Lorin Morgan-Richards' handmade "Painstakingly Limited Edition" first edition of his second book of children's short stories. "This book was 100 percent handmade by the author using faux leather & acid-free linen paper" (It was later re-issued in a paperback edition.)
This book of gloomy tales pokes fun at the absurdities of life.
From the publisher:
A Boy Born from Mold and Other Delectable Morsels by Lorin Morgan-Richards contains seven delightfully bleak stories, beginning with Ruin (or Rune proper), who through extraordinary circumstances comes to moldy life in an old battered quilt left in the corner of a basement. Readers should also examine other characters like Zoog, a young vampire, whose intolerance to blood causes bouts of gas and bloating, much to his parents' distaste.
From a 2010 interview with LMR:
'A Boy Born from Mold and Other Delectable Morsels' is my second published book through my small press, A Raven Above Press, which encompasses dark humor short stories with pen and ink illustration. Readers often call my books 'Gothic Fairytales' because they are reminiscent of Victorian Era moral stories.
'A Boy Born from Mold', my title story, reveals a mysterious boy named 'Rune' who lives in a basement, after having been hatched from an old forgotten family quilt. His neighbor upstairs is a lost little girl who seeks knowledge about her family's heritage. The two intersect and the story unravels so to speak.
I find it interesting the symbolism and metaphors that readers pull from this story. Some have thought of it as giving insight into some sort of Pagan beliefs. One commented it was a metaphor for the Celtic Tree of Life. The little girl upstairs represents an above plane while 'Rune' resides in the below or Otherworld, and the remaining between provides the journey towards consciousness of spirit and self interconnected. I will not say if these are accurate or intentional in any way, but obviously, the story itself was meant to fascinate adults as well as children, and like one reviewer mentioned, this story is fundamentally about finding oneself. 'A Boy Born from Mold' is just one of seven delectable morsels in the book.
[You have an interesting, perhaps unique, method of publishing your work.Can you give us a brief idea of the process by which you individually handcraft each volume and the materials you use?]
In making 'A Boy Born from Mold and Other Delectable Morsels', I begin by gathering tools and my materials. After this, I use an Epson printer to make two sided booksheets. Both the booksheets along with the endsheets are folded into fourths and are cut to size. I then measure out and paste down cotton cloth and hinges to the first and last signatures. One by one I sew the signatures together using Irish linen thread, and these are knotted and glued. After I glue the spine, I attach a ribbon and let it dry. I then begin constructing the hardcover case. Last steps are adding the title to the spine with my foil stamp machine, gluing the pages to the case and pressing each book for several hours. Each book is signed and limited in edition to 400 copies. The bookbinding process is hard to measure in time, but once the pages are printed it takes a little over an hour for each book. Interestingly, the sewing is both the most time consuming and therapeutic part of my bookbinding. [Is there any significance in making them limited edition?]In the ancient tradition of making things by hand, each book is interconnected with the author and thus has its own life principles. To further emphasize this, I made each part of a limited edition of 400 copies. However I won't delve into the significance of the number 400.
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