released the first book as a standalone edition (again with Denslow illustrations), limited to 1900 copies as a DLE.

There was also the "First Edition Library" of the Wizard of Oz published by Charles Winthrope & Sons back in in 2012. It was signed and had a short intro by Robert Baum, who is Frank Baum's great-grandson. It was also cheaply produced (printed and bound in China) and had a terrible dust jacket -- supposedly when all the books were together it had some Emerald City scene on the cover. Anyway, I purchased the first edition and quickly gave it away. Everything about that edition just felt cheap. They also produced a lot of them. I don't know how many, but see below (picture found online) --


I know there have been other editions, and numerous analysis, spinoffs, etc.

>26 astropi: Awesome design. Just have zero interest in the book. Lyra sure does make some beautiful books.

>31 Undergroundman: My thoughts exactly. I'm a rights-holder, but I think I'm going to surrender my rights and pass on this beautifully designed book.

>32 ultrarightist: Even though I don't have rights, I would still be very tempted to buy if I did. Last minute decision for sure. LOL

I think the numbered looks really great; fitting very well into the classics series. So, went ahead and ordered a copy 😊

I'm in agreement with many here. Lovely book but I'll be forfeiting my rights as I have no interest in collecting books I don't intend to read. I was briefly tempted to order just to keep rights in the event they publish a classic that interests me but judging by the selections so far, it doesn't seem likely.

>35 L.Bloom: I think their next classic was already announced - Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Lost World," which is the most interesting of the classics series to me so far.

I was really on the fence with this one but also decided to forfeit my rights. I have no doubt it's the most perfect version of The Wizard of Oz, but as a text it's far enough outside my collecting interest to give me pause. In the end, shelf space and my budget is limited, and buying something now to secure rights for whatever may come later didn't make sense. I wish those who love this book the best of luck in the lottery. You deserve it more than someone like me who got lucky and won rights early on.

>37 mnmcdwl: it's interesting that I had the opposite trajectory. Also have rights. Was ready to let them go. Oz is slightly closer to my collecting interest I suppose (being sort of a modern folklore or fairy tale). But a Lyra's numbered edition all told is basically $1k Canadian. I like the previous two entries, but $1k CAD can buy a lot of book. So the opportunity cost comparison is salient. Would I pay $1k CAD again for Lyra's A Christmas Carol? Probably not. But the design for Oz won me over, so I pulled the trigger.

I can tell you that there will definitely be a lottery for the Lettered edition. We have just ONE copy available!

There will also be 19 Numbered edition copies with rights. So, in total, there will be 119 copies of the Numbered edition available through the lottery (19 WITH rights, 100 WITHOUT rights).

The lottery entry forms for both editions will open on the Numbered and Lettered edition shop pages of our website tomorrow, Thursday the 25th of April, at 12pm midday BST (GMT +1). The forms will be available there until 12pm midday BST on Saturday the 27th of April.

Sounds like it sold well. If you did not get a chance to pre-order it also sounds like you have a very good chance of getting a copy, and about a 16% chance of also scoring rights :)

Anyone win yet?

>40 Inceptic: Too soon I think.

I am a winner!

>42 Maretzo: Congrats!

>42 Maretzo: Awesome :)

I managed to luck into a copy with rights so I'm officially on the train for whatever the next Lyra's Classics release is. The numbered edition is really a beauty so I'm very glad Lady Luck was on my side this round! :)

IIRC The Alchemist is in the Lyra's Books pipeline -- is that for the Classics track of the other track?

Edit: sounds like The Alchemist is not a Classics release, and the next Classic will be The Lost World (see interview: https://www.collectiblebookvault.com/post/minds-of-the-press-vol-5)

>46 jskalitz: The Alchemist is on the regular track, but it sounds like it’s the next publication in that pipeline.

Now sold out --

After a very small second and third wave of winning emails last week, I can confirm that both editions of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz are now completely SOLD OUT.

First and foremost - thank you all SO much for your interest and support. I have been blown away by the overwhelming response to this edition. The sheer number of entries really wasn’t what I expected at all. However, I also understand the disappointment that comes with not being able to secure a copy. Lotteries are great when you win, not so much when you don’t get picked.

Although our rights system ensures that there will always be a good quantity of books available for each title not tied up with rights, the very nature of it being a limited edition means that there may not always be enough of these copies to please everyone. The answer, I suppose, is to make more but I am very hesitant about increasing the limitations beyond their current level. What I am already producing (along with the occasional Lyra’s Press title with a Standard edition) is really at the limit of what I can deal with physically and mentally. My poor health last year taught me to be very conscious of that and these numbers are what I feel comfortable with, for now at least.

The lottery system has been designed to ensure as much fairness as possible in the allocation of available copies. The winners are picked totally at random, multiple entries we find are removed and everyone has an equal chance. As you may know, I have had a couple of nightmare live sales in the past, and I am not a fan of the craziness and bad feeling this can bring about. Or the weeks of extra work it creates for me fixing it. I much prefer the laid-back method of having a lottery form open for a couple of days, and this is how we will continue to do it. It’s not for everyone, but it does work. Even if we don’t sell out through a lottery, it removes that first mad dash that seems to incapacitate the website during a live sale.

I’m so sorry if you didn’t get a copy this time but please remember that I am only trying to sell these books in the fairest and most stress-free way possible for everyone.

Once again, thank you so very much for being interested in this book, it means so much. I speak for myself, Marcelo and Greg when I say that we are thrilled that we sold out at a time when so many other beautiful books are being released into the world. Thank you!

Rich

>48 astropi:

"multiple entries we find"

Unfortunately, there are quite a few ways around that for some people.

I can imagine this is more relaxing for him, but another author rightly wrote that a lottery like this can never be really fair, and I quite agree. Fortunately, it doesn't matter to me here. It will if he makes another Gaiman.

>49 SF-72: a lottery like this can never be really fair

I would ask what constitutes "fair"? You're absolutely right, there will always be people trying to game the system. Not sure that makes the lottery "unfair".

>50 astropi:

If something can be rigged, and these lotteries definitely can be, how can it be fair?

>51 SF-72: "rigged" and "gamed" are two different things. Rigged means that it's biased from the start and purposely done so. For example, someone that rigs a poker game has an advantage over the other players. Gamed means people can try and find ways to circumvent the rules thereby cheat. The lottery is not rigged. People may be able to game it, or at least try, but that does not mean they succeed. After all, Rich did remove multiple entries. Furthermore, since it's not a first-come first-served situation, people can not use bots to help them, and in the past, that has always been the biggest way people game limited editions by using bots.

>49 SF-72: He explained clearly that he's doing it this way to protect his mental health, and I think we should respect that. No point complaining about it every time Lyra's release a book.

I’m personally in favour of lotteries but wish that you had to submit card details which would be immediately billed if successful. It might be one thing to ask friends or family to enter their names, physical addresses and email addresses but if you are actually taking card details then I think some might think twice about this and so it would reduce the chance of multiple entries

>54 DMulvee: I was thinking as well about how to help weed out spurious account entries and agree that this is a good step in at least minimising them. Really determined folks would still find ways to make multiple entries, but it would raise the bar to filter out a lot of casual multiples.

>52 astropi: Technically speaking every lottery conducted in the privacy of one's apartment without any independent oversight has the potential to be rigged regardless of what they say. That is why state lottery drawings are independently overseen and televised.

It is another matter to cast doubt over Rich's integrity, which I have no reason to suspect.

As to gaming the system, this can easily be done if one wants to; however, based on recent resale values of some of the Lyra's books on the secondary market, I see little incentive to do so. Time will tell whether these books with significantly appreciate in value.

Rich himself has issued a disguised warning by saying that he and the gang are "thrilled that they sold out at a time when so many other beautiful books are being released into the world." With so many presses churning out various takes on oftentimes same literary works and prices at $300-800 for the lowest tier volumes, one has to have an annual budget of $1000-4000 to purchase only one book per quarter.

With rising costs of rent, utilities, car and car insurance etc. leaving folks with less disposable income and concurrently inflation affecting book makers on the material and labors fronts leading to higher prices, fine press enthusiasm is bound to peter out, perhaps sooner than we all think. There will be blood in the fight over the wallet share of fine press enthusiasts (readers/collectors/shelf decorators)...

>56 EPsonNY: I wouldn't be that pessimistic. There's another argument that the market has already bottomed-out and might bounce back soon, as inflation falls. And honestly, I think that most people who could afford to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on a book several years ago can still do so today.

>52 astropi:

I see what you mean, I'm not a native speaker and didn't make that difference. So yes, it can definitely be gamed by people trying to make multiple entries, but isn't rigged by Lyra's. I never suspected them, this was really a language error. Thank you for correcting it.

>53 Levin40:

I know that it reached the point where it created too much stress for someone with problems in that area after a certain point. But that was due to the fact that for the first few books he sold, he never managed to get a properly functioning website. That included purchase buttons just not showing up for everyone (the reason I couldn't buy a copy with rights to Stardust) and continued with checkout seemingly not working and people making more than one purchase as a result for Coraline. (Also an issue I faced and that really stressed me out, to put it mildly. I'm sure it was worse for him having to sort it all out.) It isn't a normal issue that you have pretty much everything that can go wrong do so with an online shop. I would have appreciated it if that issue had been taken care of to avoid all that stress, instead it was rather worse the second time around. I vaguely remember people on here mentioning that there were options and offering their help. I don't know how all that came about, but I can understand that this is the result. I find it highly problematic, all the more so since when I started buying from them there was no warning whatsoever that you had better get your hands on a copy with rights because otherwise you'd never have a realistic chance of getting another book from them directly. I don't believe in luck in lotteries - I've never won, doing it the proper way with just one entry, and have heard of too many people getting around the system one way or another, including one bragging on here about getting multiple copies of Coraline. So yes, I do complain. We are allowed to state our own opinions on here. I'm aware it won't help, though. And don't get me wrong, I'm sorry for Rich and wish he didn't have these issues. But his 'solution' to that when it comes to sales leads back to the website stuff above, which a lot of online sellers do get a handle on. It can be done.

>54 DMulvee:

Yes, that would probably help even things out a bit. It's also one of the reasons I think letting people just try and buy as opposed to lotteries has a higher degree of fairness. It's a lot less likely that people will sit in front of a computer at a specific time and stress themselves out to buy something for you, with the risk of you ending up with more than one copy you might not want or be able to pay for, than people being willing to enter their email for you in a lottery. And you yourself can't use multiple emails and addresses in such a situation where it's all about reacting quickly either. Again, I know I won't change this, but I do find it frustrating. I definitely prefer Areté's approach. Ironically, I would have rights there if they worked like that, and am rushing through purchases to get what I want since they're keeping things open. lol

>58 SF-72: I made my post because I know we have this exact same discussion literally every time Lyra's release a book. I know you've found it frustrating but, well, it's been years now, and I don't think making the same complaint every time is helping anyone. Maybe it's time to let it go? As has been discussed many, many times no system is completely perfect or fair, neither the lottery nor online selling. You yourself highlight the problems he had with online selling and why he decided on the lottery instead. And even if the website was fixed and worked perfectly, it's still not fair: it's not fair on those with slower internet connections, or whose banks demands an extra security check during those crucial seconds, or who live in the wrong time zones, or who have other commitments they can't escape from at T0. You've made your point (many times) and I honestly don't think it's fair to continually criticize someone who has been very open about why he made the decision he has (to protect his sanity) and who is clearly doing his best to 'ensure as much fairness as possible' (his words above).

>59 Levin40: Well stated. I agree completely. To your point, what system or schema is 100% fair? What is bulletproof against rigging or gaming? Nothing. Each publisher has the right to set up its own schema. The only thing beyond the pale is fraud.

>59 Levin40:

I respect your opinion, how about you respect mine? You're basically telling me to get off these threads with my opinion, which bothers you, and that's not okay for me. To give an example: I don't enjoy a lot of the complaints in the Folio Society threads, which turn up repeatedly and have done so for years, but I'd never tell people they should stop posting those. They feel how they feel and have as much right to state their opinions as I have stating mine, which are often coming from the opposite end of the spectrum. (In that case, I'm positive about certain trends there, others aren't. And that's okay in my book.)

By the way, you can always block my posts if you don't want to see them.

> Wow, talking with strangers on the internet (sigh...). Pretty sure I didn't say any of that ('get off these threads' etc). I do respect your posts and have absolutely no wish to block you. But I do think you have a 'bee in your bonnet', as we say in English, about Lyra's and their lottery system. I completely respect your opinion and you have the right to state it. I think we're all aware of it now. All I questioned was the need to restate it every time Lyra's release a book. It gets tedious and doesn't achieve anything. And if we're talking about respect, maybe it's time to respect Rich/Lyra's decision and the reason he made it. Anyway, no further posts from me on this subject now.

>59 Levin40: I understand your viewpoint (and find it so frustrating when every Folio thread has ten posts by overseas readers complaining about the currency conversion costs - a legitimate issue, but repeated continually), however book publishers have associations in our minds and these can be difficult to break. They can be positive or negative, but if the first thought on any new publication is frustration about one topic, then this is still a legitimate comment. Over time these feelings should diminish but not always.

I used to support England in cricket and would watch games in person, and was a member of Lancashire cricket club. When Kevin Pietersen was dropped from the team I was outraged. I renounced my county membership (the person on the phone sounded baffled!) and switched to support associate cricket instead. Over a decade later and I am still fuming. Would I vent vitriol in the comments should The Telegraph try to run a soft story on Alastair Cook or Andrew Strauss? Absolutely! Sometimes, repeating oneself can still make you feel better and so be worthwhile

>56 EPsonNY: With rising costs of rent, utilities, car and car insurance etc. leaving folks with less disposable income and concurrently inflation affecting book makers on the material and labors fronts leading to higher prices, fine press enthusiasm is bound to peter out, perhaps sooner than we all think.

I certainly agree that costs are rising, but the economy has always and will continue to fluctuate. At least here in the USA, the economy is overall quite strong and people have disposal income. I will however disagree with your statement that "fine press enthusiasm is bound to peter out" -- I don't know why that would be? In fact, I personally can not think of a point in my life where fine press enthusiasm has been higher! Lyra's Press, Suntup Press, Curious King, Conversation Tree Press, Thornwillow, and others are all contributing to a thriving renaissance in fine press books. Truly exciting times to be a bibliophile :)

>64 astropi: At least here in the USA, the economy is overall quite strong and people have disposal income.

I would dispute that statement, but this is not the place for it. Suffice it to say that SOME people have disposable income, no matter what the economy does. 'Twas always thus.

>65 Glacierman: Hear! hear!

>64 astropi: Covid ushered in a period of "irrational exuberance" in fine press enthusiasm, which has taken it to a whole new level of interest.

Firstly, this unprecedented level of interest resulted in fine press book prices getting out of control and quite a lot of them becoming difficult or near impossible to obtain to long-term enthusiasts competing against a flood of new collectors, "investors," Instagram-selfie crowd with deep pockets. Price correction is currently under way with a lot of prices reverting back to mean.

Secondly, the explosion of interest in fine press books and corresponding price increases shepherded quite a few new fine press publishers onto the market to everybody's delight. However, with inflation at play and still making its way through in some cases, global supply markets severely disrupted or upended in some cases, increasing rents and labor costs, the aforementioned publishers have no choice but to keep increasing prices as there is only that much they can do to innovate their way out of highers costs and make a living.

Some are rehashing out of copyright titles or publish identical titles at almost the same time. More adventurous titles will not appeal to the investor/selfie crowd/shelf decorator types. Once some of them loose interest and some others cannot afford quarterly splurges, books may start piling up at some publishers' warehouses. This will translate into lower limitations and higher prices still; perhaps coupled with unique marketing strategies to retain existing and attract new customers. Eventually for some, inability to generate cash flows will mean shutting their doors down unless they have an inheritance/angel investor/savings etc. to fall back on to fund their passion.

Out of curiosity, astropi, oftentimes is sounds like you are simply window shopping admiring this or that BUT MUST BE LETTERPRESS, but how many fine press books have you actually purchased recently?

>63 DMulvee: england can be lunatic fun these days, you should get back in the habit ;)

>64 astropi: Well said. It's easy to mistake our own arc of interests for a social pattern at large. As mechanisation in culture grows, there is typically a corresponding counter-interest in the handmade. Besides, books are such a fundamental element of human culture that I don't see them going away any time soon. If anything, it is the more recent forms of entertainment that are increasingly evanescent. You have to jump through hoops to run a videogame from five decades ago, but can easily still enjoy a text written five centuries ago.

>66 EPsonNY: Firstly, this unprecedented level of interest resulted in fine press book prices getting out of control and quite a lot of them becoming difficult or near impossible to obtain

What is "out of control" and "near impossible to obtain"? I just missed out on The House of the Borderland Deluxe because I was at work, which sucks for me!! (aside: if anyone has a deluxe copy on order I will be happy to trade/purchase it if you have changed your mind). However, there was nothing "impossible" about it, just bad luck and timing for me. Some authors are more popular than others, but I don't see how that's different now than pre-covid. I remember many times pre-covid when popular books were sold out in minutes, so nothing new under the Sun.

More adventurous titles will not appeal to the investor/selfie crowd/shelf decorator types.

Why not? The Blade Itself, which I would call an "adventurous title", sold out super quickly and has greatly appreciated in value in a very short amount of time.

Again, I disagree with your statement of "fine press enthusiasm is bound to peter out" -- I just don't see that happening any time soon. If anything, there is more enthusiasm for fine press work today than since any time I remember. In particular I would say works that are more modern and historically overlooked by traditional fine press publishers are generating a great deal of excitement and we all benefit from it :)

>69 astropi: The Blade Itself, which I would call an "adventurous title"

I'm pretty sure >66 EPsonNY: meant "adventurous" in the artistic and business sense, from the perspective of the publisher, not like adventure fiction.

Abercrombie (whose work I am quite fond of) is the epitome of an unadventurous title choice: mainstream genre fantasy with a huge nerd fanbase.

>69 astropi: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Like I said - window shopping or pretend shopping. Pre-order dates were announced well in advance for anybody determined to get a book to make proper arrangements.

Out of control and near impossible terms I used were mostly in regards to secondary market fine press titles. Prices have increased - Stardust at 135GBP vs. Coraline at 200GBP. Throw in increases in shipping charges and resulting increases in taxes and you can clearly see 40-50% higher prices in a span of a couple or last few years. With just four books a year these increases add up to perhaps a price of another book.

If you are in a pinch and need to raise funds, Conversation Tree Press's Standard State Faun sold recently for slightly more than $150 plus shipping and before seller fees, which means about $130 net on a $225 buy...

Century Press's Crocodile has languished a few weeks on eBay to finally sell for $89 plus shipping with publisher's price of $149 plus shipping. I thought about buying it, but it is only a short story with four illustrations. By the way, CP's initial Great Gatsby offering was $72 plus postage, which was unsustainable for letterpress in the long term, but their prices essentially doubled since...

I will double down on "fine press enthusiasm is bound to peter out" mostly among those who have jumped on the bandwagon at the beginning and during the pandemic. Long-term it is an expensive hobby even when you limit yourself to 4 books a year. Enthusiasm is one thing and will remain, but to open one's wallet is another...

Conversation Tree Press has in my opinion an amazing edition of Flower's for Algernon. Standard State of only 250 copies is still open for pre-orders. I have ordered a copy the first day. I have skipped Treasure Island, because I believe it was conceived as a large format art book and though I love the illustrations, I am fine with my Wyeth and Steadman copies. McKean is one of my favorite artists; however, The House on the Borderland does not intrigue me and I cannot justify spending $300 for a book that will end up sitting unread on my shelf for likely years...

>71 EPsonNY: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Like I said - window shopping or pretend shopping.

Not sure what you're implying?