Bookness and Literary Innovation

Since long before Gutenberg, a book has essentially been a writer’s thoughts translated into symbols on a page. At first an occasional drawing was added to the text, and later photographs, but the basic idea of a book has been unchanged for centuries. Within that framework, however, there is still room for unique expression, evidenced by Anne Carson’s Nox, just out from New Directions.

I picked up my copy last week at a reading she gave in Ann Arbor. Thanks to new design and printing technologies, her vision in this elegy for a lost brother is conveyed as a book that is many pages yet a single page—the paper, covers included, somehow seamlessly engineered into a continuous stream of memory.

This is a rare volume, in which the form itself, as well as the language and theme, is part of the author’s statement. But Nox is not a gimmick or a puzzle—it loses none of its bookness through its unusual construction.

We at LAR are interested in innovation, whether it’s in the writing or the format of a book. As Book Review Editor I’m always looking for new forms as well as new authors. I’m open to queries and suggestions, from graphic novels to experimental language to uncommon constructions and printing techniques. If you know of such a book that might be worthy of review, please contact me at LAReview.bookreviews@gmail.com.

Joe Ponepinto, Book Reviews Editor