Season Changes Are Fun for All!

The hazy, hot, and humid days of summer have begun to fade with the length of the day. There has been a breath of cool air here in New Jersey and you can even hear the crickets chirping by early afternoon. I hope that we can move through this season without any more hurricane storms. Soon the sunflowers will bow their heads and those bright orange balls known as pumpkins will begin to take over the gardens and fields. The bright red tomatoes will give way to these orange monsters that will be lit on October 31. Great yellow land cruisers  ply the roads each morning and afternoon carrying their young cargo from home to school and back again. Maybe miniature books will make it to the school curriculum this year! Please do what you can to make it happen. 

Each season is as grand as the previous and brings us the anticipation of the next. We are mere time travelers; from flowers, to pumpkins, to snowmen, and back to flowers, the cycle is endless. It is up to each and every one of us to make a difference to ourselves and everyone with whom we share our day.

The MBS Conclave was held in Oakland and was a wonderful time for all. Rick Hill has provided our readership with a recap of the events in this issue. Do plan on attending the Conclave XXXVI in Virginia next August! Visit the website, www.mbs.org for some of the advance information. If you are not already a member, join up!

Once again, the diversity of topic subjects for The Microbibliophile crosses from old books to new books, book reviews, reference notes including Three Centuries of Thumb Bibles and A Lilliputian Library by James Henderson, and much more. The index will help you through the contents. Be sure to read some of the ephemera that we were able to discover as the contents of the ‘Warburton Archives’. Start on the first page, or the last, or even in the middle, all pages lead to miniature books.

I am most committed to helping young bibliophiles enter the world of miniature books and help them enjoy all that is available and all that is to be experienced. 

Share The Microbibliophile with a friend or use it as a key to open a new door. Maybe that new friend can be the subject of a short story. Take a look at your books; most certainly there is a story there that you have always wanted to share. Thank you for the opportunity to bring The Microbibliophile into your life.  Next issue is scheduled for November 1, 2017.

THE MICROBIBLIOPHILE©
A Bimonthly Journal about Miniature Books and the Book Arts
Robert F. Hanson, Founder, 1977
ISSN# 1097-5551

Volume XXXVII, Number 5 Issue Number 209                   September, 2017

Book Reviews and Criticism
Greatest Show on Earth, by Msgr. Francis J. Weber, published by El Camino Real Press
Libraries, In The Medieval and Renaissance Periods, by John Willis Clark, published by Plum Park Press
The Tabula Peutingeriana, by Pat Sweet, published by Bo Press 2017
Steampunk, assembled by Barbara Brear, published by BB Miniatures, 2014
The Lady or The Tiger, by Frank R. Stockton, published by Rebecca Saady Bingham

Special Features
Frontispiece, Reminiscing in the Twilight of His Years, By Sherry Mayo (continued)
MBS Conclave, ‘In A Nutshell’ by Rick Hill
The Warburton Archive, An Update, by Jim Brogan
Bernhardt Wall, A Short Story About Copy 2/4 and 4/4
Part 1, The Connoisseur, by Todd Sommerfeld
Tidbits, by Joan Knoertzer
The Musings of Michael, Michael Garbett
The Lilliputian Library, by James D. Henderson
About Old Miniature Books, by Robert F. Orr Hanson
Time Machine, LXIVMOS, Number 12, by Nina Mazzo
Part 2, What I Have Done For Miniature Books, by Todd Sommerfeld
Three Centuries of Thumb Bibles, A Checklist, A Review of a Reference Standard
Internet Entertainment and Enlightenment, by Arno Gschwendtner
Part 3, What Miniature books Have Done For Me, by Todd Sommerfeld

DEPARTMENTS
• Catalogues Received  
• Meet A New Publisher, The Wild Onion Press
• Terms and Definitions,  ‘Signet’
• Get the Ink Ready, Start the Presses
• Upcoming Events
• The November/December 2017  Frontispiece  
• Classified     

The Microbibliophile
P. O. Box 5453, North Branch, NJ 08876 U.S.A.

Sherry Mayo, Publisher   
James M. Brogan, Editor
© 2017 by James M. Brogan

The Magic Carpet of the Written Page

Summer is on the way for sure. The peas in the garden are growing along with all of the blooming spring plants to chase away the last vestiges of the gray winter. The azaleas, the lilacs, the daffodils, and the redbuds just provide a bounty of color on which to feast your eyes. Even the bonsai trees push their new growth to assure you that they have made it through the cold winter season.

The MBS Conclave XXXV will be held in Oakland, California this August 11-14. As always, it will be a grand time for fellowship and books, books, books. You can get all of the details via the organization’s website, www.mbs.org.

We have made some tweaks to this website, one of which is aligning the cover pictures so that they will advance as you roll over an image. Also, I am requesting your help in providing content that would be informative and instructional for young bibliophiles. Feedback and suggestions are welcome at your convenience.

Our May issue of The Microbibliophile provides three new miniature book reviews, two from Plum Park Press, and one from Bo Press as well as a very diverse set of interesting journalistic contributions for your reading enjoyment.

While doing a quick bit of research about Barbara Raheb for the last issue, I came across some of her words of wisdom: “Those who take flight on the magic carpet of the written page gain some of the best traveling companions for this human journey and they too partake of the legacy.”

That sort of stuck in the back of my mind and over the next several weeks began to form a reflection for me as an editor. My job is certainly interesting and it does afford me the luxury of meeting and talking to many different people. Summer is traditionally a time for travel, so my message is that we are all gatherers of information and writers at heart.  As you travel through life, take stock of all of the life around you and the people and places that make up our world, learn and grow from the experiences, share your thoughts and make someone happy each day.

You know my feelings about the high value of diversity and all of the special benefits that can be brought alive through the pages of The Microbibliophile with some strokes of your pen. Keep sending me your feedback and suggestions as well as articles. I would especially like to request some information about you ‘the collector’ and specifically, "your first miniature." There is nothing like the conversations around the Sunday dinner table. “Pass the potatoes and why do people collect miniature books and how do we share this great gift with our young bibliophiles?"

Share The Microbibliophile with a friend - we all like to talk about miniature books, which is our passion.  Take a look at your bookshelves, there most certainly is a story there that you will want to share. How about "My Conclave Keepsake?" Thank you for the opportunity to bring The Microbibliophile into your life.  

Next issue to be published on July 1, 2017.

Tempus Fugit

How does time go by so quickly? Seems like we were just finishing up the Thanksgiving turkey and here we are getting the peas ready to be planted in the garden. Punxsutawney Phil did see his shadow on Febuary 2, which according to the laws of nature means that there will be six more weeks of winter. I am not sure if it is still winter where you live but here in New Jersey we had a string of days in mid-Febuary where the temperature climb past 60 degrees. Old Phil must be watching too much late night television since he obviously did not really see his shadow.

The first bit of news is that the new and improved website for The Microbibliophile (version 1) has been built and ‘turned on’ for your viewing pleasure. The address of the site is www.themicrobibliophile.com. The site has some interesting features such as a special section for "young bibliophiles," exclusive ‘web’ content, and a ‘blog’ that I hope will prove interesting for everyone. Please visit the site and let me know what you think. I am interested in your suggestions, comments, and criticism. More eyes and ideas are the route to a successful venture.

Sometimes it is fun to revisit the words of favorite books to refresh your mind. A great example is Msgr. Francis Weber’s Dean of Microbibliophiles, Wilbur Macey Stone. Stone, as you may know, was an early 20th century collector and spokesman for miniature books. Weber quotes one of Stone’s writings as he [Stone] “became bogged down in the quagmire of miniature books.” Already a collector of juveniles, Stone began to realize that “little people like little books.” How true the message was when written and how true today. One of the focal points of our new web site will be information and activities for young bibliophiles.  Certainly, the printed version of The Microbibliophile will continue to bring the readers the diverse set of subjects as all our readers enjoy and look forward to with each issue. However, young people have proven that they prefer their knowledge content to be delivered in forms that change rapidly, sometimes daily, and can be viewed in a mobile format. I do not believe that the printed media will die anytime soon but we have to recognize the fact that a large portion of our audience and future bibliophiles prefers a digital portal for their quest for information.

Our March issue of The Microbibliophile provides several new miniature book reviews from Plum Park Press, Bo Press, and the Cider Press with a great selection of journal contributions. You know my feelings about the value of diversity and all of the special benefits that can be brought to the pages of The Microbibliophile with some strokes of your pen. Keep sending me your feedback and suggestions as well as articles. I would especially like to request some information about you "the collector."  The feature "Meet the Collector" opens the door for both the reader as well as the writer, sharing is certainly part of our culture, so share, and "speak" as if we are at the Sunday dinner table.

Share The Microbibliophile with a friend, we all like to talk about miniature books, which is our passion. Please look at your bookshelves, there most certainly is a story there that you will want to share.  How about "My First Miniature Book"?  Thank you for the opportunity to bring The Microbibliophile into your life. 

December 2016

The holidays are all warm memories now, unless you have an extra tin of those special Christmas cookies hidden on the top shelf in the pantry. The cold winds and blowing snow will dominate the weather for the next few months in the colder states, but have no fear, the snow crocuses will poke their dainty heads up to grab some warm rays of late March sunshine. Those seed catalogues which come in the mail will help you think of warm weather for sure. Your New Year’s resolutions should still be on your front page, and I hope everyone is able to stay the course.

In the November issue of The Microbibliophile we talked about the future of collecting and miniature books from a few different perspectives including expanding our outreach into the world of children and young collectors. Everyone seems to recognize that "collecting" is something that has appealed mostly to those who are members of the traditional and Baby Boomer generations. This is certainly a good thing because that identifies a very abundant source of teachers and facilitators for all of the generation X, Y, and Z readers. 

The problem resides in just what is the best way to help people enjoy and understand the value of printed books in a digital world flooded with information. During 2017, I will continue this journey to teach and facilitate young bibliophiles. I am mapping out my plans to "overhaul" The Microbibliophile web page to expand our digital presence with a host of offerings. I can certainly use your help, as everyone knows the best things in life are joint efforts, and as they say in the world of project management "plan to plan or plan to fail."

Additionally, Plum Park Press has provided two exciting new titles and there are two titles from Bo Press and an example of a "blank book" from Booksby Press.  Nina Mazzo continues her journey through the LXIVMOS and "Books That Went To War."  Sherry Mayo shares with us a story about the joy of working with children. Todd Sommerfeld reports on a few items "Not In Bradbury," Mr. Robert Hanson takes us into the kitchen with cooking books, and Joan Knoertzer has provided some after dinner reading with Freddy Ferret. Then there is an article about the "Heinz 57."  Read on!

Please share The Microbibliophile with a friend.  We all like to share and talk about miniature books, they are our passion. Diversity is the key to success for both our readers as well as our contributors. It brings me, a warm smile when I open a message from a reader and their message is "WOW, so many different articles and so many contributors." Who can foresee what sparkle can shine forth from your eyes with the turning of each page. Keep those ideas and thoughts coming; they are like a wheelbarrow full of fresh fruits and vegetables, good for the body and soul. Please look through your bookshelves, there most certainly is a story there that you will want to share or a subject to be researched.  Thank you for the opportunity to bring The Microbibliophile into your home and life. The job of editor is certainly a learning experience and a labor of love. Thank you!