Unsun Karuta
by Keizaburo Yamaguchi (1928-2012)
(Ashiya, Japan: Tekisui Art Museum at the Yamaguchi Culture Hall, 1967). Japanese Miniature Book. 3 9/16 x 2 11/16 inches. [ii], 35, [1 blank] pp. Text in Japanese, 8 text figures, 13 full page black-and-white illustrations, 3 folding plates printed with brick-red ink on Japanese-style paper; text clean, unmarked. Textured white paper over boards, printed gold-paper spine and front cover labels, illustrated end-papers; binding square and tight, smudge on front cover. Comes in a paste-paper-covered slip case with a printed paper... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
QuintSequences
by Kitty Maryatt, et al
[Claremont, CA]: Scripps College Press, 1989. Oblong 4to. 9 3/4 x 9 1/4 inches. Unpaginated. 5 separate accordion-fold text blocks created by the 5 students (Alexandra Chappell, Anne Marie D'Agostino, Jane Park Wells, Julie Trei, and Lusky Chandra) attached to the case with magnets, each text block with a variety of typefaces, and illustrations created with linoleum block and acrylic gel; text clean, unmarked. Two colors of blue book cloth over boards, printed paper front cover label, magnetic closures at the... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
The Auto-biography of Luke Hansard, written in 1817
by Luke Hansard (1752-1828)
Oblong 4to. 7 5/8 x 8 3/4 inches. (160) pp. Half-title, title page printed in red and black inks with a lion and unicorn vignette, section heads printed in red, color portrait of Luke Hansard tipped-in, 19 woodcut illustrations of various sizes throughout the text, appendices, bibliography, list of subscribers, index,and prospectus with SIGNED woodcut print by John Lawrence enclosed in pocket on the rear paste-down; text clean, unmarked. Red cloth spine, patterned paper with the John Lawrence illustrations over... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Sixty Over Thirty
by Kitty Maryatt
[Claremont, CA]: Scripps College Press, 2016. 4to 11 x 8 1/2 inches. [iv], (xvi), 255, [1] pp. Illustrated with color photographs throughout; text clean, unmarked. Color printed wraps, perfect bound; binding square and tight. LKB121-001. Fine. SECOND PRINTING, LIMITED to 100 copies. A special feature of the second printing is a 49-minute video DVD contains the documentary "Thinking Out Loud: Making Books at the Scripps College Press." The DVD features the books Ruminations and Good Data / Bad Data produced the the... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Le Streghette
by Miroslav Zahradka (b. 1931)
Verona: Plain Wrapper Press, 1972. Portfolio. The work consists of 7 paper folders (title page, colophon and 5 poems each poem with a linocut illustration). The folders measure approximately 7 3/4 x 8 5/8 inches. The portfolio measures 7 7/8 x 8 15/16 inches. The sheets in this portfolio are printed on C. M. Fabriano paper that was hand tinted by the printer and the artist; text clean, unmarked. The portfolio is essentially a chemise with fore-edge silk-ribbon ties, the boards... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Ode Sung at San Francisco, October 29, 1850
by Mrs. E. M. Willis (Elizabeth Maria Bonney Wills) (d. 1892)
[Los Angeles, CA]: The Press of Muir Dawson, 1947. 4to. 9 3/8 x 8 inches. Unpaginated. [8] pp. Foreword by Glen Dawson; text clean, unmarked. Printed wrappers, stitched; binding square and tight, wrappers with a variety of wear, like a bumped top corner, but still a nice exemplar of a scarce item. Pencil notation in the gutter at the last page of the text block reads: "1948 gift of the printer." SCARCE. BMR423-001. Good. FIRST EDITION, thus. Sung to the tune Star... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Flight Through the Forest
by Paul Landacre (1893-1963)
[Los Angeles, CA: Paul Landacre, 1932, 1933]. Electrotyped wood engraving reused on a holiday greeting card. Image: 2 1/16 x 6 1/16 inches. Greeting Card is a Bifold, 8 3/16 x 6 1/4 inches. Corner-mounted so no adhesive is used to hold the bifold to the stiff paper board that measures 16 x 13 inches; small stain at the top margin of the bifold. The stiff sheet of board is hinge mounted to the bottom board, this upper board with a... Read More
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Hope?
by Peter Thomas (b. 1954); Donna Thomas (b. 1957); Susan Lowdermilk (b. 1963); and Andie Trams (b. 1952)
Santa Cruz, CA, etc.: Peter and Donna Thomas, et al, 2022. 12 artists books, described below, are housed in a wooden reliquary. The reliquary measures 13 x 8.5 x 7 inches. Books, made of handmade and commercial paper using woodcut, linoleum cut, pressure print, photogram, letterpress, digital printing, watercolor, gouache, and ink painting; other materials include brass, wood, wildfire charcoal and ash, as described below. SIGNED by the 4 artists on the colophon. TPK1123-001. Fine.LIMITED EDITION of 32 copies, this... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Grant Dahlstrom, Master Printer
by Philip S Brown (d. 1995), et al
Los Angeles, CA: The New Ampersand Press, 1977. 8vo. 9 5/8 x 6 5/8 inches. [viii], 36, [2] pp. Half-title, black-and-white photographic frontispiece portrait of Dahlstrom tipped-in, title page printed in red and black inks with ampersand vignette; text clean, unmarked. Black cloth spine, patterned paper over boards, printed paper spine label; binding square and tight, some light spotting to cloth at spine. 782-229-003. Very Good. LIMITED EDITION of 300 copies printed by Vance Gerry at the Weatherbird Press in Linotype Janson... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
“A Bird’s Eye View of The Whittington Press”
by John Randle
GERRY, Vance (1929-2005). "Los Angeles Printers: Some Recent Books About Them," In: Matrix, Number 7, Winter 1987, pp. 93-97. WITH: RITCHIE, Ward (1906-1996). "A Medley of Printers Past," pp. 83-92. WITH: RANDLE, John. "A Bird's Eye View of The Whittington Press," pp. 164-166. Manor Farm, Andoversford, Glouchestershire: The Whittington Press, 1987. 4to. 11 1/4 x 7 3/4 inches. [vi], (168) pp. Gerry's article lists 11 recent publications about Los Angeles printers, and 4 books in progress with bibliographical descriptions and comments upon the... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Seven Aspects of Solitude
by Richard-Gabriel Rummonds (b. 1931), compiler
(Cottondale, AL: Plain Wrapper Press, 1988). 4to. 10 3/8 x 7 1/2 inches. Unpaginated. [16] pp. "Chi Sono" [who am I] is printed in gold ink on page [13]. Vertically ribbed printed wrappers, stitched, printed dust-jacket of the same paper. Includes the change of address card and letter dated November 1988, this copy of the letter with an ANS from Gabriel Rummonds to collector Ben Jones; these two pieces are called for in Fantasies and Hard Knocks. GIL123-005. Fine. LIMITED EDITION of... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Jane Austen
by Richard Aldington (1892-1962)
Pasadena, CA: The Ampersand Press, 1948. 8vo. 8 7/8 x 5 3/4 inches. [iv], 16 pp. Rose ornament on title page and head of text, black-and-white portrait of Jane Austen; text clean, unmarked. Black cloth, printed paper front cover label; binding square and tight, no dust-jacket. Bookplate of Grant Dahlstrom/The Castle Press mounted on front free end-paper, although the paste has relaxed from the bookplate which is now loose. II921-002. Very Good. FIRST EDITION. Richard Aldington was an English writer and... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Auld Lang Syne
by Robert Burns (1759-1796)
Vienna: Offizin am Wolfersberg, 2021. Oblong Miniature Book. 2 1/4 x 3 inches. Unpaginated. [34] pp. Frontispiece water-color illustration, text in English and German with title page printed in red and black inks, 3 water-color illustrations; text clean, unmarked. Limp vellum binding made without glue, made from a hand-written eighteenth-century vellum document with tongue and slot closures with slots on both sides of the covers, stitched spine with a small bead pull, all edges painted and gilt, housed in a paste-paper-covered... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Steps to the River
by Roland Gant (1919-1993)
4to. 10 5/8 x 7 3/4 inches. Unpaginated. [40] pp. Color frontispiece, title page printed in green and black inks, Introduction by John Randle, Preface by Roland Gant, text printed in olive green and black inks, 8 engravings printed in black ink throughout; text clean, unmarked. Green cloth spine, patterned paper over boards, printed paper spine label, top edge stained green, green end-papers, clear acetate dust-jacket; binding square and tight. SIGNED by Roland Gant and Howard Phipps on the colophon.... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
A Visit with Jim Rimmer & A Checklist of Books Published by His Pie Tree Press & Type Foundry
by Rollin Milroy, printer, Will Reuter, introduction
[Vancouver, British Columbia]: Heavenly Monkey, 2023. Folio. 12 1/8 x 8 1/8 inches. (28) pp. Half-title Jim Rimmer quote printed within a red border created from Rimmer type ornaments, tipped-in frontispiece multi-color linocut initialed by Jim Rimmer, title page printed in red and black inks with vignette built from Rimmer ornaments, text also printed in red and black inks, multi-color linocut of kingfisher SIGNED by Rimmer tipped-onto copyright page, tailpieces, specimen sheet of Duensing Titling types designed by Rimmer, six additional... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Canticle of the Sun
by Saint Francis of Assisi (1181-1226)
Small Pamphlet bound into vellum covers. 7 x 5 1/8 inches. Unpaginated. [10] pp. Title page printed with 8 [moon?] phase illustrations and the title mirrored in black and gilt, text illustrated with 2 double page illustrations highlighted in gilt; text clean, unmarked. Non-adhesive full flexible vellum binding, titled in gilt on front cover, housed in a black cloth clam-shell box with gilt-titled spine label; binding square and tight. INSCRIBED by Carol Blinn on the colophon, with prospectus and 2... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Greetings, 1962-1963
by Dawson's Book Shop
Los Angeles, CA: Dawson's Book Shop, 1963. Pamphlet. 4 1/4 x 3 1/8 inches. [ii], (9) pp. Title page printed in red and black inks, with Japanese characters in red; text clean, unmarked. Paste-paper wraps with printed paper front cover label, stitched; binding square and tight. AMRB723-001. Fine. FIRST EDITION, designed, hand-set, hand-printed, and bound by Muir Dawson. Holiday and Season's greetings printed by Muir Dawson for friends of Dawson's Book Shop throughout the world, printed in English, French, Japanese, and German.... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Bagatelles
by Tessie Jones (1886-1967)
Paris: (Maurice Darantiere), 1926. Small 4to. 8 7/8 x 6 1/2 inches. (64) pp. Half-title, 11 color pochoir head-pieces to 11 literary pieces with 8 smaller pochoir tail-pieces of flowers; text clean, unmarked. Plain stiff-wrappers with a fold-over jacket with a pochoir illustration of a bouquet of flowers, clear mylar jacket; binding square and tight, original jacket rubbed. Laid-in is Miss Tessie Jones' calling card with ms. note and dated Christmas 1926 and a 3-page ALS from Miss Jones on 2305... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Twenty-five Years of the Weather Bird Press
by Vance Gerry (1929-2005)
[Pasadena, CA]: The Weather Bird Press, 1993. 8vo. 10 1/4 x 6 3/4 inches. [Un-paginated]. [44] pp. [including the colophon and the last blank]. Half-title, title page printed in terra cotta and black inks, including a woodcut cityscape vignette, 13 illustrations in a variety of media including woodcuts and linocuts and a couple of which are sample title pages some color, 4 samples of various media included patterned papers and a color illustration from a miniature book, 2 plates - 1... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Some Fragments for C. R. H.
by Victor Karl Hammer (1881-1967)
Small 8vo. 8 1/4 x 5 inches. [ii], (92) pp. Headings printed in red ink, errata on the colophon; text clean, unmarked. Brown decorative paper over boards, wrap-around label with printed front cover and spine titling, with two dust-jackets, one on cream-colored printed Japanese paper with title "Pieces for an Artist's Testament (1966-1967)" and a second with plain light green laid paper, all of which is now covered in a clear acetate jacket; binding square and tight. Laid-in is a... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Nothing to Wear
by William Howard Allen Butler (1825-1902)
Fullerton, CA: Lorson's Books & Prints, 1982. First Edition, thus. Hardcover. Very Good. Miniature Book. 2 13/16 x 2 1/4 inches. [viii], (34) pp. Title page within a mirror shaped border printed in maroon ink, 2 Vance Gerry illustrations; text clean, un-marked. Black cloth spine, printed paper over boards, spine titled in mauve ink; binding square and tight, spine faded, minor shelf wear. LPB1019-002. Very Good. "This was a poem about this poor girl who didn't have enough to... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Pocket Knives
by William Murray Cheney (1907-2002)
Napa, CA: Gordon Williams, 1983. 12mo. 5 5/8 x 4 3/8 inches. vi, 60, [4] pp. Half-title, 24 figures; text clean, unmarked. Gilt-stamped brown cloth; binding square and tight, minor rubbing, light foxing to top edge. EE516-278. Very Good. SECOND EDITION, corrected. Originally issued in 1964 as A Treatise on Pocket Knives (150 copies). The first dissertation on the topic of pocket knives. Cheney issued a revised and expanded second edition of his Treatise in 1968 (about 100 copies). This edition contains... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books
Arguments for Inconciseness with Instances of the Disadvantages of Brevity
by William Murray Cheney (1907-2002)
Los Angeles, CA: Wm. M. Cheney, 1954. 12mo. 6 3/4 x 4 3/8 inches. 25 pp. Title page printed in brick-red and black inks, 3 decorations in red on title page, brick-red initial, 2 brick-red woodcut illustrations; text clean, unmarked. Parchment paper over boards, printed in brick-red ink; binding square and tight, toned, foot of spine lightly bumped. SCARCE. EE516-279. Very Good. FIRST EDITION. Cheney's essay on rhetoric and literary style is filled with his characteristic tongue-in-cheek humor. The second illustration on... Read More
Offered by John Howell for Books