Making Books Blog

Wish Scroll for the New

2011-09-01T08:10:00.000-07:00

I live buy three calendars—the one where the seasons change on the solstices and equinoxes, the traditional Celtic calendar where the seasons begin at the midpoints between, and the school calendar. After sixteen years of being a student, four years of teaching swimming for the Boston School Department, twenty-plus years of teaching bookmaking, and twenty-three years of kids' education (two six years apart), the year starts in September.

This Wish Scroll (which is based on scrolls from Ethiopia and one of the sixteen projects in Handmade Books For A Healthy Planet) contains wishes for the new. The idea is that if the scroll is worn, the wish will come true. You can make a scroll for yourself or one for someone else.

For directions and a chance to win a copy of my book, Handmade Books For a Healthy Planet,
go to susangaylord.com and leave a comment. While you're there, you might want to subscribe to the blog. Look to the right for information.

Book Arts Tuesday/Herb Book

2011-08-17T12:19:00.000-07:00

The herbs are abundant and fragrant this time of year. While the flowers are modest, the shape, texture, and colors of the leaves bring interest to the garden. This month's project, an index card accordion herbal, focuses on the leaves. The book is currently decorating a side table in the dining room and also can be used to identify herbs in the garden for novice gatherers.

See the complete project at susangaylord.com.

I am in the process of phasing out this blog so please visit susangaylord.com and subscribe if you want to keep posted. And here's an incentive to make the trip soon: there's a giveaway which closes Thursday (8.18.11) at midnight.

Wish Scroll at the Book Nook

2011-08-10T08:51:00.001-07:00

There is something satisfying about planning ahead although it happens most often with expectations from outside myself. I spent an enjoyable hour making a sample and planning the logistics for a Wish Scroll workshop which will be part of the Holiday Open House on Saturday, December 3, at the Book Nook at River's Edge in Ipswich, MA. We'll be making a Wish Scroll for the holidays and I'll be signing Handmade Books For A Healthy Planet which would make a great gift for teachers, parents, and grandparents. Actually for anyone who loves books. The Book Nook, part of the River's Edge Gift Shop, is a cozy and charming and has a good selection of titles. Hope to see you there!

Book Arts Tuesday/Bhutanese-Nepali Folktale Project

2011-08-10T08:29:00.001-07:00

I am thrilled to be working on the Bhutanese Nepali Folktale Project which is part of the The New Hampshire Humanities Council statewide literacy initiative called Connections.The project's goals are: to create a bilingual picture book that supports English language acquisition of new Americans from Bhutan, to preserve a traditional tale in the mother tongue, and to present a story for children from all cultures to read. I was invited to get involved by the Literacy Coordinator, and wonderful writer, Terry Farish.

The project began by recording stories from the community. You can hear all of the stories here. The one that was chosen for the book project was The Pumpkin Husband told by Hari Tiwari (pictured above). The first meeting I attended in Laconia, NH was the one in which the story was chosen. Dal Rai, who is doing the illustrations, was there and left with the assignment to prepare a watercolor of a scene in the story. I took some iphone photos of some traditional fabric with the idea that it might be useful in the page design. In addition to decision making and lively conversation, we were treated to delicious soup and noodles prepared by Ambika Sharma.

My second visit was to an ESOL class where Hari told her story once again in Nepali and it was recorded by consulting folklorist Jo Radner. Dal brought us a watercolor painting and several drawings. I was fascinated to see the power of his drawings on the class. Many of the refugees have only memories of their homeland and his pictures gave them visual reminders of the life they left behind. A picture of an ox in a field with a basket muzzling its mouth sparked a lively discussion of farming and basket weaving.

At home, I scanned in Dal's painting and experimented with a design for the illustrated pages. The background is a scan of the Resho paper from Bhutan that I use in my Spirit Book workshops. The border around Dal's painting is from traditional fabric woven in Bhutan.

As the book will be bilingual, I did some experimenting with the page design for the text pages. I found some Nepali writing online as an image and used it for a test. The English is the standard dummy text used in printing. (You can find out some interesting facts about the origin of here.)

My third visit, last week, to Laconia was another visit to Ambika's where we scanned fabric including her beautiful wedding sari.

It is a privilege to be part of the project. I'll keep you posted on the progress.

Studio Sunday/Shelf 2

2011-08-07T14:55:00.000-07:00

On the left is a stack of tins which contain pennies that I use as weights. I learned this trick in a boxmaking workshop with Barbara Mauriello where I made my first and last clamshell box. I really have a hard time with precision. The tall brushes are rarely used. I use the small cheap painter's brushes (to the right) again recommended by Barbara. And I use glue stick for all my recycled projects. The pink tin contains push pins and the tarnished silver cup (a baby gift for my now 26-year-old) is filled with stones. Scattered around the studio are things from the past, inherited from my parents, like the Hummel figurine.

Book Arts Tuesday/International Dunhuang Project

2011-08-02T14:34:00.001-07:00

The Bookbinding section of the International Dunhuang Project is a wonderful resource. Here is a little bit of background about the project from the website:

Little was known of the remarkable heritage of the Silk Road until explorers and archaeologists of the early twentieth century uncovered the ruins of ancient cities in the desert sands, revealing astonishing sculptures, murals and manuscripts. One of the most notable discoveries was the Buddhist cave library near the oasis town of Dunhuang on the edge of the Gobi desert in western China. The cave had been sealed and hidden at the end of the first millennium AD and only re-discovered in 1900. Forty thousand manuscripts, paintings and printed documents on paper and silk were found in the cave itself. Tens of thousands more items were excavated from other Silk Road archaeological sites. These unique items have fascinating stories to tell of life on this great trade route from 100 BC to AD 1400. Yet most were dispersed to institutions worldwide in the early 1900s, making access difficult.

Rightfully they pride themselves on sharing the book structures of which there are many forms as well as the texts. There are photographs, diagrams, and thorough descriptions and explanations. This is from the section on Stitched binding (xian zhuang).

There are a number of booklets in the Dunhuang collection that have been bound with thread. The most striking aspect of these books is the fact that they appeared at such an early period. The colophons on some of the booklets tell us that they were copied and bound during the Tang dynasty (AD 618-907), some six hundred years before the emergence of mature thread binding books in the Ming. What is also surprising is that there was a whole variety of stitching techniques already being applied. It would be interesting, therefore, to have a look at some of these different techniques in order to understand the nature of this development in bookbinding.

The information is also available as a downloadable pdf. Thanks to Colin Chinnery for the text and Li Yi and Colin Chinnery for the diagrams.

International Dunhuang Project/Bookbinding

Studio Sunday/Circles for the Seasons

2011-07-31T10:05:00.001-07:00

Most of the time the big table is a workspace but occasionally it is where I place things that are leaving the studio. The two Circles for the Seasons, printed on metal, are going off to the Photography Interest Group exhibit at the Newburyport Art Association. They can hang on the wall but do not conform to the NAA's system so they'll be displayed on pedestals instead. I like them both ways. The one on the left started from a photograph of a pussy willow; the one on the right, a lilac.

Summer/Winter Opposite Book

2011-07-25T16:22:00.001-07:00

There are summer days when I wake up and walk outside and glory in the beauty of the season. And then there are days like the ones last week when I throw myself into a snowbank if one materialized. And so was born the idea for a book about winter and summer that celebrates each season. Summer can be read on the glory days of summer and the bitter days of winter and vice versa.

This book is based on the form called dos à dos meaning back to back in French. I used copy paper with writing on one side and had the writing on the inside when I made the first hot dog fold. Two hot dog booklets are glued into a cover that has been folded like a Z. If you've been following the blog, you may already know how to make a hot dog booklet. If not, there are written directions in English and Spanish and a video tutorial.

For the cover, you'll need the front or back panel of a cereal box. The length should be at least 3 times the width of the books.

CREATING THE COVER:

1. Place the cereal box panel so that it is wider than tall. Leaving a small border at the side edge and the bottom, place a booklet at one edge of the panel. If you are doing it with a group, choose right or left so that everyone is doing the same thing.

2. Fold the panel over the booklet and flatten.

3. Turn the cover over so that the booklet is underneath.

4. Flip the panel back so that the fold likes up with the edge of the previously folded section.

5. Trim off any excess cover.

6. Hold the booklet in place, open the folds and trim off the top leaving a small border between the booklet and the cover.

In my Summer Winter Book, I decorated the cover with collage papers before attaching the booklets.

ATTACHING THE BOOKLETS TO THE COVER:
1. Open the top page of the booklet and insert a piece of scrap paper. Cover the surface with a thin coat of glue. Remove the scrap paper and fold it in half.

2. Place the booklet in the cover so that the spine (the side with the single fold) is along the fold of the cover.

3. Open the booklet and smooth to help the glue adhere.

4. Turn the book over and repeat on the other side.

This book has a lot of curriculum applications—contrasting points of view such as the Union and the Confederacy in the Civil War or characters in a book and any debate topic.

View my book on flickr.

Studio Sunday/Blocks of Wood

2011-07-24T10:50:00.001-07:00

One section of the studio is storage for workshop materials. I use blocks of wood when I do Japanese bindings—one block goes under the book to protect the table and the other is used as a hammer. It works well and I think it is a little safer than a hammer. It doesn't hurt quite as much if you miss and hit your finger.

In a workshop, the sets of blocks are shared by two or three kids. Each one gets a sewing kit.

* 1 size 16 tapestry needle (These have a very large eye. They're bigger than one would usually use for bookbinding but they're easier to thread. I purchase them at JoAnn Fabrics in packs of 5.)

* 1 small pencil (for marking the holes)

* 1 nail (to make holes for Japanese bindings)

* 1 push pin (to make holes for pamphlet binding)

* 1 small piece of cardboard about 2"x 3" (to protect the table when making holes for a pamphlet binding)

Celebrate Maudslay/Outdoor Sculpture 2011

2011-07-21T14:48:00.001-07:00

I'm so excited about my piece for this year's Outdoor Sculpture at Maudslay. I will be doing a collaborative, community piece and I hope that you will be part of that community.

The spreading branches of a maple tree along Hedge Drive will be decked with handmade books made by those who love the park and find enjoyment and inspiration there.

How to participate:
Come to Maudslay on Saturday, September 10 from 10 AM to 2 PM. Make a small handmade book and share your memories, thoughts, and feelings about the park. I'll help you make the book (it’s super simple) and there will be waterproof markers for writing and drawing.

Saturday, September 10
from 10 AM to 2 PM

From the parking lot, walk past the Park Headquarters. Enter through the stone gate to Hedge Drive. We’ll be a little ways in on the right.

Rain or Shine

pdf flyer

My book is ready and waiting for the September 10 installation.

Check out the event on facebook and RSVP

Book Arts Tuesday/Asian Books

2011-07-19T13:25:00.001-07:00

Since the beginning of my interest in bookmaking, I have been drawn to the books of Asia. I love the range of materials from paper to palm leaves and the simplicity of the structures. I have a small collection grown from occasional shop purchases and the kindness of traveling friends who have sought out books for me. Although my teaching is very much about books as vehicles for content, I also have a deep love of books as objects. These images are a tribute to that love.

The top image was made from a book that Marie Oedel purchased in Bhutan.

The second from a palm leaf book I purchased in Great Barrington, MA at Barong Imports.

Studio Sunday/Accordion School

2011-07-17T07:39:00.000-07:00

Maybe the reason that the accordion is my favorite book form is the family history of accordion playing. Here is a photo of John Roman's Accordion School Class of 1938 in Linden, NJ. My father is in the back row, the eighth in from the left. Here is something I wrote to accompany a photograph at a memorial display I exhibited at the Newburyport Public Library in 2000.

My father wanted desperately to play the accordion, and to play it well. He worked hard, delivering newspapers first and then working for a peddler, to earn the money to take lessons and buy an instrument. Every week he took the bus to Linden with his accordion for a lesson at John Roman’s Accordion School. He got the first part of his dream, but the second eluded him, and eventually he stopped taking lessons. I still have his accordion with Alfred in sparkling letters. In later years, he would sometimes play for his own pleasure.

I was required to follow the tradition but it didn't go as smoothly. My ability to memorize encouraged my teacher (also in Linden and one of my father's classmates) which led to the requirement of more and more practice. When the expectation grew to an hour and a half a day and my mother got fed up with fighting with me to sit down with the accordion, lessons ended, although not without tears.

I take out my accordion very rarely now (maybe once every ten years) and spend my time with the book version of the instrument.

Book Arts Tuesday/Women Binders in the Late 19th, Early 20th Centuries

2011-07-12T11:43:00.000-07:00

A recent conversation on the Book Arts List led to an exploration of some women binders in the late 18th and early 20th Century. A request from Karen Hanmer for information about book arts in Halifax led to Barbara Kretzmann's post about the Prat sisters of Nova Scotia who ran the Primrose Bindery in NYC. Susan Mills connected us to the virtual archives of Nova Scotia which has a section on the Prat sisters. Here is part of the introduction:

Annie, Minnie and May Prat, adventurous sisters from Wolfville, Nova Scotia, embarked on unusual artistic careers in the United States in the late 1890s. In 1896, Annie, 35, enrolled at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. In 1897, Minnie, 29, moved to New York City to learn bookbinding with Evelyn Nordhoff, who had herself apprenticed in England with noted Arts and Crafts bookbinder, T.J. Cobden-Sanderson. May Rosina, 26, joined Minnie shortly afterward to study decorative leatherwork and bookbinding with Nordhoff.

The sisters had a fascinating circle of friends, centered around the Prat family home in Wolfville. Chief among them were poets Charles G.D. Roberts and his cousin, Bliss Carman, and Charles G.D.'s younger brother, Goodridge, who was engaged to Minnie. In 1892 tragedy struck the Prat family circle. On February 4, a month before Minnie's 24th birthday, Goodridge, 22, died of influenza at the Prat family home. Her father, Samuel, died of the same illness nine days later.

Five years later, Minnie found the courage to go to New York to apprentice with Nordhoff, in a field in which women were still pioneers. Bliss Carman, then living in New York, had arranged for the apprenticeship. Evelyn Nordhoff died unexpectedly in November 1898, at the age of 33, after a short illness. Minnie, May Rosina, and other former students kept her bindery going after her death.

In addition to an illustrated essay, there are images of their artwork, bindings, letters, and this wonderful photograph of May Rosina Prat and Dorothy Cornell operating the book press at Dorothy's book bindery at 'Forest Park' in Ithaca, New York.

I was so fascinated by the three sisters that I did a little more research on women binders in that era and came across a New York Times article Hand Bookbinding Among Women by Minnie J. Reynolds which was published on March 9, 1902. She concludes by saying:

Hand binding is …a part of that wide, recent movement against the machine which demands opportunity for artistic expression in the crafts as well as the high arts.

From the Princeton University Library, Unseen Hands: Women Printers, Binders, and Book Designers.

From Oak Knoll Press—the book Women Bookbinders, 1880-1920 by Marianne Tidcombe about women binders in Britain.

And then there is this fascinating study of unions among women binders published in 1913 by the Russell Sage Foundation.
The bookbinding trade was chosen first for
study because it is one of the most important
trades for women in New York City, and also in
many respects a typical one. As Miss Van Kleeck
explains, it affords employment to every grade
of woman worker from the skilled craftsman who
does artistic binding by hand to the machine
operator, the hand folder, the wrapper, and the
errand girl. The competition in it between out-
going hand processes and incoming machine proc-
esses is incessant. In some branches work is
regular; in others it is highly irregular, overtime
and free days occurring in the same week. Finally,
there is a union in the trade to which some of the
women employes belong; while most of the women
are unorganized and little impressed by the ad-
vantages of organization. Bookbinding in New
York City thus presents in miniature most of the
important problems which confront women wage-
earners.

Studio Sunday/Chinese Scroll

2011-07-10T11:07:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving later this afternoon for New York City so thought I'd take a picture of the scroll I bought at a street stand in Chinatown on a previous trip. It's under the skylight and over the sink at the workshop end of the studio. If anyone can offer a translation, it would be much appreciated.

Virgin Gorda Accordion Book

2011-07-07T13:41:00.001-07:00

When I purchased this box of ginger tea in Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands in March, I knew it would be a box for an accordion book. On this July day with temperatures similar to our days on the island, I made this accordion book for a gift. What a joy to experience our trip—the Baths, the Crawl, Savannah Bay, and especially our little vacation home at Guavaberry Spring Bay— again!

Book Arts Tuesday/Amanda Watson-Will

2011-07-05T14:13:00.001-07:00

As I have mentioned before, the Book Arts List is a terrific resource that has led me to all kinds of book related discoveries on the web. The most recent is the blog of Australian artist Amanda Watson-Will. She made a post on the list about her recent blog posts about her trip to Paris and book arts there. In addition to describing the places she went, she shared some of the books she added to her collection. It is fascinating reading and viewing. Her blog is titled Sharing Studio Secrets and the thoroughness with which she presents her observations and experiences is impressive. Her post on A Safe, Cheap Set-up for Encaustic/Wax is a good example.

Studio Sunday/Standing Desk

2011-07-03T13:06:00.001-07:00

My terrible posture while working on the computer (combined with not enough stretching and exercise) is causing me all sorts of physical problems. One of the recurring ones is shoulder pain. I have knowledge that should help me—Alexander Technique and Qi Gong classes—but once I become engaged with a writing, art or design project, it all goes out the window. My latest attempt is a standing desk which I am optimistic about. Today is Day One and so far it is more comfortable than I expected. I am certainly less stationary and moving more.

Book Arts Tuesday/Abecedarian Gallery

2011-06-28T12:24:00.000-07:00

Today's Book Arts Tuesday is the first of periodic postings of galleries which feature book arts. I am particularly interested in galleries that have a strong web presence in addition to a physical space. I applaud all who have a gallery that is open to the public and requires staffing, paying the rent, curating and mounting exhibits, and all the myriad tasks and expenses that go into making a gallery work. And extra kudos to those who make their exhibits available virtually to those who cannot attend like Alicia Bailey of Abecedarian Gallery.

Located at the north end of the 910 Arts Complex (don't I sound like I have been there which alas I have not) in Denver, CO, Abecedarian Gallery "exhibits and represents artists working across a variety of disciplines with particular focus on contemporary book arts, works on paper, collage and assemblage." The current exhibition, curated by Alicia, is Interactive Artifact. In her statement, she addresses the difficulties and joys of allowing viewers to interact with the work, an issue that book artists are most familiar with.

During my tenure as gallery director of Abecedarian my recognition of the immense appeal of sculptural interactivity in visual artworks has grown, alongside my respect for artists able to create such works. Inviting viewer interaction is a risky business, subjecting the work to wear and tear or damage it mightn’t receive if exhibited in a strictly hands-off environment or cloistered behind closed doors.

For this exhibition I am pleased to have assembled a group of artists willing to have their work viewed interactively. As book artists’ are who I most often work with, and as book artists’ are by nature more willing to have their work viewed interactively (a book after all is a form of interactive sculpture) this exhibit includes artists who often, although not exclusively, work under the umbrella of book arts.

As both practitioner and dealer in the field, I have spent much time (too much perhaps) pondering and debating the definition of artists’ books and exploring various answers to the question what is a book. Engaging as these musings and discussions often are, this exhibition has given me the opportunity to indulge my appreciation for well crafted, exciting, dynamic and kinetic works without regard to how they relate to bookness.

Visit Abecedarian to see this exhibit as well as many others. There is an online catalog for every exhibit as well as print and download versions that can be purchased. And check out the exhibition blog for a closer look. If you are a book artist, take a look at the Opportunities for Artists for news of upcoming shows and submission policies.

Visit susangaylord.com for a wider selection of my postings including the seasons, the garden, nature, and my artwork.

Studio Sunday/Light Box

2011-06-26T10:03:00.001-07:00

I've had this light box for over thirty years. When I was doing a lot of commercial calligraphy, it was a frequent companion. Now it sits tucked in the corner and is taken out occasionally. I used it yesterday for combining a quote from Thoreau with a circle created in Photoshop. After creating the image, I printed it out. I taped a blank piece of paper on top. Using my favorite Pentel brush pen I wrote the quote from Thoreau around the circle created from a photograph of raindrops on leaves of grass. This was preceded by several other attempts so when I didn't like the "y" in my, I wrote another one above and made the correction in Photoshop. I scanned it into the computer and worked from there.

Book Arts Tuesday/DaCosta Hours

2011-06-21T12:10:00.001-07:00

While I don't want to get stuck in medieval times, this week's post is again about illuminated manuscripts. It's the solstice and a time to reflect on the changing of the seasons and the turning of the year. A Book of Hours seems appropriate. The link is to the June page of the DaCosta Hours at the Morgan Library in New York. Created around 1515 in Bruges, Belgium, this little gem is only 6 3/4 x 5 inches (172 x 125 mm. The site allows for detailed viewing. Try it full screen. You can go through the year and see all the pages. And while you're there, check out some of the other offerings from the Morgan. The site is full of treasures.

The DaCosta Hours

Scribble/Color Book

2011-06-21T08:51:00.001-07:00

Here's a fun book for the summer holidays combining two very different but equally enjoyable activities (at least to me)—the loose freedom of scribbling and the calm concentration of coloring.

The complete post, with a giveaway for those who comment, can be found at susangaylord.com.

Boston Bruins Who Am I? Book

2011-06-08T12:19:00.000-07:00

I have joined Boston Globe columnist Brian McGrory on the Bruins bandwagon as they play in the Stanley Cup. You can read his great column, Jumping on the Zamboni, in today's Globe.

I was a huge hockey fan as a teenager but my interest waned when I went to college. It was hard to get my girls dorm mates to watch hockey on the shared TV. Plus the league had doubled in size a few years before and I had trouble adjusting. Growing up in New Jersey, I was a Rangers fan. My parents owned a luncheonette/corner store with my aunt and uncle. We sold magazines and the rule was that if I read them very carefully, I could bring home magazines and then return them. I read two hockey magazines a month. With only six teams in the league and two magazines a month, I knew the players well. In choosing my favorite Ranger, I went for the best looking one—Rod Gilbert who was also an excellent player. And if he weren't a Bruin, my favorite would have been Bobby Orr.

And now here I am loving the 2010-2011 Bruins. And what better way of jumping on a bandwagon than by making a book? In this case a Who Am I? Book about one of the Bruins players. I usually use a grocery bag panel for the Who Am I? Book but I wanted this book to be smaller. I used two sheets of used copy paper with the writing sides glued together and a coffee filter box. I found the Bruins logos and photo online.

Directions for a Who Am I? Book

in Spanish

Bookmaking Travel Kit

2011-06-01T18:15:00.000-07:00

When the kids were young, we would bring a small selection of bookmaking materials on our family trips. You can make a kit per child or one for the whole family. And as always, don't let the kids have all the fun. Join them and make books of your own!

I think the three books most conducive to travel bookmaking are:
The Hot Dog Booklet
The Accordion
The Index Card Accordion

If you have access to the internet, look up the directions online while traveling. If not, print them out before you go.

Start with a large resealable plastic bag. I prefer the heavier freezer bags but a thinner weight would be fine. If you have some interesting bag or box you've been saving, use that.

Put inside:
Some sheets of used copy paper with writing on one side. You can also collect papers on your travels. Check out this hot dog booklet made with the program from The Office Convention in Scranton, PA.

Front and back panels from one to two cereal boxes

Scrap paper for gluing. I usually bring a thin catalog.

An Index Card Accordion Book accordion and index cards. I think it's easier to make the accordion at home and write/illustrate the cards and attach them as you go. You might want to plan for a page for each day. You can also have a picture on the front and glue a second card on the back with writing. I used a side panel of brown paper grocery bag for the accordion. You can bring 3x5 or 4x6 index cards.

A small resealable plastic bag filled with papers from the collage box. And do collect papers along the way. Brochures and flyers, chopstick sleeves, candy wrappers, etc.

Glue stick

Small scissors

Some pieces of yarn. I cut mine to be twice the length of the cereal box panel.

Markers and/or Colored pencils. I think I brought colored pencils more often than markers when the kids were small to avoid markers on car seats, clothes, and furniture but I do prefer the vibrancy of markers. Bring whatever you think is best. I got washable markers for this.

This is just a starting point. Add more things if you like but the point of this is not to make a traveling studio, just a simple kit. Sometimes the less you bring, the more creative you are.

Happy Birthday Bob Dylan

2011-05-24T13:36:00.000-07:00

Bob Dylan turns seventy today. The photo was taken in Woodstock, NY at a place where Dylan stayed.

Here are two picture books—written for kids but great for adults as well. When Bob Met Woody is brand new by Gary Golio who also wrote an excellent picture book about Jimi Hendrix. Forever Young is the lyrics to the song. Great illustrations with lots of little biographical details tucked in.

Invitation to World Literature

2011-05-20T08:15:00.001-07:00

Thanks to Susan Stephenson of Australia who has a great blog about children's learning, literacy, and literature called The Book Chook for this link. Invitation to World Literature is a production of WGBH Educational Foundation with Seftel Productions for Annenberg Media, sharing not just information, but wisdom and knowledge—stories from ancient times to today.

The thirteen books include The Epic of Gilgamesh, The Popol Vuh, The Bhagavad Gita, The Odyssey, The Thousand and One Nights, and the more contemporary Things Fall Apart and One Hundred Years of Solitude.

For each book, there are three categories:

WATCH (a video introducing each book with historical context and thoughts from scholars, writers, artists, and teachers)

READ (Getting Started, Read the Text, Expert's Views, Translations and Editions, and a Glossary with pronunciations to listen to)

EXPLORE (Timeline & Map, Slideshow, Connections, Key Points)

There are hours and hours of learning and adventure to be found at the Invitation to World Literature.

A Free ebook at lulu.com

2011-05-18T07:37:00.000-07:00

Over the years I have a published a series of e-books on bookmaking. After many experiments, I have decided that lulu.com is the best home for them.

I chose lulu as the host for two reasons. One: you can easily preview the books before purchase. Two and best of all: you have an account. Any e-book you purchase will always remain in your account--no more worrying about losing the file on your computer.

Visit lulu and get a free copy of the illustrated Recycled Materials for Making Books. While you're there, check out the selection of e-books priced from $2.95 to $19.95.

And a note for schools and libraries: Purchase orders are welcome. The books can be viewed on lulu and ordered directly from me with this order form.

Milton Glaser/To Inform and Delight

2011-05-17T09:12:00.001-07:00

I recently watched (twice) the documentary, To Inform and Delight, about the designer Milton Glaser. What an amazing man! He is funny, wise, and eloquent. His work is wide-ranging (the Dylan record cover, I (heart) NY, the Rubin Museum of Art in NY—one of my favorite museums, posters, books, magazines, The Underground Gourmet, New York magazine, Brooklyn Brewery), deep, and innovative. After seeing the film, I wanted to know and hear more. His website, miltonglaser.com, is a treasure trove of information and inspiration. He values teaching and the website is a course in itself. While most of the website is visual, make sure you visit the Milton page where there are essays and interviews, biographical information, and a short film. It is hard to choose any one passage to share, but I love his answer to the question "What is your view of the poster and its relation to ‘high art?’" in Commercial Art.

When does ‘high art’ meet ‘low art?’ At this encounter is everything above the line ‘art’ and everything below ‘non-art’? What shall we call the material below the line craft, applied art, commercial art, decoration? Who invented this question? Who is served by the distinction? Does it matter? The search for ‘high art’ is a theological issue, like the search for the true cross. The culture priests attempt to protect the world from false religion or faith, a never-ending task. I have a modest proposal; why don’t we discard the word ‘art’ and replace it with the word ‘work?’ Those objects made with care and extraordinary talent we can call ‘great work’, those deserving special attention, but not breathtaking, we call ‘good work’. Honest, appropriately made objects without special distinction we name ‘work’ alone. And what remains deserves the title ‘bad work’. One simple fact encourages me in this proposal; we value a good rug, a beautiful book, or a good poster over any bad painting.

I am... Book

2011-05-16T09:22:00.000-07:00

Last month, I gave a series of workshops at the Cutler School in Hamilton, MA. At their request, I designed the projects around their theme for the year: Be responsible/Be respectful/Be your best.

I made this book with the second graders. I used the Who Am I? Book form in which four flaps open to reveal a center image. For my sample the front of the flaps said:

Front of flap:
1. I am responsible when I
On other side of lifted flap:
prepare for my classes.

2. I am respectful when I
listen to others.

3. I am my best when I
help others.

4. I am
Susan

I used the back panel of a grocery bag for the pages and a front or back panel of a cereal box for the cover which was then covered with papers from the collage box. The blue strip in the middle with the yellow and white leaves came from the chopstick sleeve at a Thai restaurant. Velcro was used for the closure. If the order in which the pages are read matters to you, you should number the pages. Also noticed how I fixed an error on Susan. For some reason, I first wrote it with a small s. I wrote an upper case S on a small piece of grocery bag and glued it over the small S--an easy way to fix a mistake.

Written Directions

In Spanish

See all the pages on flickr

Happy Birthday Roger Hargreaves

2011-05-09T10:04:00.001-07:00

Today is Roger Hargreaves' birthday. He's the author of the Little Miss and Mister books which were loved in this house. I remember the thrilling moment when I found a whole stack of them at the library book sale. Google has a rotating series of images today celebrating the author and the books. What fun!

Book Arts Hotspots Worldwide

2011-05-05T11:24:00.001-07:00

Peter Verheyen of Syracuse University is a hero in the book arts world. He does so much to keep it connected across the globe. First and foremost is the Book Arts List which he started in 1994 and tirelessly keeps going. If you are interested in book arts, it is well worth joining. The members are incredibly knowledgeable and always willing to share. There are occasional philosophical discussions, frequent postings of book arts exhibitions and classes (with equally frequent pleas to posters to put the location in the subject line), and lots of technical information. His site, The Book Arts Web, has links to Professional Organizations, Book Arts Education, Bookbinders and Book Artists, Tutorials & Reference, Suppliers, and much, much more. As if that isn't enough, he also is the publisher and editor of the now annual online magazine, The Bonefolder: e-journal for the book binder and book artist. And now his most recent aid for connectivity—Book Arts Hotspots Worldwide through google maps. Another wonderful resource. Thank you Peter!

Bookmaking in Cuba

2011-05-04T12:50:00.000-07:00

Deb Dannelly has sent these wonderful photos of children's bookmaking in Cuba. Thanks so much Deb. I know many others will be as inspired as I am. Beautiful!

I also wanted to send you photos of some of the children’s nature/flower books that were completed about three weeks ago in Havana in one of the workshops I conducted there. It was a big class of 18,mixed ages, probably from about 5yrs to 16yrs!!! With this class I tried to include as many as I could in the neighbourhood. The covers were made from donated centre cuts from art matboards from a framer which I brought with me to Cuba, the paper for the accordion was a nice heavier weight paper. I know you are a huge promoter of recycled materials but in the case of Cuba, I like to bring them beautiful papers that they may have never seen before...it is a real treat for them. The images were made from their choices of beautiful collage papers, stamps and ink pads, and various sizes of coloured markers, or as you will see, all three!! They loved the workshop and there was paper, glue sticks, and ink pads flying...it looked like a cyclone had swept through....

I have sent one photo of the workshop in action and then individual shots of open books. Hope you enjoy them. I have told the children that I was sending you some photos and they were thrilled to think that someone else they didn’t even know,wanted to see them.

National Poetry Month/Sharing the Seasons

2011-04-30T11:01:00.001-07:00

Here's a wonderful book of poetry about the seasons edited by Lee Bennett Hopkins and illustrated by David Diaz. I was browsing the poetry section in the children's room of the library and this book was on display on top of the shelves. The cover was like a magnet and I took the book home. There are twelve poems for each season and the illustrations are vibrant celebrations. A great way to mark the movement of the year.

National Poetry Month/Poetry 180

2011-04-29T07:02:00.001-07:00

Poetry 180 is a site developed by the Library of Congress to bring poetry to high school students with a poem for each day of the school year along with suggestions for reading aloud. Here is what Billy Collins says about the program and the poems he selected:

Welcome to Poetry 180. Poetry can and should be an important part of our daily lives. Poems can inspire and make us think about what it means to be a member of the human race. By just spending a few minutes reading a poem each day, new worlds can be revealed.

Poetry 180 is designed to make it easy for students to hear or read a poem on each of the 180 days of the school year. I have selected the poems you will find here with high school students in mind. They are intended to be listened to, and I suggest that all members of the school community be included as readers. A great time for the readings would be following the end of daily announcements over the public address system.

Listening to poetry can encourage students and other learners to become members of the circle of readers for whom poetry is a vital source of pleasure. I hope Poetry 180 becomes an important and enriching part of the school day.

And here is one of his poems featured in Poetry 180:

Introduction to Poetry

Billy Collins

I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide

or press an ear against its hive.

I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,

or walk inside the poem's room
and feel the walls for a light switch.

I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author's name on the shore.

But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.

They begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.

from The Apple that Astonished Paris, 1996
University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, Ark.

National Poetry Month/Langston Hughes

2011-04-28T12:05:00.001-07:00

I used a green pentel brush marker to write out the beginning of Langston Hughes' poem, "In Time of Silver Rain" because Alice Walker talks about the encouraging notes Langston Hughes wrote her in green ink.

Here are three excellent picture books by or about Langston Hughes.

Alice Walker's biography of Langston Hughes for children has extra meaning because she knew him and he was encouraging to her as a young writer. His life story is beautifully told through text and illustrations.

The next two are picture books of poems. Each is an example of the highest order of illustrations in its media—watercolor and photography.

Charles R. Smith Jr. has created such a complete experience with a short poem (33 words), elegant type, and eloquent photographs. I appreciate it for the poem and for the beauty of the book design—a perfect merging of type and illustration that enhances the meaning of the words.

E. B. Lewis's The watercolors are so fluid, so rich, and so deep. To me this book feels like a poem set to music.

Hear Langston Hughes reading A Negro Speaks of Rivers.

Watch a video of images set to Langston Hughes reading April Rain from Classical Baby. Both readings are from the Poetry Foundation.

National Poetry Month/Diamante Poem

2011-04-23T17:35:00.001-07:00

Diamante poems are favorites at many of the schools I go to. There are many versions but at its most basic, it is a noun/2 adjectives/3 verbs ending in ing/2 adjectives/a noun. The words are centered on the page forming a diamond. This four page accordion with yarn threaded through provides a perfect home for two diamante poems.

Fold a four page accordion (written directions with links to video and pdfs)

Homes for Poems, my ebook of books for poetry including the diamante poem available at lulu.com

National Poetry Month/Haiku Stick & Elastic Book

2011-04-21T05:05:00.001-07:00

This simple book form is perfect for haiku. I chose to use poems by haiku master Issa rather than write my own. My book was made from recycled paper with writing on one side only, a stick, and an elastic from vegetables. The illustrations are a combination of drawing and collage. I used glue for the letters on the cover but didn't need it on the inside because the illustrations were made from adhesive backed designs left over from postage stamps and drawing.

Written Directions

In Spanish

Video

See all the pages on flickr

National Poetry Month/The Haiku Apprentice

2011-04-19T12:51:00.001-07:00

I just read this wonderful book, The Haiku Apprentice: Memoirs of Writing Poetry in Japan by Abigail Friedman for the second time and I remember why I loved it so much the first time. Abigail is a US diplomat. When she was in Japan, she took up writing poetry after a chance encounter with Traveling Man Tree (his haiku name) and joined a haiku group.

When they first met, Traveling Man Tree described why writing haiku is different from golf. Golf is his hobby, but he does haiku.

Haiku is different. For me, haiku is a question of feeling, of sensibility. I can't just work sixteen-hour days and then say to myself, "Okay, if I concentrate hard, if I work at finding just the right word, I will compose a good haiku." I need to change how I approach the world. I need to look at the flowers and the grass beside the road. I've got to try to write poetry about what I see around me. I believe that the more I approach haiku in this way and the more I understand the essence of haiku, the better my poetry will be.

The spirit of haiku described here is inspiring whether you are or want to be a writer of haiku or not. The people she meets are full of wisdom and humility and I loved being in their presence. I found much to guide me in my work as an artist. The haiku group offered a respectful environment for learning and sharing and as a teacher I found lessons there as well.

At Abigail's first haiku group meeting, the haiku master Kurado Momoko said:

My job is not to judge whether you have written well or poorly, but to help you write a haiku that is true to yourself.

We can each write haiku because we each have a soul. Every soul is equal in a haiku group, and there is room in a haiku group for every soul.

A conversation with Abigail Friedman in Water Bridge Review

National Poetry Month/William Carlos Williams

2011-04-16T15:48:00.001-07:00

Here's a wonderful biography of William Carlos Williams for children. It focuses on his love of poetry and his decision to make a life of being both a poet and a doctor. Many of Williams' poems are integrated into the book.

The evocative illustrations by Melissa Sweet are a combination of watercolor, collage, and mixed media. She gives us a welcome window on her creative process in the Illustrator's Note.

The artwork for every book calls for a different interpretation. These pictures needed to convey his era and the modern art of his time that was so influential to Williams. There were a lot of false starts—nothing I did seemed powerful enough to match his poems. Then I looked to a big box of discarded books I had from a library sale. One of the books had beautiful endpapers and I did a small painting on it. Then I took a book cover, ripped it off, and painted more. The book covers became my canvas, and any ephemera I had been saving for one day became fodder for the collages.

Every project furthers an artists, but this book was a true gift.

You can view the poem The Uses of Poetry at poets.org with text flow. I love watching the words slowly appear and disappear.

National Poetry Month/Humor and Poetry

2011-04-13T15:23:00.001-07:00

April is National Humor Month as well as National Poetry Month. There are lots of ideas for combining the two at thinkfinity.org.

National Poetry Month/John Greenleaf Whittier

2011-04-12T12:43:00.001-07:00

I am thinking today of poet John Greenleaf Whittier as we mark the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War. While I focused on his nature poetry when I did this installation at Maudslay State Park, much of his poetry was in support of the abolitionist movement.

Read Whittier's poetry at Project Gutenberg

Whittier's home in Amesbury, MA

Whittier's birthplace in Haverhill, MA

National Poetry Month/Poem by Pooh

2011-04-11T14:24:00.001-07:00

For the spring is really springing

After a busy day of workshops, something short and sweet for today's poetry month post. And perfect for such a warm spring day.

National Poetry Month/Poetry for Children

2011-04-10T09:28:00.001-07:00

Poetry for Children: About finding and sharing poetry with young people is a wonderful blog with posts focusing on books of poetry for children that include a book review, a poem from the book, and ideas for accompanying activities and connections. It is created by Sylvia Vardell, Professor at Texas Woman's University, author, and co-editor of Bookbird, the journal of international children's literature.

National Poetry Month/Sijo

2011-04-09T07:02:00.001-07:00

Here is a sijo poem (often described as the Korean haiku), by Linda Sue Park from her book, Tap Dancing on the Floor. I love what is says about poetry. I'm trying to take some time to write out poems I like during poetry month. And to keep it easy and loose and not a big deal. So I grabbed the closest blank surface (the back side of an envelope) and a marker (Y & C Calligraphy 2.0) and wrote. I took a deep breath, decided not to let it bother me that there should have been more space between the second and third stanzas and that there are two dots over one of the i's, and took this photo to share it.

Here's a link to a previous post with information on writing sijo, a simple book project, and more information about Linda Sue Park's book.

National Poetry Month/Aprille

2011-04-08T13:28:00.001-07:00

Of all the poetry I was required to memorize in school, this short bit from the Prologue of the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer is only thing I still remember. I always think of it when April comes and I see the scilla blooming in the garden. I had never seen, or at least noticed, the small blue flowers until we moved into our house. The image was made by scanning in the lettering, placing it in a layer over a photo of scilla, and then making it a screen. You can hear the Middle English being read by Thomas Rau here and read a translation into contemporary English here.

And here is an old piece of calligraphy from a faded slide where I combined the words of Chaucer and Eliot on the month of April.

National Poetry Month/Mass Poetry

2011-04-07T17:18:00.000-07:00

Mass Poetry has a Poetry Festival scheduled for May 13-14 in Salem, MA. You can find out information about the festival at masspoetry.org and download Common Threads: Seven Poets and a Wealth of Readers. Common Threads is a program of MassPoetry that seeks to have 10,000 people in the state read these seven poems in the month of April, National Poetry Month. All the poets have strong connections to the state but of course Common Threads is by no means limited to those of us who live in Mass.

National Poetry Month/Bright Hill Literary Center

2011-04-06T15:18:00.001-07:00

Today's poetry month post is a salute to Bright Hill Literary Center in Treadwell, NY. Founded by Bertha Rogers, it is a thriving literary center in upstate New York. It is the home of Bright Hill Press which published poetry books and chapbooks, a community library, and the Word and Image Gallery where I will showing the Emily Dickinson series in October. Programming includes monthly readings (Word Thursdays) and workshops for children and adults. Tomorrow's reading (April 7) is by translator and critic Philip Mosley and poet Deborah Bernhardt. Bertha is a writer and an artist and has been a long-time member of the Book Arts List. Bright Hill Press also created the The New York State Literary Web Site & New York State & NY City Online Maps in partnership with the New York State Council on the Arts.

National Poetry Month/Color Poems

2011-04-05T05:00:00.001-07:00

Mary O'Neill's color poems were among my favorites in The Random House Book of Poetry that I used to read to my kids. They led me to the complete collection on her book, Hailstones and Halibut Bones, which in turn inspired me to make an accordion book of color poems.

The first was made with torn colored tissue. The second book was made after my conversion to recycled materials. I used a piece of copy paper with writing on one side folded in half with the writing on the inside for the pages and cereal boxes for the covers. The colored papers came from the collage box. When I was in conversation with a museum about using recycled materials for a family workshop, they questioned if the books would be of an appropriate quality for their audience. I made this sample to show that they would indeed be charming and beautiful.

Red is a ruby
Set in a ring.
Red is the color
That makes my heart sing.

Green are the leaves
Sprouting in the spring,
Green is the color
Of a luna moth's wing.

Orange is a pumpkin,
Orange is a cat,
Sleeping in the sun
On an orange mat.

Purple is a grape,
One of a bunch,
Purple is the jelly
In the sandwich
I ate for lunch.

National Poetry Month/Getting Started

2011-04-04T09:10:00.001-07:00

April is National Poetry Month in the US. I'll be making a poetry related post each day. Celebrate the month by reading poems, writing your own, making books, and rejoicing in the wonderful gift that is poetry.

Feel free to copy and share the above image (credit is always appreciated). It's also available as a pdf.

For today, there is a link to a past post—a Sticker Poem made with recycled materials and an annotated list of poetry anthologies for children.

Fifth Annual Beyond the Book

2011-03-22T08:23:00.000-07:00

The Fifth Annual Beyond the Book: An Exhibit of Book Art and Collage
Honan-Allston Branch
Boston Public Library
300 North Harvard Street
Allston, MA

March 26-May 7
Opening Reception: March 26, 2-4 PM

I'm happy to have two Spirit Books in this exhibition of work selected by Marjorie Kaye of Galatea Fine Art in Boston. Thanks to Curator Ronni Komarow for beginning this wonderful tradition and seeing it through in great style for five years!

I won't be at the reception but hope to attend events which will be scheduled later.

Bookmark/The Kitchen Madonna

2011-03-22T08:09:00.001-07:00

I've been a longtime fan of this book by Rumer Godden. When I first read it, it was the touching story of an odd boy who makes a kitchen Madonna for Marta who takes care of him and his sister while his busy architect parents were at work and misses her childhood home in the Polish Ukraine. It is a wonderfully unsentimental story of love, but also one of creative problem solving and using recycled materials. It's a great companion to the Flowers from the Collage Box project.

Flowers from the Collage Box

2011-03-21T07:11:00.000-07:00

It's spring! I see snowdrops and crocuses, welcome signs of the season and the many flowers to come. These accordion books use papers from the collage box to create flowers from the imagination.

The book above started with a piece of recycled copy paper folded in half with the writing on the inside. The bottom started with the front or back panel of a grocery bag cut in half the long way.

My collage box is probably my favorite thing in the studio. When Jean Van Hutl in an interview in The Artful Parent asked me if I could encourage parents to do one bookmaking activity, what would it be, I answered:

The thing I would say is that every house needs a collage box filled with bits and pieces of paper. Mine has been a source of hours of joy for me and those who come to my workshops. I cut up any interesting paper that comes my way- wrapping paper from a package, paper bags, the inside patterns on security envelopes, origami paper, art papers, etc.--into squares about an index finger long (no more inches). I find that the smaller size wastes less paper and seems to stimulate creativity in a way that large pieces of paper don't.

Written Directions

In Spanish

Video

BOOKS AND LINKS

Planting a Rainbow is a vibrant and beautiful book of collage flowers by Lois Ehlert.

The Parts of a Flower
Flower parts worksheet with a link to print a worksheet for students without the names.

Flower Parts
This site goes into more detail. I like it because it illustrates the parts with photos.

South Carolina School Library Conference

2011-03-15T07:59:00.000-07:00

My trip to the South Carolina Association of School Libraries was wonderful and proof that Southern hospitality is alive and well in Columbia, SC. I felt so welcome and met great people. The children of South Carolina are lucky to have such dedicated librarians in their schools.

The pre-conference workshop was fast-paced and fun. The librarians worked with kids from 3 through high school so it was a diverse and lively group. As usual, we used grocery bags, cereal boxes, and used copy paper. We made at least seven books, five from the grocery bag. It's always hard in a two-hour period to get in as much as I'd like without being overwhelming but I think we did well.

On the day of the conference, I gave a talk called The Community of the Handmade Book from Ancient Egypt to Your Library. I originally put the word "community" in the title because it was the theme of the conference but the more I thought about it, the more appropriate I decided it was.

Although reading is a personal and private activity, I always do feel a sense of community when I sit down with a book—with the writer of that particular book, with authors through time, and with the rest of the world of readers. And the same is true for the making of books. In workshops, there is always a great feeling of togetherness as we all work on our books. With educators and librarians, there is also the community of purpose, knowing that what takes place in the room will be shared many times over with children.

After viewing books through history and around the world, a small collection of artists' books, and lots of examples of books to make with kids, we closed the session by making two simple books, each from a piece of recycled copy paper with writing on one side.

I did have time to do a little exploring of the city of Columbia. My hotel was in the Vista neighborhood which is full of restaurants and art galleries. SCASL was so kind to make sure I had company for dinner every night and I tried the local dishes of she crab soup and shrimp and grits (twice each) which I loved. The gift basket that was waiting for me in my hotel room contained a package of grits which I look forward to making at home. I got lots of advice about preparation.

I love old buildings, cemeteries, and trees and had lots to inspire me. The State Capitol Building was a short walk from the hotel and a beautiful building. The grounds had massive southern magnolias, palmetto palms, and blooming redbuds. I couldn't help but gather a small amount of material for possible use in a future Spirit Book. Across the street was Trinity Church Cemetery—old and beautiful.

View some of my photos from Columbia, SC.

St. Patrick's Day Cross

2011-03-14T11:18:00.001-07:00

For St. Patrick's Day, I wanted a project that wasn't about shamrocks or leprechauns and had traditional roots in Ireland. I found this in The Year in Ireland: A Calendar by Kevin Dannaher. The book is out of print but can be found on half.com and other sources.

Young girls and small children wear on the right shoulder "a St Patrick's Cross", consisting of a single or double cross formed of pieces of narrow silk ribbon stitched to a circular disk of white paper, nicked at the edge, and measuring from 3 to 4 1/2 inches in diameter. At the ends of the arms of the cross a very small bow or rosette is stitched and one a trifle larger at the junction of the arms; the more and the brighter the colours of the silk, the more handsome is considered the St Patrick's Cross.
Journal of the Kildare Archaeological Society 1908

I made my cross from a piece of white shirt cardboard. I used pieces of plastic bag instead of silk ribbon. Even though I make an effort to carry a bag with me shopping, plastic bags do seem to multiply. I went through my bag of bags before I took them back to the supermarket and selected ones with color to make the ribbons and bows. I cut narrow strips and tied them into bows. The plastic bag I used for the center wasn't long enough to tie a bow so I just shaped one. I stitched the plastic ribbons and bows onto the circle but you could also use a stapler.

A Photographer in Old Peking

2011-03-07T15:59:00.001-08:00

I just got this wonderful out of print book through half.com. I was revisiting some of my old books to prepare for my talk at the South Carolina School Library Association and spent some time with Chinese Traditional Bookbinding by Edward Martinique. He had some illustrations from a magazine article by Hedda Morrison that appeared in the Canadian Geographical Journal in December 1949. I wasn't able to track down the article but did find her book, A Photographer in Old Peking.

Hedda Morrison was raised in Germany and in 1933, at age 25, went to Beijing to manage Hartungs Photo Studio. She lived and worked in China until 1946 and recorded the time and place through her black and white photographs. She photographed temples and palaces, street life, art and crafts, and food and entertainment in Beijing and also ventured further afield in China. In the book-related department, there are pictures of papermaking, bookmaking and selling, seal carving. The photographs are introduced by her straightforward text which gives a sense of the world she saw around her and reading between the lines, the open and intrepid spirit that she brought to her life in this foreign city.

Two places to learn about Hedda Morrison and her work are the websites of:

The Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, Australia

Harvard-Yenching Library in Cambridge, MA

Butterfly Stick and Elastic Book

2011-03-07T15:01:00.000-08:00

Here's a great book to get ready for spring. Vicki Bilton from the UK made this butterfly book with her students. She used a flexible straw instead of a stick and used the bendy end to attach a head and antennae. Delightful!

Stick and elastic written directions (English and Spanish)

Video directions

10 Tips for Raising Readers

2011-03-04T13:35:00.000-08:00

I was pleased to be included in Sarah Farthing's article, 10 Tips for Raising Readers at thegoodstuffguide.com. I do believe making books can be a key component in developing literacy and a love of reading. Not to mention all the fun!

PoeTree at Rhythm of the Home

2011-03-03T08:45:00.001-08:00

I'm very pleased to be able to share this project with the readers of Rhythm of the Home, a lovely quarterly online magazine of crafts, recipes, stories, and celebrations of the season. With four sections—Warmth, Play, Celebration, and Connection—there's lots to savor and inspire.

PoeTree at Rhythm of the Home

Bookmark/ A Freewheelin' Time

2011-03-02T15:41:00.001-08:00

This week's bookmark was chosen for a sad reason—the passing of its author Suze Rotolo. Susan, as those of us in the book arts community knew her, was a book artist. We were in several exhibits together and met some years ago at the Center for Book Arts in New York. Although I knew her only briefly, I felt an artistic kinship. When I read her book, I was filled with admiration for her as a person and a creative woman. Here's a previous blog post I wrote when the book came out:

Susan Rotolo is a book artist who was Bob Dylan's girlfriend in the early 60s when she was know as Suze Rotolo. She has written a warm and generous memoir about those days called A Freewheelin' Time: A Memoir of Greenwich Village in the Sixties. While it is very much about a time and place and a certain group of people, there is much that speaks to the journey of growing up and understanding one's place in the world as a woman, an artist, and a human being. She concludes the book by saying "The creative spirit finds a way."

Susan's Book work

NY Times obituary

Guardian obituary (I think this is most complete)

Rolling Stone remembrance (by a friend and more a sense of her as a person)

Her own voice on Fresh Air with Terry Gross

What Is a Book?

2011-02-25T09:35:00.000-08:00

I'm preparing a talk about the handmade book for the South Carolina School Library Association Conference in March. I took this photograph to illustrate a brief discussion of What is a Book which I think is a particularly timely question. Here are two versions of Chapter Five of Little Women: the one I downloaded from Project Gutenberg on my ipod which I read last fall and the copy of the book that I read many times as a girl. Are they both Little Women? For me the answer is yes. The book is both the physical object and the set of words.

My involvement in making books has always been about both the object and the content. Whether my books have words or not, they have always been about something. The challenge is always to find the right form for the content, what Ben Shahn called "the shape of content."

As I reflect on the future of the book, I become more passionate about bringing bookmaking to as wide an audience as possible. No matter what happens to the form of the book in the marketplace, we will always be able to hold physical books in our hands because we can make them ourselves.

Bookmark/Living Art

2011-02-22T10:09:00.000-08:00

I was so excited when I found Living Art: Designs and Crafts of the Otomi of San Pablito on the sale table of the Jabberwocky Bookstore in Newburyport. I have had a love affair with amate paper from San Pablito for many years. It is one of the main papers I use in the Spirit Books. I love its colors, its texture, and its history. Amate has an ancient tradition. It was used in the folded accordion books of the Maya and Aztecs and is still being made today by the Otomi in the village of San Pablito. There it is used to make cut figures used in ceremonies and made for sale as sheets of paper. Author Kerin Gould lived in the community of San Pablito from 1995 to 1997. She writes about life in the remote village where the primary source of income comes from crafts: amate, embroidery, beadwork, and carved wooden benches in the shape of animals. She sensitively describes life in San Pablito as well as the struggles of an economy based on artisans, and the future of the culture. The book is filled with beautiful photographs of both life in the village and the crafts.

You can also find out more about the making of amate here.

I will be posting a Bookmark most Tuesdays at susangaylord.com. Ones that refer to making books will also be posted here.

Comic Book Inspired by Persephone

2011-02-16T11:00:00.001-08:00

Although I'm still walking gingerly on the ice and peeking out from snowbanks to make turns when driving, I have spring on my mind. The days are getting longer, the sunlight is stronger. The first stirrings of spring are in the air. It makes me think of my favorite Greek myth, Persephone.

This project is from Handmade Books For A Healthy Planet. As I wrote in the book:
Comic books cover a wide range of stories from superheroes to Archie. You can create your own characters, use myths from different cultures as a source, or write about local heroes who make the community a better place.

For a small book (the Local hero book), use US Letter/A4 paper. I prefer paper from the recycling bin. Just have the writing on the inside when you make the first hot dog fold. For a larger paper, you can use the front or back panel of a grocery bag, a newspaper page, or construction paper.

Written directions

In Spanish

Video

My Persephone Book on flickr

My other inspiration for this project was this wonderful book of six Greek myths by Cynthia Rylant. It is beautifully written and draws lessons and make observations about life from the stories. In Persephone, she wrote:
It is one of the stories of life that that which is most light often attracts that which is most dark. And so it would be for the maiden Persephone, for one day she caught the eye of Hades.

Valentine Count Up/ Le Chansonniere Cordiforme

2011-02-13T07:11:00.000-08:00

This amazing book is a facsimile of Le Chansonnier Cordiforme: Chansonnier de Jean de Montchenu. It is accompanied by a recording of the music from the book.If you should have 3,480 euros to spare, you could have a copy of your own.

Here is some information about the book from the seller's website:

This exceptional MS, closed, is shaped like a heart; when open it becomes two hearts joined, representing two lovers who send love messages to one another in each one of the songs. When the word “heart” appears in the texts, it is represented by a pictogram. Two full-page illustrations appear in the codex. In the first, Cupid throws arrows at a young girl while at his side Fortune spins his wheel. In the other, two lovers approach one another lovingly. Throughout the MS the pentagrams, music and love poems are surrounded by borders made up of animals, birds, dogs, cats and all kinds of flowers and plants highlighted in abundant and delicate gold. The book gets its name from Jean de Montchenu, a nobleman, apostolic prothonotary, Bishop of Agen (1477) and later of Vivier (1478-1497) who commissioned the work. The music repertoire consists of French and Italian songs written by Dufay, Ockeghem, Busnois and their contemporaries. Limited edition of 1380 copies bound in red velvet after the original; 2-part slipcase covered in green leather. A clear acrylic case is also supplied for display purposes. Audio CD with selection of songs.

Additional information about the book by Fabrice Fitch can be found on the Oxford Journal's Early Music site.

See all the Valentine Count Up posts at susangaylord.com.

Valentine Count Up/ Heart Accordion

2011-02-05T09:04:00.000-08:00

This Valentine book is made with three different size accordions: one of the largest, two of the middle size, and four of the smallest.

When making the heart shape, it's easiest if you cut through all the layers at once so leave the accordion folded. Make a heart pattern that will fit on top of the folded accordion, or just cut the heart shape by eye. Make sure you leave part of each side of the accordion uncut. If you don't, you'll have four separate hearts.

I made the largest accordion without a pointed bottom so the book could stand. I then made two smaller heart-shaped accordions and glued one (back of its first and last pages) into each double-page spread of the larger accordion. I added the four smaller accordions in the same way.

You can find directions for a four page accordion at makingbooks.com. You don't need to make a cover.

See all the Valentine Count Up posts at susangaylord.com.

Year of the Rabbit

2011-02-03T06:45:00.000-08:00

Today ushers in the Year of the Rabbit. I used Sachiko Umoto's Illustration School: Let's Draw Cute Animals to draw my rabbit. It's a charming book that guides you through the steps of drawing animals from small (guinea pigs and hamsters) to large (giraffes and humpback whales) with a sprinkling of facts about animals. For example; about flamingoes: "The reason they stand on one leg near water is to avoid losing body heat." I think of her books as hipper, more sophisticated versions of Ed Emberley.

If you'd like to print my Year of the Rabbit image, here's a pdf.

Robert Burns Day

2011-01-25T08:20:00.001-08:00

January 25 is the birthday of the Scottish poet Robert Burns. To celebrate the day, I wrote out one of his poems. Although I now do most of my writing on the computer, it is still satisfying to put pen (or marker) to paper.

When I did calligraphy, making leaf borders was something I enjoyed. I first learned how in Writing & Illuminating & Writing by Edward Johnston. Here are some modified directions:

Bookmark Book

2011-01-18T12:43:00.001-08:00

I was looking for a bookmark for a book I was reading and decided that I would make one and then use it to keep a record of the books I read. It's easy. All you need is paper (each sheet gives you 4 bookmarks and used paper with writing on one side is fine), a hole punch, and some twist ties. I write the title and author on the front of the book before I start reading the book. After I'm finished, I write about the book on the back: sometimes a summary, whether I liked the book or not, what I liked best, why I chose to read the book, etc. I haven't done a very good job of it but I'd recommend also writing the date. If you keep doing it, it will be fun to look back and see when you read the book.

Raindow of Hands Library Book

2011-01-14T11:01:00.001-08:00

When I enter a library, I see a rainbow of hands reaching across time and space to offer me knowledge, wisdom, and inspiration.

I am working on a handmade book that will be displayed at and used as the introductory image to a talk I am giving at the South Carolina School Library Association Conference in March. On the panels of the accordion I will be writing the names of authors through time and around the world.

There is room for 288 names. I welcome your suggestions, from you as individuals or from your class. I am looking for both children's and adult authors. I'd love suggestions of authors from other countries as my experience is primarily with English and American authors.

In addition to the image being used in the talk, it will also be posted on my blog. There will be an accompanying pdf with the names of all the authors.

To participate:
please comment to this post with your recommendation of author(s) and a sentence or two describing why you think (s)he should be included and your name so credit can be given.

Thank you in advance.

Revels Twelfth Night Celebration

2011-01-10T10:40:00.001-08:00

I was so pleased to take part in the Revels Twelfth Night Celebration at St. John's Church in Watertown, MA on Sunday. In addition to singing, dancing, a mummers play, and Morris Dancing, and a visit from Father Christmas, there was a craft activity on stage. This year it was making a wish book for the new year. I was so pleased when the Revels accepted my offer to lead the session as I have been a long-time attendee and have always wished there were some way to be involved. My singing voice, or lack thereof, makes trying out for the chorus not a possibility.

We made a simple hot dog booklet out of recycled paper with writing on one side only and added a yarn and bead loop and tie so that it could be hung. Then the real fun began as the children used markers and papers from the collage box to decorate their books. There were some amazingly intent workers. Some spent about an hour at the table.

I loved the creative hum of the children with songs and music in the background. And then to see their lively creations! A wonderful way to close the Christmas season and welcome in the new year.

Now Christmas is past,
Twelfth Night is the last
To the Old Year adieu,
Great joy to the new.

Revels Twelfth Night Celebration bookmaking photos on flickr.

Here's directions to make a booklet of your own.

Hats are sky pieces

2011-01-06T08:44:00.001-08:00

Today is Carl Sandburg's birthday. To celebrate, I am sharing a book I made years ago with photos of my young son illustrating the wonderful closing lines of Sky Pieces.

The book Sky Pieces on flickr.

The complete poem by Carl Sandburg:
Proudly the fedoras march on the heads of the some-
what careless men.
Proudly the slouches march on the heads of the still
more careless men.
Proudly the panamas perch on the noggins of dapper
debonair men.
Comically somber the derbies gloom on the earnest solemn noodles.
And the sombrero, most proud, most careless, most dapper and debonair of all, somberly the sombrero marches on the heads of important men who know
what they want.
Hats are sky-pieces; hats have a destiny; wish your hat
slowly; your hat is you.

A more recent adaptation made for my friend Trudy who makes hats:

Bookmaking in Latvia

2010-12-20T04:33:00.000-08:00

What a treat to find this message from Irena from Latvia yesterday morning. I love the way we can make connections around the world these days. I do put a lot of time and effort into sharing on the web and it is gratifying to hear that it is being used. And she sums up how I feel about bookmaking, "When you start it you just can't stop."

Dear Mrs Susan,
my name is Irena Laurina, I live in Riga (Latvia). I found your blog this summer and was completely "in love" with this idea. I began to make different books using your nice videos and ideas.. and now I also have had some workshops for children and adults about making books from recycled papers.. When you start it you just can't stop, especially if you love the ecological and green things and lifestyle... I started blogging about my other hobbies, like glove and sock dolls, about my amazing cat and of course about bookmaking for children
I wish you a very nice Christmas days and a lot of new ideas next year!
I added some pictures from my last workshop with 2 adults and 3 children..
have a nice Sunday!
Irena

You can see Irena's work at recyclingismypassion.blogspot.com.

Gingerbread House Accordion Book

2010-11-30T16:20:00.001-08:00

While it doesn't have the pungent aroma of baked gingerbread or the sweetness of the icing and candy, this gingerbread house and accordion book is a treat. I used the bottom of a grocery bag for the house and half the front panel of a grocery bag for the gingerbread men. You may want to glue your accordion into the house which I forgot to demonstrate on the video.

Patterns for gingerbread men and candy

Books and Links

Delightful story of the Gingerbread Baby's new friends with Jan Brett's always engaging illustrations. I find I spend more time with the pictures than the words in her books.

How to Make a Gingerbread House
I haven't tried the recipe but her description of the process fits what I learned (the hard way) in several years of gingerbread house construction.

A Gingerbread Tradition
A little bit of the history of gingerbread by Alice Ross.

Leaf Book for Thomas

2010-11-22T12:28:00.000-08:00

Two-year-old Thomas and his mother provided the acorn "hats" I used in the book made from oak leaves. I decided Thomas should have a book of his own.

Oak Leaf Book

2010-11-18T10:10:00.001-08:00

I was inspired by Laura Martin's comment on facebook on My Thanksgiving Leaf Fan Book made from grocery bags wondering about using real leaves. I used acorn tops, beads, a piece of chestnut leaf stem, and wire for the binding and wrote a quote about gratitude on each page. I think the book would last longer if I had pressed the leaves between wax paper but I was too impatient.

Gathering the leaves on my walk today was an interesting experience. I was standing on the sidewalk getting ready to bend down to add another leaf to my small collection when a man with a rake came up to me and said, What are you doing?" followed by "Leave my trash alone." I stood and stared at him waiting for him to smile or laugh. But he seemed to be seriously concerned about my taking his leaves. As my father used to say when I expressed an idea or opinion he thought was ridiculous, "What!?!" So I tossed the leaves to the wind and found a new collection to pick from a little way down the street.

Here are the quotes which I found online:
We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures. Thornton Wilder

If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, 'thank you,' that would suffice. Meister Eckhart

I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder. G.K. Chesterton

Gratitude is the memory of the heart. Jean Baptiste Massieu,

Thanksgiving Leaf Fan Book

2010-11-15T16:35:00.000-08:00

Here's a simple fan book made from oak leaves (or at least my interpretation of them) cut from the back panel of a brown paper grocery bag.

I traced the leaf pattern onto the bag with brown marker, colored the leaves in with crayon, and then cut them out. Holding all of them together, I poked a hole at the bottom of the leaves with the point of a pair of scissors.

I threaded a clear twist tie through a bead and pulled the two ends until they were even. I threaded them through the leaves and put the two ends through a bead on the other side. I twisted the two ends together and trimmed off the excess. You could also use a hole punch and a paper fastener.

I did the writing after binding but you might find it easier to do it before. I wrote one word on the front of each leaf and then a little about each word on the back. I wrote some additional information with a red pen along the edges of the leaf, such as the names of some of my favorite books on the back of the book leaf.

Oak Leaf Leaf Patterns to print

A wonderful picture book about November by Cynthia Rylant. It describes the month for the plants, the animals, and for us. The language is beautiful, the observations are keen, and the oil on paper illustrations are filled with atmosphere and beauty.

It starts: "In November, the earth is growing quiet. It is making its bed..." and ends: "In November, at winter's gate, the stars are brittle. The sun is a sometimes friend. And the world has tucked her children in, with a kiss on their heads, until spring."

Celebrating Ed Emberley

2010-10-12T12:45:00.000-07:00

Ed Emberley was born on October 19,1931. In honor of his birthday, this month's project is a thumbprint palm leaf book. I'm a big fan of Ed Emberley's picture books and especially appreciate everything he has done to bring art to all of us through his drawing and thumbprint books. Happy birthday Ed and thank you!

I made my palm leaf book from a cereal box panel. Younger children may have difficulty cutting and punching something that thick. Two solutions: Glue together two sheets of copy paper with writing on one side with the written sides facing each other or prepare the pages ahead. I used a piece of netted plastic from a tomato bag for the string. The beads at the end are cut out thumbprints on cereal box.

A couple of suggestions about the stamp pad: washable is a good idea (not what I used as my brown thumb shows). If you are using multiple colors with a group, you might want to make small groups and assign each child a color to print. Otherwise there's wiping to do in between each color.

Directions

in Spanish

A closer look at My Thumbprint Book of Animals

Lighthouse Libraries

2010-10-08T06:04:00.000-07:00

Lighthouses were often time located in remote areas and as such had no access to city services such as libraries, opera houses, entertainment, etc. that most people enjoyed who lived in a town or city. As light keeping was a lonely profession in most cases supplies were brought to them by lighthouse tender ships. One of the items the tender supplied was a library box on each visit as pictured to the left. Library boxes were filled with books and switched from station to station to supply different reading materials to the families.

Read more about the libraries here.

And for a great adventure story and taste of life in a lighthouse in the 19th century:

Bee Accordion

2010-09-11T10:23:00.000-07:00

And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,

I always read John Keats's poem To Autumn at this time of year. My favorite lines are the first two, "Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun", but bees are on my mind this year. Our summer trip to Utah brought us images of old fashioned beehives as they are the symbol of Utah and appear on every state highway sign. My mother-in-law gave us a a jar of delicious honey from her hive along with tales of its retrieval. And I love watching the collection of bees and pollinators of all sorts on our flowers.

I made a four-page accordion from the back panel of a grocery bag cut in half the long way. I then cut the folded pages into the shape of a hive, leaving the two sides untouched until about 2/3 of the way up the side of the book. (You can make all kinds of shapes but always have to remember to keep some of the sides intact. Otherwise, you'll have four separate pieces instead of an accordion.) I used a cereal box panel for the covers and made them just a tiny bit larger than the pages. I then covered the covers with pieces of grocery bag.

Written directions

in Spanish

Video

A closer look at My Book About Honeybees

LINKS

Tales from the Hive
NOVA page on the honeybee.

Honey Bees Life Cycle Video
Excellent youtube video with lots of close-up views. And on TeacherTube.

Life Cycle of Bee PDF
Life cycle of bees illustrated with photographs.

Busy Bees
A website by students at Heard Elementary Academy.

Beekeeping and Children
Information on beekeeping from the Liberty 4-H in Petaluma, CA.

Wish Scrolls at Wenham Museum

2010-09-10T06:28:00.000-07:00

I spent a Saturday morning at Family Day at the Wenham Museum making wish scrolls, one of the projects in Handmade Books For a Healthy Planet. When I first made wish scrolls, based on traditional scrolls in containers from Ethiopia, I used film containers. They are becoming harder to find so I used prescription containers instead. We used brown paper grocery bags for the scrolls and to decorate the outside. I love how there is always a new adaptation and something new to learn. I had buttons and beads to add and someone came up with a way of stringing and attaching them that I hadn't thought of. We all learn from each other. I especially liked that the scrolls were made by some adults alone as well as by children. Bookmaking is for everyone.

Spirit Book Workshop at Barnard School

2010-09-07T09:50:00.000-07:00

It's unusual to have the opportunity to give a non-curriculum specific workshop to teachers but the Barnard School in South Hampton, NH invited me to do an afternoon Spirit Book workshop as a way to give teachers a calm place to center themselves before the start of the school year. We used the front and back panels of grocery bags for the books and gathered natural materials outside. I think process is more important than product but you can see how wonderful the books they created turned out here.

Handmade Books for Literacy

2010-09-03T06:58:00.000-07:00

This is a fabulous project. Members of the North Redwoods Book Arts Guild in California made 1,000 small handmade books which are being sold for $1.00 each to benefit a local literacy program. They used what I call the hot dog booklet.

About the project:
Article in the Times-Standard

Book Arts Guild blog

How to make your own hot dog booklet:

Name Book

2010-08-16T14:27:00.000-07:00

We made this simple name book as the introductory activity in the teacher workshop in Utah this summer. Each person had one sheet of copy paper with writing on one side, two covers cut from cereal boxes (for US Letter paper the covers were 3" x 4.5"), glue stick, scrap paper, and scissors. On each table was a pile of miscellaneous collage papers. A good way to place them is in styrofoam trays for vegetables from the supermarket. I led the class through the construction of the accordion book. Each person then cut the letters of her (or his) name out of the collage papers and glued them across the accordion.

I like starting with this activity because it gives a taste of both aspects of bookmaking in one small package: following directions in the construction phase and independent creative work in the name phase. It also uses the accordion book as one long panel rather than separate pages and sends the message that book s can be places to experiment and have fun.

We did a show and tell of our books and used them to introduce ourselves. We then hung them from a yarn line for some instant room decoration. You could also have branches in a container and hang the books.

If you are doing it with a class, I think it's important for you to make a book along with the children. I think we need to take every opportunity we can to show our students that we are all in this together. We often forget that we are asking them to put themselves on the line every time they write something and share it and we need to acknowledge it and sometimes do the same.

Written directions

in Spanish

Video

Links and a Book

Meaning of Names
I thought this was the easiest to navigate (and no pictures of pregnant bellies as on the baby name sites). Susan means lily in Hebrew.

Popular Baby Names
Look up the most popular names by year as registered with the Social Security Administration. Susan was number 6 in the year I was born.

Name Days
In many cultures, name days are celebrated in addition to or in place of birthdays. My name day is August 11. Here's the wikipedia entry.

Happy Name Day
Find your name day here.

The Name Game: A Look Behind the Labels
by Donna M. Jackson
Interesting collection of information about names including babies, pets, hurricanes, companies, and more. Comic illustrations by Ted Stearns.

Yes to Summer Reading

2010-08-04T08:49:00.001-07:00

The NY Times had an excellent article on the value of summer reading based on a three-year study of low-income children in Florida. Of particular importance was that the children were allowed to choose their own books.

From the article:

Ellen Galinsky, president of the Families and Work Institute and author of a new book about how children learn, “Mind in the Making,” said she hoped that the findings would encourage parents and teachers to allow children to select their own reading material.

“A child’s interests are a door into the room of reading,” said Ms. Galinsky, who said her own son turned away from books during grade school. Because he liked music, she encouraged him to read music magazines or books about musicians. Her son later regained an interest in reading and has a Ph.D.

One of the reasons I have become so involved family bookmaking is related to choice. Kids need to be able to write about what interests them and there is little time for that in most schools. By making books at home, they will have a place to pursue their own passions. Books about music and musicians for example.

And this article about summer reading reminded me of a letter I wrote to the editor of our local paper about summer reading. My complaint was that kids were assigned projects to do about their reading which totally missed the point of summer reading: pleasure. Note that my reference point for competition to reading is television. How far the screen has extended into our lives since then.

When the Summer Reading program was first introduced, I thought it was a good idea. It would keep kids reading and give them a chance to do it without the pressure of additional schoolwork and book reports. The summers flew by, the reading was often done at the end of the summer in anything but relaxed circumstances, but I still supported it. The last two years the program has expanded to include written responses to the books and a small project.This year the reading was enjoyable and finished on time. The selection of books has been a good one. But now we are faced with the written projects and I say let’s go back to just reading.

I had been questioning whether I was being a lazy parent. Am I going to send my child out unprepared to compete with the Japanese and Singaporean children because I don’t feel like nagging over the summer?

Our family vacation changed my mind. We all brought books with us. I read three novels, my husband one, and my seventh grader, one. For the adults, it was pure joy. The seventh grader couldn’t put his book down, but it was not pure joy. There was always this feeling that he should be writing a response, answering one of the questions provided. I thought how different my feelings would be if I knew I had to write written responses for the three books I read.

I think the Summer Reading Program should be the time to inspire students with the love of reading and if not love, at least a sense that reading can be a pleasurable experience. It is the time to help create lifelong reading patterns. One can argue that the kids can read additional books for pleasure, but the sad fact is, most won’t. Reading is in competition with television and television has the advantage. It’s easy; the images are provided. We just sit and absorb. Reading is work. We have to decode and comprehend the words and then create the images in our heads. When we’re comfortable with it, it gives us freedom. Until we are, it can be a struggle.

We cannot forget that this competition between books and television exists. By requiring written work only from reading, we give television an unfair advantage. Summer is the time to build the habit of reading for fun, the time to learn to see reading as a richer form of entertainment than television. Therefore, I urge the Newburyport Public Schools to eliminate the writing component from the Summer Reading Program. Evaluations of the students comprehension can be done in class at the start of the year. Let our children have the same pleasure we do for their summer reading.

Workshop at Norton Public Library

2010-07-22T08:52:00.001-07:00

A great afternoon at the Norton Public Library working with the enthusiastic Children's Librarian Lee Parker and a gathering of parents with children from ages 2 to teen with a few adults coming to have fun of their own. We had three stations to make three simple books: accordion, stick and elastic, and hot dog booklet plus one with stencils, collage papers, glue, and markers. Our recycled paper was a blast from the past—paper left from a dot matrix printer. Some of the kids left with handfuls of strips with holes for projects at home. The workshop was funded by the Norton Cultural Council which is a chapter of the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

View some of the books here.

University of Utah Workshop

2010-07-19T10:55:00.000-07:00

I had a wonderful time at the workshop I taught for the University of Utah Book Arts Program in Salt Lake City. Twenty-five teachers from all grade levels and interests plus three great studio assistants, Becky, Mary, and Laura, came together for two days of bookmaking with recycled materials. The atmosphere was lively and energetic and there was lots of sharing. Lauri taught us another way to make "pling" (plastic string) from plastic grocery bags, Brent shared some of his great bookmaking ideas, Becky showed us a variation on the Who Am I? book, Claudia taught Liz how to write her name in Hebrew, and everybody helped make it fun . That's what's so great about making books—so much pleasure along with the potential for so much learning.

Here are photos of some of the books that were made.

Summer Journal

2010-07-06T05:44:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things about bookmaking is how easy it is to make small changes or additions to an existing form and have the new books feel fresh and exciting.

For the Summer Journal, make 4 hot dog booklets: one from a grocery bag and three from used US Letter/A4 paper with writing on one side only. The three smaller books are glued into the the three double page spreads of the larger book. Easy and fun. I named my three little journals Garden Journal, Beach Journal, and Rainy Day Journal.

Written directions

in Spanish

Video

Are Libraries Necessary?

2010-07-01T10:58:00.000-07:00

Jule Siegel posted a link on the Book Arts List to this article on the Fox Chicago website:

I thought I'd share some of my comments:

I think all of us lovers of books and libraries need to speak up. Libraries, to me, are the most democratic institutions we have in this country and their existence is essential. In contrast to the Fox news article, a recent story in our local paper was about how community support stopped the Mayor from making major cuts to the library budget.

I am very interested in the digital/book debate and hope that the future holds the coexistence of books and digital media. I think the western mind has a hard time accepting duality and both instead of either/or. Our idea of progress seems to be ditch the old and embrace the new. I am hoping that maybe this time we can do keep both. There is information that is perfect to get in digital form. There is nothing like curling up with a book that you hold in your hand.

Summer School Bookmaking

2010-06-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

I received a wonderful email from Liz Hopman who is using some of the projects from Handmade Books For A Healthy Planet and my website with her summer school class of kids from 2nd-4th grades. She reports that the kids are enthusiastic and I love the projects she has designed. Her writing ideas came from writingfix.com.

The class made the simple rubber band binding for the first hectic day with the book _All the Places to Love_. The kids made a list of their favorite places in their books. They did the Yakety Yak books the next day using the mentor text _I Am The Dog, I Am The Cat_. The kids decided they should be called the versus (vs.) books because their subjects were "against" each other. There were some pretty creative pairs: gumball vs. Pop-Tart, Mom vs. Dad, alligator vs. lion and Sponge Bob vs. Patrick.

Some other lessons she has planned are: _Silver Seeds_, (a book of acrostic poems), accordion time line book for kids to write their own acrostic poems; _Diary of a Worm_, (a journal book), stick and elastic for kids to make their own journal; and _The End_, (a backwards story), kids will make a palm leaf book with their own backwards story.

Father's Day Book

2010-06-08T14:20:00.000-07:00

At a few of the family and student workshops I gave in the past week, kids made books for their fathers for Father's Day. It inspired me to make one in memory of mine. Several of the kids made books about their father's favorite things.

I used a piece of US Letter/A4 paper with writing on one side and a cereal box for the covers. I used paper from the collage box for the illustrations. I like the look of the design that extends across the pages but if you do it with collage papers, you'll have to recrease the folds for the book to fold up easily.

Written directions

in Spanish

Video

Some of the books from the workshop

Family Bookmaking with Kindergartners

2010-06-07T11:46:00.001-07:00

I gave two family bookmaking workshops in Woburn, MA last week for the Title 1 Program. We used brown grocery bags and cereal boxes. I led the thirty plus students along with parents and fourth grade buddies through the making of 2 books using brown grocery bags and cereal boxes. They then filled their books using markers, stencils, and collage papers. I have a large assortment of small stencil books from Dover Publications and they were a big hit with this age. They also enjoyed the collage box. Some made books for their dads for Father's Day. Others wrote stories and drew pictures. I was gratified to hear many parents say that they would be making more books at home this summer—a perfect rainy day activity.

You can see photos from the workshop here.

Celebrating Emily Dickinson

2010-05-14T11:40:00.001-07:00

Emily Dickinson has been on my mind since I just installed a set of digital compositions combining hand-lettered lines by the poet with kaleidoscopic flower imagery at the Newton Free Library in Newton, MA.

This month's project is small book in celebration of Emily Dickinson. You can put one poem in the book, or a collection. I was inspired by Emily Dickinson's fascicles, small booklets into which she copied more than 800 of her poems. While Dickinson made the small volumes from folded sheets of paper that she bound with string, this book is a simple fold and cut book that I call the Hot Dog Booklet with papers from the collage box and lines from the poet.

Written directions

in Spanish

Video

A sheet of Emily Dickinson poems for your book

My Emily Dickinson Book on flickr

My Artwork: The Emily Dickinson Series

LINKS AND BOOKS
The Emily Dickinson Museum
A wonderful site with information about visiting the Homestead in Amherst, MA (a wonderful experience) and lots of information about Emily Dickinson and her poetry.

Jeannette Winter frames a short collection of Emily's poems with the story of her sister Lavinia finding the poems after Emily's death.

Jane Yolen tells a beautiful story of poetry, love, and truth-telling based on a poem and dead bee that Emily Dickinson gave to her six-year-old nephew, Gib.

Michael Bedard tells another story of Emily's connection with children is told here by a girl who lives across the street.

Elizabeth Spires wrote this delightful small chapter book about a mouse who lives in Emily's house and is inspired to write poetry. As the white mouse Emmaline describes herself: "Before I met Emily, the great poet of Amherst, I was nothing more than a crumb-gatherer, a cheese nibbler, a mouse-of-little-purpose.

Newburyport Literary Festival Report

2010-04-26T11:19:00.001-07:00

I had a fabulous weekend at the Newburyport Literary Festival. In addition to all the great events, I had my friend since third grade, Nancy (pen name Nancy Butler), visiting from New York State. We began with the only unfortunate occurrence--missing the opening ceremonies with a conversation between Wally Lamb and Andre Dubus III which received rave reviews from all who did have seats. I did comfort myself with the thought that even if we had arrived at what I would have considered early, we would have been too late. We had a great time at the Author's Dinner and I was surprised and pleased to find that my basket which contained Handmade Books for A Healthy Planet along with materials and tools sold for $150!

Saturday was the big day. We both presented and attended workshops.

What we presented:

Handmade Books For A Healthy Planet: Wish Scroll
I gave a workshop based on a project from the new book: a wish scroll from Ethiopia. After a guided lesson in making scroll cases from film and other plastic containers and yarn and scrolls from grocery bags, the group, which included parents and children and adults on their own, decorated the cases and wrote their wishes on the scrolls. It was wonderful to be in a room with the gentle hum of creative activity.

Hooked on Classics: A Hip Approach to Old Material
A conversation with Nancy Butler, author of Marvel Comics Pride and Prejudice and the forthcoming Sense and Sensibility and Jenny Sawyer, the delightful presenter of 60 Second Recap, an internet video site which introduces the classics to teens in entertaining 60 second videos, moderated by me. We had a great conversation. Nancy and Jenny had both looked at each other's work online so it was an informed conversation as they discussed their motivations and processes.

What We Attended:

Kakapo Rescue: Heartbreak and Hope at the Edge of Survival with Sy Montgomery
In her illustrated talk about her trip to New Zealand to document the nesting of the almost extinct Kakapo parrots, Sy spoke with excitement and deep emotion about her experience. The fragility of the lives of the individual birds and the incredible care taken by a small group of humans to ensure the survival of the species is deeply moving. I think I was not the only one who had tears in my eyes at the end. Her book for children is illustrated with photographs by Nic Bishop.

Gina Barreca reads from Its Not That I’m Bitter: How I Learned to Stop Worrying about Visible Panty Lines and Conquered the World
Gina is a feminist theorist and humorist. This time the tears forming were from laughter. She is a sharp observer of life who is not afraid of the f word (feminist) and I look forward to reading her books.

Playing With Matches, a talk by Gregory Maguire
I had a brief chance to talk to Gregory Maguire and reminisce about the class in Victorian Children's Literature we were both in at Simmons College in the 1970s before his presentation. I had to leave early to give my workshop but was inspired and delighted by what I had time to hear, especially about the friends one gathers across time and space through reading.

Polyphony: Poets Read New England
I loved the group reading of an accessible selection of poems by 19th and 20th century New England poets by members of the Pow Wow River Poets. Each poem was read by multiple poets. I was moved by both the content of the poems and the musicality of the presentation.

Closing Ceremony Honoring The Writer’s Life
The festival closed with a reading from John P. Marquand's (a Newburyport resident during his life) The Late George Apley by Anita Shreve, a poetry reading by JD Scrimgeour accompanied on piano by Philip Swanson, and a reading of John Updike's short story, The Family Meadow, in the deep, rich voice of local resident Josiah Welch.

See a small selection of photos here.

Celtic Knotwork

2010-03-13T06:53:00.000-08:00

In celebration of St. Patrick's Day and in anticipation of the Oscar nominated animated film The Secret of Kells which I can't wait to see, this month's project is Celtic knotwork.

I made a hot dog booklet from the back panel of a brown grocery bag and followed directions on the web for making Celtic knot designs. There are directions using graph paper but I preferred the simpler way of drawing the design in crayon, marker, or colored pencil and then adding the outlines to make the interlocking knots.

Written directions

in Spanish

Video

My Book of Celtic Knotwork on flickr

LINKS
Book of Kells at the Trinity Library in Dublin

Book of Kells DVD
This short video promoting the DVD gives some close-up views of pages from the Book of Kells. You can purchase a copy at John Neal Booksellers.

The Secret of Kells website
You can watch the film's trailer here.

Celtic Knots
This was my favorite site for Celtic knots. It was here I found the draw first, outline later method which is called felt-tip pen on the website. There are also outlines which you can print and color or trace over and then add outlines as well as lots more information.

Celtic Knotwork
I liked this site a lot too. There is a method of drawing your own simple grid and then building the knotwork design.

Art by Deirdre McCullough Greenwald
My friend Deirdre has been using Celtic knotwork in amazing ways in her work for many years. You can see samples of her work here.

Snowdrops

2010-03-05T10:01:00.000-08:00

Spring is on the way. First snowdrops are in the garden. For years I have only had one lonely snowdrop which never seemed to want to clump and spread as they are supposed to do. I planted more bulbs last fall and was happy to see a new patch coming up near the steps. The image is a page from the Book of Hours I made for one of the projects in Handmade Books For A Healthy Planet. There will be an online supplement to the book which will have videos, links, and patterns like letter outlines to illuminate for the Book of Hours.

Handmade Books for a Healthy Planet

2010-02-24T10:24:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited about the cover design for my new book which comes out at the end of April. The concept and design are by my son Brendan, the drawings are mine. Here's some information about the book:

Explore the fascinating world of handmade books. Learn about their history around the world while you make your own books with earth-friendly recycled materials. All you need are cereal boxes, grocery bags, scissors, glue stick, and Handmade Books for a Healthy Planet.

Follow the step-by-step directions to make sixteen different books including
• Wish Scroll from Ethiopia
• Medieval Book of Hours
• Time Line Accordion book from Central America and Mexico
• Book of Haiku from Japan.

For over twenty years, Susan Kapuscinski Gaylord has been teaching bookmaking in schools and libraries where her workshops consistently get the highest ratings for combining creativity and enthusiasm with clear, precise directions. Her years of experience make Handmade Books for a Healthy Planet easy to use and filled with creative possibilities.

as a pdf

Winter Buds Sketchbook

2010-02-15T15:15:00.000-08:00

Winter is a great time to look at the trees and shrubs around us. We get a clear view of their shape and structure and a reminder that warmer weather is on the way when we look at the buds that will brings leaves and blossoms in the spring. Late in the summer after I graduated from high school, my grandfather and I were walking around his garden. I asked him what flower would be blooming so late in the season from the buds on one of his shrubs. He told me that they were the buds for the flowers for next spring. I was shocked both at the concept and the fact that I had gone through twelve years of school and didn't know such an obvious fact about the world around me. It is a reminder that we have much to learn from observing the world around us and from our elders.

I made my book with reused US Letter/A4 paper folded in half the long way with the writing on the inside, a horse chestnut twig, and an elastic. I snipped the twigs and did my drawings at home but you could also do your sketching outdoors.

Written directions

Video

My Winter Buds Book on flickr

Maryanne Wolf on Digital Media and Kids

2010-02-15T07:37:00.000-08:00

Today's Boston Globe has an interview with Maryanne Wolf, director of Tufts University Center for Reading and Language Research about kids' overexposure to digital media.

She says
One of the biggest antidotes is going back ourselves with our children and having fun—no electricity allowed.

I say
Make books together!

Eco-Friendly Crayons

2010-02-14T12:24:00.000-08:00

I tend to prefer markers to crayons but I just purchased some Prang soy crayons and I love them. They are made with soy oil rather than petroleum which makes them better for the environment and I find they go on more smoothly and prefer the color and surface they create. I also got a set of recycled crayons which are made by Crazy Crayons, a company in Wisconsin which employs people with developmental disabilities. When I showed them to my husband, he said, where do they get the crayons from? Are there that many extra crayons in the world? I showed him my box of crayons some of which date back to the sixties, if not the fifties. So the answer is yes.

In the valentine, red and orange were colored with soy crayons, purple and brown with recycled crayons.

You can purchase the soy and recycled crayons from Stubby Pencil Studio which has a lot of eco-friendly art products for kids.

You can recycle your crayons by sending them to Crazy Crayons.

Year of the Tiger

2010-02-11T09:15:00.000-08:00

The Chinese Year of the Tiger begins on February 14. Here is are two images for you to download, one black and white and one in red which symbolizes good luck. Put one on the cover of a Chinese New Year accordion book.

Black and White Image

Red Image

Information about the Chinese Zodiac

Written Directions

Jung's Red Book

2010-01-28T14:51:00.001-08:00

I went to see The Red Book of Carl Jung at the Rubin Museum in New York. You can read my impressions at in good spirit.

Prayer Flags

2010-01-18T06:40:00.001-08:00

Sometimes I stretch the interpretation of what a book is and the prayer flags are an example. They can be viewed as separate pages joined together—a book. The flags (pages) were cut from different colored recycled plastic bags. The writing was done with waterproof marker. I made them last winter at about this time and they were in perfect condition when spring came. They were a welcome sight as we walked out our back door on cold and icy winter days. The pages are hung on string made from connected loops of plastic bags. Some people call it plarn (plastic yarn) but I kind of like the word I came up with, pling (plastic string). I wrapped the top of the flag page around the pling and stapled it around rather than to it so that the flags could move freely. You can find directions for making plarn/pling here.

LINKS

Tibetan Prayer Flags
This site selling Tibetan prayer flags has thorough and well illustrated information about the history and traditions as well as symbols, colors, and meanings of traditional prayer flags.

The Dream Flag Project
connects students to their dreams and their dreams to the world through writing poetry, through creating art, and through the words of Langston Hughes.