St James Park Press

Hello,

This is really just a message to say - being new to this site, but having been so kindly mentioned on it in the last day or so - a very sincere and warm thank you to those who have been so generous and kind with their commentary about the editions coming from my Press. It is genuinely appreciated and overwhelming.

As many of you know, I am working away on my next publication, 'King Arthur', due out in November, and as was informally but gladly announced on this site, plans are already in motion - with type on its way to being cast as we speak - for what I hope will be a Magnus opus from the Press, George Orwell's 'Nineteen Eighty-Four', a novel I have always loved and a genre I feel especially worthwhile.

From London, England - thank you and happy book collecting.

James

For those who have a copy of 'An Albion in the Antarctic', I am also finalising an article on the topic requested from the Fine Press Book Association journal, 'Parenthesis', which should be out in the next issue, or the one after. It gets very busy here at the Press!

Hello James,

Good to see you here! Very excited for King Arthur and beyond.

'Hercules' - Variant Amate covers

'Hercules' - Title page and Frontispiece

'Hercules' - sample page spread

I am afraid to say that even my held back personal copies are all now sold of this edition - but thank you for the very kind comments on other threads of this publication.

Title page and Frontispiece - following on from a recent thread generously showcasing photos of this edition.

Hi James!!! Welcome! I was so pleased to obtain one of the last Hercules (thanks for that) and to subscribe to King Arthur. Really, really looking forward to it.

Hi Graham,

Thank you! This seems like a wonderful Forum, full of all my favourite things.

I am in the process of setting the text in Dante for the two 'King Arthur' tales. The type i am using was originally at the Curwen Press, so it has a wonderful pedigree.

Best wishes, James

Hi Griffin.

Yes, 'Hercules' is now completely gone.

Hopefully 'King Arthur' will act as a worthwhile, albeit unintended, continuation of a series in this vein.

Best, James

Hello James:

I am certainly pleased to read the type is being cast for '1984' , confirming your decision to make this your next St. James Park Press edition. Although '1984' is (unfortunately) a visionary novel, decades ahead of its time and perhaps more relevant than ever, its only appearance in fine & private press format prior to 2020 was the Folio Society edition (2014) and a letterpress edition did not exist.

Better late than never. Your St. James Park Press edition will certainly compensate for this prolonged oversight.

Yes, I intend to have some page spreads printed for a formal announcement of the edition sometime around October or November, so that the final design can be seen.

So the type needs to be cast for certain sections, which is already in motion. The primary page spreads on show will be made up of 8-pt Times Italic, 12-pt Lutetia (a wonderful typeface by Jan van Krimpen, an exceptional typographer), and all as a tri-colour layout.

I will also be able to showcase a sample or two of the planned "illustrations", if one can call them that...

The likely limitation will be 55 copies and I will be taking pre-orders at the time it is announced.

>1 StJamesParkPress: Seeing your work here (and on Instagram), the high praise of >9 dlphcoracl: and 1984 being one of my favourite books. I will have to cut some of my book budget back and start saving for your edition of the book.

Thank you.

Although the price of the edition will not be high by comparison to others, I plan to offer very generous payment plans for subscribers to ensure those who want a copy have the opportunity to buy it. As a book collector myself, i realise the difference this can make.

Best wishes,

James

>12 StJamesParkPress: A payment plan would be excellent.

James' facsimile of his An Albion in the Antarctic is available for preorder today. While it's mostly printed offset litho, there is a newly added forward and preface that are both printed letterpress.

The original Albion book is fascinating in content and impeccably designed and printed and I highly recommend it to anyone who can manage to locate a copy. I also can't imagine James producing anything subpar, so despite the offset printing, I think this facsimile is an incredible opportunity for anyone who missed out on the original and is interested in antarctic exploration, bookmaking, or private press in general.

https://www.stjamesparkpress.com/albionantarctic

Looks like a teaser for animal farm is up on the website.

>15 trentsteel:
Looks great!

>15 trentsteel: looking forward to this one. Suntup’s recent edition was a let down in my opinion.

I met James today and had a lovely chat with him. He has such a wonderful concept for Animal Farm. Each of the illustrations will be in different colours and he is planning the cover to be a where's waldo kind of art with the animals. I can't wait for it. It is tentatively to be released in the second half of the year. All the 1984 bits of art looked fantastic as well

>18 Praveenna_Nagaratnam: Did he mention whether he is on target to complete 1984 this month?

>19 ultrarightist: He didn't specify. He just said it is coming along and he is pleased with the outcome so far (as he should be, as they really do look superb)

>20 Praveenna_Nagaratnam: So you got a chance to look at preliminary copies of 1984?

>21 punkzip: Not a mock up of the whole book. There were sheets of the artwork etc on display

I have been eagerly awaiting the chance to order The Beauty of Byrne since it was first mentioned. I understand that things can take longer than initially envisaged but it is frustrating that the website has said “Subscriptions Opening Soon” for over a year. I really think this should only be added much closer to the date when orders will be accepted, otherwise a great deal of time is being wasted in rechecking a webpage

>23 DMulvee: Well, Animal Farm still says 'Subscriptions Opening Soon' even thought it's sold out :-). Best bet is just to keep an eye on LT in my opinion.

I noticed that the Animal Farm page has been updated with some more photos and details of a special edition of just 10 copies. It seems more like a lot of additions rather than an upgraded version of the book itself. Not sure if it's sold out as it's the first time I've seen it mentioned.

ETA: not that I own a copy, but he also mentions all the 'connecting factors' between 1984 and Animal Farm.

Animal Farm is to be a signed edition according to the updated news page

https://www.stjamesparkpress.com/news

>26 paulm16: It’s already been signed, so that’s a definite 😁

>26 paulm16: Hope it's by the author :)

>28 gmacaree: 😂😂😂
That's a good one

>23 DMulvee: According to the latest news feed this looks to be moving up the chain

>27 ChestnutPress: I’m looking forward to seeing it on Saturday.
That said, I’m looking forward even more to collecting my 1984.

>31 paulm16: Both look great!

>32 ChestnutPress: Agreed, they certainly do. I thought the acrylic case for Animal Farm actually enhanced the book.
As for 1984, you can’t help feel you are in the company of greatness. So many pictures/posters are included that they seem to appear with every turn of a page. They are all fab, including your own. Of course I particularly like the detail on the notice board.
If ever a book has been worthy of a long wait, this is it.

>33 paulm16: Thank you!

I rather like Perspex/acrylic slipcases and have a couple of fine press editions housed in them. I was pleased that James chose to have one for Animal Farm.

1984 is certainly an impressive volume and one that I’m proud to have done some work on. It’s always a pleasure working with James!

>34 ChestnutPress: By “some work” Mark modestly means he actually contributed one of the illustrations — pretty great!

>35 ChampagneSVP: Thank you kindly! Somewhat more than that actually. Nothing design-based, though, just helping out with some digital bits for plate work where necessary.

Long interview with James Freemantle about 1984.

https://www.collectiblebookvault.com/post/1984-by-st-james-park-press?utm_source...

Wow…his early concept for Paradise Lost sounds incredible. If seen through as described, it is destined to become one of the greatest private press books of the 21st century IMO, up there with the Barbarian Pericles and the likes.

>38 Nightcrawl: I agree, thank you for pointing it out. I missed it in my original skim through the article. What do you think it could mean, to have a Cranach-Hamlet-Milton, in the Ashendene style? Given the similarity between Kessler's Cranach font and Hornby's Subiaco (they where both cut by Edward Prince) - intriguing. The use of coloured initials, Graily Hewitt style?

>39 Vill0n: I read this to mean a book with a similar page layout to the Cranach Hamlet (multiple columns per page perhaps, with integrated engraved illustrations), with multicolored drop caps in Ashendene style throughout. That would be my guess.

>39 Vill0n: It got to be exclusive inovative illustrations! Illustrations come to mind first when Cranach Hamlet is mentioned.

>39 Vill0n:

Re: the SJPP Paradise Lost, the Cranach Presse Hamlet and the Ashendene Press

Conceivably, James is think about doing something similar to his page design treatment in 1984. The actual text will be placed centrally on the page, then densely framed by a running commentary which provides notes, source material, and context unique to the time period in which Milton wrote his epic poem as was done in the Cranach Presse Hamlet (note: The Cranach Hamlet is framed by the original source material from which Hamlet is thought to have been derived). The Ashendene Press James may be referencing is the Ashendene Thucydides (Peloponnesian War) in which Oxford Professor of Classics Benjamin Jowett also provided marginal commentary text in a vermillion red color, text which orients the reader to time and place.

>42 dlphcoracl: I hope you’re right. Would love a running commentary alongside the text…and it would justify owning in addition to my Arion edition.

>37 Lukas1990:
>40 Nightcrawl:

The illustrations will be the key to a SJPP edition and James Freemantle must have something quite unique and special up his sleeve. I own a copy of the Golden Cockerel Press edition with Mary Groom wood engravings and they are truly spectacular. James will have to go quite a ways to surpass that one with regard to illustrations.

>44 dlphcoracl: And I would like to own the Cresset Press version!

>42 dlphcoracl: Yes, of course, I forgot about the commentary (have you ever read the Saxo Grammaticus & Belleforest?, to me it seemed a beautiful typography, but not much for elucidating Hamlet) but this would seem right, especially since Milton could benefit from a "learned" gloss of source material.

>41 Lukas1990: As for illustrations, this could be the hardest part. What would your ideal be for Paradise Lost? I think something abstract could work, more so than the Cranach-Hamlet, which to me are at their best when they are almost typographic (I'm thinking of the page spread with ophelia in blue, or the repeated motifs of stairs, or the players in the mouse-trap etc.)

>40 Nightcrawl: This was my first thought too. It would be wonderful to pull it off.

>46 Vill0n:

I cannot imagine James Freemantle illustrating Paradise Lost with abstract art. Andrew Hoyem? Yes. Freemantle? No way.

James will really have to stretch his imagination to surpass the Mary Groom wood engravings in the GCP Paradise Lost. They are nearly as famous as Eric Gill's work in the GCP trilogy of great books. This link will illustrate what James Freemantle will be going up against with regard to illustrating Paradise Lost.

https://www.librarything.com/topic/316140#7050730

>46 Vill0n: another vote here against abstract illustrations for Paradise Lost. I want to see all those mythological references!

I would love to see someone with an aesthetic like Simon Brett do engravings.

Freemantle actually published a monograph on Paradise Lost in the private press tradition, which might supply some clues. I have a copy of this, but it's at my office so not immediately available.

>47 dlphcoracl: I agree again. The Groom illustrations are probably some of the best I know of for Milton in the private press tradition. And yet, even her illustrations are in some sense still more "abstract" than, for instance, the recent artwork used for 1984. It will be interesting to see what happens.

>48 abysswalker: Thank you for mentioning the monograph. I wonder what clues?

>42 dlphcoracl: Have you seen Peter Koch's "Ur-Text vol. 2: Speculum Mundi" yet? I've only seen it in videos and pictures, but it definitely falls in that same tradition of the Cranach Hamlet et al. with a central text (Koch's poetry, I think) surrounded by "commentary" from a nuclear fallout manual, St. Jerome's translation of Genesis, Revelation, and one about buffalo. It looks quite appealing, but I don't have much experience reading Koch's poetry. I also have no idea about the cost, but my suspicion is that it's well over $5,000.

I love printed marginal notes! Everything looks so neat and orderly, which is especially impressive when the printer is hand-setting the type. If James does this for PL, someone has to post pictures here!

>51 DenimDan:

You would love the Ashendene Press edition of The History of the Peloponnesian War.

>51 DenimDan: Peter Koch quoted me US$3500 for Ur-Text Volume 2: Speculum Mundi back in January of this year. Somewhat out of my price range. He has done a facsimile edition, which I bought for US$275. I still haven't had a proper look at it yet.

>53 TheTotalLibrarian: Wow, I was way off! Thanks for setting the record straight. My guess was that he'd price it much higher than The Ur-Text Museum, which sells for $3500. I'll stop derailing the St. James Park Press thread with Koch stuff now, but please do post your thoughts when you've gone through the facsimile; I'd love to hear about it, since the whole project is quite impressive (and weird enough that I might actually go for it).

Curious to hear from others on two topics: anyone heard about timing for AF shipments? Also, anyone tracking Beauty of Byrne. Not in my wheelhouse but the updates have me second-guessing that decision.

>55 LBShoreBook: Please would you, or anyone else following the updates, be able to share those updates for those of us interested in Byrne but aren't subscribed to the newsletter? (that is unless the updates aren't exclusively for subscribers)

>55 LBShoreBook: Yes, I am quite interested in the forthcoming Byrne book. I've owned variants of the original text in a few different editions, and believe the SJPP edition will be a fine companion. It's unfortunately going to be a very small run, so I suspect I'll not get a chance to get near to purchasing one however.

>56 wongie: I haven't received any direct communications about the book lately, but I follow the press on Instagram and there have been these recent updates:

https://www.instagram.com/p/C3r-_88iITU/
https://www.instagram.com/p/C30u9RNruJr/
https://www.instagram.com/p/C33dbZiL2xq/

I can try to excerpt the body of the posts for folks who don't want to sign up for that site, just let me know.

News from SJPP can also be found directly on the web page:

https://www.stjamesparkpress.com/instagram

Animal farm is shipping as we speak. I believe James gets small batches from the binder and then sends them out. Waiting for specific numbers can extend the delay. I know this as mine is shipping today.

As you can see from the media updates, the Byrne is just started. It might make a nice Christmas present this year, but probably unwise to gamble the family jewels on that happening.

From Facebook:

"When your planned edition of ‘The Beauty of Byrne’ triples in size from the first mock-up binding…!
​
There are seven identically devised sections (eight for the specials). Each section features a four-page essay (the first is a two-page essay) printed on Barcham Green Hayle handmade paper; followed by a series of related illustrations and quotes across the proceeding eight pages of St Cuthbert’s Mill Somerset paper.

This makes a total of 22 pages of essays and around 48 pages of illustrations."

>59 paulm16: Did your copy of Animal Farm arrive yet? Curious to hear impressions from those who have taken delivery.

Here are some snaps and first impressions of the Animal Farm

https://imgur.com/a/I2TJiyp

It's a lovely little volume of a very readable size. The bright artwork is very delightful to the eyes and the colour really pops. A bit of bite in terms of letterpress work but not excessively so aside from the title page (which incidently reminds me of the Thornwillow Inferno). I did notice some bleed through in one image but given the scene it depicts I guess it was somewhat appropriate.

I was a bit surprised to find the spine title is actually loose (maybe something i missed from the prospectus) so owners will need to be careful when they remove the book, depending on how rigorously they shake it out, so that it doesn't fall out unnoticed and end up lost. Not a big deal, it seemed quite straight forward to put it back in place without it flipping over the wrong way round.

On the issue of shaking it out the book is very snug in the slipcase I got, I've included a video showing just how snug at the very bottom of the images in the link above. Unlike the No Reply Press sci fi series which also uses lucite slipcases and easily slide out at the right angle my copy of Animal Farm needs a rigorous shaking to get out. I am already a bit apprehensive that once I loosen the binding after my first read through it'll be absolutely stuck in the slipcase unless I remember to put in some ribbon before returning it to help pull it out in future like some solander boxes utilize or leave a bit of the book sticking out so my fingers have something to grab onto.

Overall though, slipcase aside, I'm very happy with what I've seen in the few minutes I've handled it.

>62 wongie: Thanks for sharing your thoughts and photos! I’m eagerly awaiting my copy.

The snugness of the slipcase is a bit concerning. I guess the most practical solution would be to keep the volume stored outside of the slipcase, though that’s obvious not ideal as the lucite is a major design component for this production.

A couple of new images on the Book Radar website for The Beauty of Byrne
More specifically, the first two pages after the title page.
https://www.book-radar.com/News/46f840a0-f068-41f6-880e-1a8b21535652/

>64 samurai3301: Thanks for sharing! Also saw on that page that “preorders for this one-of-a-kind book will open this upcoming week”

>65 willraven: If you click through to the site for the book it actually states "Preorder: 2024-Apr-12 00:00 AM (UTC)"

>66 c_schelle: Interesting - I don’t know if that’s the “official” preorder date as I can’t see anything on the St James Park Press website. Maybe Book Radar assigned a preorder date of Friday 12th April based on the “preorders will open this week” without actually having a confirmed date.

I agree, 00:00UTC is 1AM UK time. While I have known some small British presses to cater to transatlantic audiences where it comes to release times, 1AM local time does sound way outside the normal window for a business to be opening even pre-orders.

I received my copy of Animal Farm and I have made exactly the same observations as >62 wongie:

Overall, I think it is a really nice edition where all the elements work really well together. Certainly my favourite fine press edition of this classic.

James provided also an explanation on his choices for the display case, which I think make perfect sense:

„Yes, the display case, as I like to think of it (as a slipcase would really house the book the other way round), is intentionally tight-ish, so that the image presses firmly against the sides to see the image in its best way. I do test each copy before I send though, and if you hold the display case with two hands upside down slightly, and just flick down once or perhaps twice, it should be enough to remove the book. I do test that on every copy I send, but yes, it’s not a loose slipcase in the standard sense. Equally, it definitely shouldn’t be stuck in the display case! It’s also why I included a label separately, as I didn’t want to ruin the cover image, and it was a sort of optional extra (never intended originally) as it meant for those that felt it needed a spine title, it had it, or if you were displaying it sideways or another way, the title label could just be used as a bookmark etc. I latterly envisaged people being upset it didn’t have a spine title so thought best to include one in the end. Hope that explains it all a little.“

Has everyone at least received a shipping notification for Animal Farm at this point or are they slowly shipping out in batches? I haven’t heard anything yet.

>70 Nightcrawl: Not yet for me either.

>70 Nightcrawl: Not me

>70 Nightcrawl: I have not receibed a notification and asked James. My book is going to ship next week.

>70 Nightcrawl: I received my book on Friday, live in California so it had a good way to travel.

I received notification that my copy should ship later this week.

I received mine recently.

>61 Nightcrawl: sorry about the late reply, I have been mia for some weeks. The comments written about the book since that time have been accurate.

Looking forward to Byrne next from St James, although I expect it will, at best, be a Christmas time present.