A Canticle for Leibowitz LE

With haunting post-apocalyptic illustrations, this classic sci-fi explores the unsettling reality of knowledge and technology being destroyed after man's nuclear apocalypse. Be ready to grab your copy on 16 July and sign up to receive the latest news.

https://www.foliosociety.com/usa/canticle-for-leibowitz-sign-up?om_campaign=omme...

I’m very tempted by the title, but I’m cautious about illustration quality and quantity given recent LEs. I’ve signed up for the newsletter about it so I’m curious to see what July 16th brings!

An additional image from the email I received:

I'd be happy with a SE, but if the LE looks worth it I'll probably bite!

Been waiting for this for a long, long time.

Conceptually excited, but wow are those illustrations not to my taste.

I can't say I like those illustrations they've shown so far, and at the prices their latest limited editions had - while not offering quality that would justify those, I'm extremely unlikely to invest in books unless it's one I'm really interested in already, not something new to me. It's a pity, I do appreciate the fact that they're doing more fantasy and science fiction.

Thinking about it, my dream Canticle for Leibowitz would be illustrated in the style of Arthur Szyk. Not sure what modern artist I'd tap to pull it off, though.

Good that this is finally coming, but the art is not my cuppa either. Also, I wonder if this means some studio is looking to make a movie or series from this now. I know Earth Abides is being done, so it's only a matter of time before every apocalypse classic gets an adaptation.

I personally really like the art! I do like the pink piece more than the blue one on the sign up page, though that's not bad either.

Hmmm - a lot rather looks traced (no doubt from a preparatory drawing) which saps a lot of the life. But I'm not completely put off like I was with Julie Dillon's work. Like >6 ambyrglow: I too am conceptually excited!

Another illustration shared on social media:

I had to stare at this one for a bit but I do actually like it. It works for me / interests me in a way that the Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell FS illustrations do not. This image makes it more apparent to me though why the style may not be to everyone's taste.

If it's another 500 pound LE I'm at least a bit more prepared to empty my wallet given it's Folio's first time publishing this title unlike 1984, though hopefully it's more in the 300 range.

>12 BooksFriendsNotFood: That piece is a bit better, but still doesn't light a fire under me. I think part of my indifference is due to FS running an artist competition every year, and seeing the amazing entrants, only for none of the outstanding artists to then be used. It's a bit like an ice cream shop running a showcase of novel new flavors, and then turning around and making each month's featured flavor one of the eight types of vanilla.

>14 Shadekeep: That makes sense!

>14 Shadekeep: I would love them to see them using more artists from the competitions for other releases. There was some really interesting stuff in the 2022 and 2023 competitions.

Apparently, FS will be releasing a LE of Neil Gaiman's short stories featuring the artwork of this year's Folio Book Illustration Award winner, so hopefully it will become more common. I've not read any of Neil Gaiman's works so don't have any strong feelings one way or the other, but it'll be a popular release, I'd imagine.

Of the three illustrations I've seen so far (assuming they are the illustrations in the book), I hate all three of them. Consequently this will be a pass for me (and ACFL is one of my all-time favourite books - bought a new copy from Amazon two weeks ago to replace my old tatty copy). How can a company that has a mission to sell high quality books (at high quality prices) consistently publish said books with such rubbish illustrations.

>16 GardenOfForkingPaths: Just a reminder of what could have been for this book: https://www.foliosociety.com/usa/blog/the-folio-book-illustration-award-2023-lon...

Francesca D'Ottavi, Tamara Martynova, Maria Surducan, Olga Wieszczyk - why aren't any of them doing this book? Or most of all Den Owen, whose stark image already has an apocalyptically ecclesiastic feel.

I think the illustrations are great! For the most part, I think the FS chooses wonderful artists. What will determine whether I purchase this edition is everything else -- binding? printing? cost? As wongie noted, another $800 edition will almost certainly be a pass, unless it's really "special". That said, as far as I know this is the first limited edition of A Canticle for Leibowitz, so it is kinda special already :)

>17 SnowyDoc: Title looks intriguing but the art is very subpar. Just another SE sold as an LE to undiscerning customers.

>19 astropi: Self-printed Canticle with some deviantart illustrations:

https://www.librarything.com/topic/334558

>21 EPsonNY: Well done for a homemade job.

>18 Shadekeep: I'd take most of those over what they chose. I still might be in the market for this depending on the price. Given recent pricing probably not though.

I'm a bit at a loss as to why many people so dislike the art? Granted, everyone has a right to their opinion of course, but I don't see why there's so much disdain. The way I view the art --

1)Very apropos for a science fiction book of this nature.
2)Beautiful, rich, colors. Unique style.
3)Art is reminiscent of Michael Kaluta -- an artist whose work I have always admired.

I'm sold on the art, I'm just waiting for all the other details :)

>23 astropi: For me it's not so much technically deficient as not jiving with my take. Line drawings are reminding me more of children's illustrations, something from HC Andersen. What I'd want is more byzantine in this case. I see where the Szyk wish comes from.
I know what it's like being on the other side of this though, lots of people dislike Dave McKean and he's one of my favourites. What speaks to you speaks to you.

>24 A.Godhelm: Agreed, on both points. The art doesn't fit Canticle for me, I've always pictured any art for Canticle as being in the style of religious art, perhaps like an illuminated manuscript, stained glass, icon paintings, etc - like the stained glass image in the self-printed edition. This art seems more like children's fantasy - it's not bad, but feels out of place.

I don’t hate the art. I don’t love it, I do like it. ACFL is a very funny novel and these are leaning into it IMO.

>23 astropi: I don't hate the art in and of itself, I'm more on the same page as >24 A.Godhelm: in that it just doesn't quite jibe with the book for me. The style would be perfect for, say, a novel in the mode of Jerome K. Jerome or, as A.Godhelm points out, a children's book. But here I would like to see something more ecclesiastically tinged. Granted, that's just my druthers, but I'm only explaining why the book doesn't appeal to me. If it appeals to enough people then it's a win for FS anyway!

>21 EPsonNY:

The illustrations there are so much better.

I really want a fine press copy of this book. But (1) I'm not enamored with the illustrations, though I don't hate them, and (2) I'm very very very hesitant to break my "No LE" pledge. I expect that the price will be too high for me to justify.

But I would spring for the book in >21 EPsonNY:, as long as the cost was reasonable and assuming I could find a copy. I like it quite a lot.

>6 ambyrglow: Agreed, the illustrations will make or beak this for me, and that one does not look promising.
>23 astropi:

This samples above just lean too much toward a digital, graphic novel type of art. While I love comics and graphic novels as art and storytelling, I don't think the art works well as illustrations for novels.

>30 sdawson: The illustrations are most definitely not digital. They look like a mixed medium including watercolor. I'm still waiting to hear more details, and hopefully it will be under $400 which will make this far more attractive. That said, the original cover illustration is similar to the art from the FS LE --

The artwork is all traditionally made artwork, look at the brush strokes and textures- it looks like these two artworks have borders that are getting cut off in the cropped images, and those borders are probably digitally made. But those paintings are ink and watercolor, and gouache or acrylic. I bet this is a beautiful edition of the classic A Canticle for Leibowitz!

>32 MELDEN: How can you tell? Is it just from the two pictures posted here or you saw some behind-the-scenes process?

I follow a massive number of illustrators and more and more are creating traditional-looking artwork in Procreate or Adobe programs. Paper textures, watercolour and ink brushes included. I don't think it's a problem - they're so good at working with traditional materials that they know very well how to recreate the same look believably in a digital format. I'm just curious why you're so sure about this one because personally I wouldn't bet on it.

>33 santiamen: Dust cover from the 1st 1959 edition. Definitely not digital. Jacket design by Milton Glaser, celebrated graphic designer. Most likely pen (fountain pen?) and watercolors.

"Milton drew heavily from early 20th century artists to create his own signature style that consisted of playful, psychedelic graphics with controlled blasts of colors along with silhouettes and bold geometric outlines."

"But Glaser himself doesn't use computers. He draws, with a pen, brush, and paper. The students and designers Glaser regards highly 'develop ideas before they go to the computer, and then they go to the computer at a point which the idea has been tested.'"

>34 EPsonNY: I'm assuming MELDEN was referring to the new illustrations in the awaited LE since s/he's mentioned the borders?

>35 santiamen: Got it; sorry for the confusion.

New artwork may not be digital, but it has been digitally altered/manipulated at the very least by superimposing the frames around the inside of the image. Frames do remind me a bit of tarot cards design. Overall, I do agree both images are evocative of graphic novels to a point where I almost start looking for the speech bubbles...

>36 EPsonNY: New artwork may not be digital, but it has been digitally altered/manipulated at the very least by superimposing the frames around the inside of the image.

I disagree, it looks like the frames are also drawn by hand. If you take a look at the >12 BooksFriendsNotFood: you can see ornaments on the frames, namely birds resting. This is done by hand, and frankly such "frames" have been used for hundreds of years by various artists -- you do not need Photoshop for any of this :)

>37 astropi: I did not say frames were digitally drawn, but rather digitally superimposed - Dave McKean-style - to flow behind or in front of objects in the photos.

Drawing the bottom border to flow among tree branches, over the cane but behind the legs would be too time consuming and make any errors too costly. Such frames are draws independently, images polished, frames then inserted and set to position i.e. centered etc. with the wizardly tricks added with the aid of software.

I do see texture in the Folio Society 'more details sign-up' header illustration below:

https://www.foliosociety.com/usa/canticle-for-leibowitz-sign-up

>38 EPsonNY: That is one possibility, the other is that they simply painted over the frame. Artists do that all the time -- first background, then add a frame, then start to add in layers.

Thank you so much for sharing it.

Ugh the LE is delayed to July 23. I had been so looking forward to this upcoming Tuesday.

Also, new awesome illustration revealed:

I think the illustrations are ok (wouldn't put me off, but wouldn't win me over in isolation).

I'm hoping the book itself will have something which elevates it to LE status (rather than just being a limited quantity of a broadly standard edition). A large page size (e.g. 12" like the LOTR LE) would tick that box for me personally.

>23 astropi: I agree, I like it. I also liked the alternative art shared by >21 EPsonNY: but I would be quite happy with Folio's offering. As you say, reminiscent of Kaluta, and maybe a bit of Charles Vess too.

I should probably add that I haven't read the book so I have no preconceptions as to what kind of art it needs. But I also think there is no one definitive type of art for any particular book; every reader responds in their own way. In some books it might be appropriate to have the text and the art fight out their own interpretations of what happened, Rashomon style ;-)

The features this time will be :
● limited quantity
● order fast for a low limitation number
● bound in super fancy paper
● included are some black handmade medieval candles and a pair of flintstones
● an extra illustration, that won't show in the book, will be included
● the next feature will be the super reasonable price, which isn't final right now. It will be decided next week via the Wheel of Fortune in our HQ to make the book even more special
● last but not least will be our random notification mail, when the books goes life

So it goes.

>44 Ragnaroekk: haha, I see the jadedness is strong here :)
Seriously though, I totally understand that. I also feel that Folio's LEs for the past few years, with just a few exceptions, has been underwhelming. I mean, when in essence all you are getting is a better binding and a print you will never use, while being charged 5-6 times the cost of the standard edition which looks just as good as the LE, well, it really does not make a bibliophile excited. But, all that said, let's see what happens here.

Full illustration was shared in a separate email:

>46 BooksFriendsNotFood:
It's good that I subscribed to the LE and the standard newsletter and didn't received the mail. Folio customer service at its finest. It's getting really frustrating...

>48 assemblyman: Is that a standard edition or the LE? I can't tell these days.

>49 cronshaw: It’s a limited edition. It looks similar in make up to The King of Elfland’s Daughter so I’m thinking it will be a similar price.

The illustration and design is looking better the more I see of it.

I like the look of it. But nothing obviously elevating it to LE worthy.

Do you guys think that there will be an additional standard edition in the nearby future or is it going to be LE exclusive?

>53 drizzled:
Depends how it will sell I guess.

>50 assemblyman: Thanks, yes you're right, very similar-looking to KoED, so probably quarter leather over blocked cloth boards. Quarter leather is LE-level these days. I can't remember what the last quarter leather non-limited FS edition was.

The artwork here for Canticle of Leibowitz appeals to me more than that of KoED, but not enough for me to fork out over £300.

>54 Ragnaroekk: I suspect it will sell great since it's a sci-fi classic with few nice edition options that folks have been requesting for years.

>56 abysswalker:
Then it's better to wait for the SE, in my opinion.
375£ or 295£ if we get lucky, is a lot of money. (+7% tax and ~30£ shipping, *ouuch*)

>53 drizzled: I would have thought that there will be a SE.

Folio’s Instagram reel with a closer look at the materials, details, and many more illustrations: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C9rc5paNIiT/?igsh=MWNqN3gyaWdtN2swNg==

It looks so good imo!!

>55 cronshaw: I think the last quarter leather non-LE was Montaigne’s Essays.

I agree that the illustrations look more appealing than the Dunsany but having not read it I couldn’t judge how appropriate they are.

>59 BooksFriendsNotFood: As usual it looks better in the video than the pictures given.

I love the foiling. This and Elfland obviously have generous foiling but even The Moonstone had just the moon foiled on the cover and I really appreciated that XD

It looks beautiful. I'm assuming it will be cheaper than the recent Orwell given it's not coming in an oversized box with stickers included?

Looks great IMO. Hope the price will look great too harhar

Another SE being sold as an LE. The price will make it an easy pass for those who still have discernment.

>64 Inceptic:
Explain please ?

I think what will make this "LE" is really the signatures. I assume it will be signed by the artist and also someone "famous" who writes the intro. If you read the reviews of The King of Elfland’s Daughter someone gave it 4/5 stars and wrote "Wonderful edition. I bought because I am a Dunsany collector. The only quibble I have is that I would have liked them to include Lin Carter's old introduction instead of the new one by Neil Gaiman. But I am glad that I got his signature." so yeah, signatures are big and I bet some people purchased the Dunsany book because they are big Gaiman fans. For Canticle, I have to wait and see how much they jack-up the price for USA customers. It's really hard to justify paying around $500 for such editions when publishers such as Curious King, Suntup, and others releases signed, limited, letterpress editions for under $250!

>64 Inceptic: …an easy pass for those who still have discernment.

“My preciousss!”

>66 astropi: The introduction is by Michael Dirda. A Canticle for Leibowitz wasn't among the 66 titles he chose for Desert Island books in the Washington Post a couple of years ago. The Wind in the Willows, Cold Comfort Farm, The Box of Delights, Nights at the Circus, and The Moving Toyshop all were though, which shows his fine discernment.

Ordered 😊

The early url: https://www.foliosociety.com/uk/a-canticle-for-leibowitz.html

£400, was hoping for KoED price but i'm not going to cry too much over a £25 difference.

Can you see the limitation?

Where does it say how many copies it is? Can anyone see it? I must be blind.

500 copies

>72 santiamen: 500 copies (from picture of limitation page).

At 300 Pounds I would have bought this after seeing the video, but 400 is too rich for my taste, considering what you get here. (And compared what you get from some fine presses these days.) A pity.

edited to add: And with tax and shipping, I'd end up around 460-470 Pounds, too.

>75 SF-72: Roughly $700 inclusive of sales tax and imposed Express delivery...

>75 SF-72: At that price you can get the 2001: A Space Odyssey – Tycho Edition from Amaranthine. Printed letterpress, full leather binding, clamshell case, handmade marble paper, limited to 200 copies...
Or for a bit more you can get the amazing edition of Catch 22 with wood covers.

>75 SF-72: £400 seems like a very decent profit margin for Folio (I don't think it's a very "fair" price)... After this I expect the Hobbit to be £500(+?).

If only this had been a fine (unlimited) edition at £150 or something.

>78 EdmundRodriguez: The problem is that when I compare Canticle LE to SE Dune, The Name of the Rose and few other larger Folio titles on my shelves, I do see it only as a ~150GBP edition...

US $600 is a no go for this retiree. But the illustrations are looking better than feared, and I eagerly await an SE version.

Thucydides was 400£, oversized and fully bound, by hand, in finest Leather.
...
This LE looks very nice in my opinion, but the price... My heart... it hurts...

>80 coynedj: Someone on FB said he asked Folio about a standard edition and they said they weren't planning on doing one.

Of course, they could be lying or change their minds in the future.

>82 santiamen:
If the LE would sell out this week there would be an SE for sure.
They had no plans for an SE for Shadow of the Winds aswell, until the LE sold really really well.

A difficult pass for me, as I was hoping for an FS release for years. I guess it’s time to overcome the denial and bury the grudge; accept that I’m not fit for any of the pricing buckets the new FS is after, enjoy an archive review here and there, and be content with the occasional second hand purchase.

>43 Cat_of_Ulthar: A Canticle for Leibowitz is one of the best science fiction pieces ever written. It’s been recognized and awarded plenty, but I say still that it is underrated. It’s a fine piece of literature and truly funny, it stands out even among other sci fi giants. I highly recommend it, FS version or Spectra paperback.

Posted this in the wrong topic.

Deleted and reposted in 'Folio LE Pricing'

>77 David_Mauduit: I'm sure they are all very nice but, if you want to read Canticle, which I do, they're not it.

>85 User2024: I actually have a cheap paperback (might be NEL or Panther, you know the sort of thing) I picked up recently (probably on amazon) because it's been recommended here before. I just hadn't found/made the time.

Folio's beautiful LE made me finally get around to reading 1984 and I will do the same with this when it arrives :-)

16% surcharge here in the USA. Not going to lie, beautiful book! Still hard to justify with so many other true fine press publications, most of which are around 1/2 (or less) the cost.

I’ve built a nice library of Folio books by purchasing from resellers on eBay and Abe.com. When the dealer is in America, I avoid the overseas shipping charge and often the surcharge as well. It is true that I don’t usually get the latest hot-off-the-press publications, but usually I don’t care.

These prices are tough to swallow. I like this a lot more than 1984. But with Neuromancer also on the horizon I think I'll be hoping for an SE down the line for this one as well.

>91 A.Godhelm:
Me too. 295£ and I would have bought it immediately.
I now can only hope for an SE or that some fine press will do this title aswell.

>87 Cat_of_Ulthar: in that case they should have priced it at 1000 pounds...
The point is that at this price you should expect more, whichever combination of letters are printed on the pages.

The build specs of the 2019 Montaigne volume:

Typeset at The Folio Society in Arno Pro and with Dawnora Initials.
Printed on Abbey Pure paper at Kösel, Krugzell, Germany, and quarter-bound by them in blocked leather with blocked cloth sides

Compare to this LE:

Quarter-bound in blocked leather, with cloth sides printed and blocked with a design by Elliot Lang. Set in Kristal with Rotunda Veneta as display
392 pages printing in black and gold ink throughout on Abbey Pure paper
...
Frontispiece and 11 full-page colour illustrations, two of which are double-page spreads, printed on Gardapat 13 Kiara paper
...
Limitation label printed in black and gold ink on Fedrigoni Marina Conchiglia paper signed by Michael Dirda and Elliot Lang

The only major differences in terms of features are the signatures, numbered limitation, and double page spreads printed on Gardapat 13 Kiara paper.

(I just copied the front matter from the Montaigne, but not stated both have ribbon bookmark, nicer slipcase, gilded edges, etc.)

I was just logging this in my FS spreadsheet and apparently this is exactly my 80th FS book/set and my 17th LE! Time flies.

one third sold

I got to the second chapter in the second section in this book, put it down, and had no desire to ever pick it up again. Highly overrated.

I ended up ordering it. I think this is overpriced, but my wife expressed an interest in reading the story, so I thought I should get a book she might be interested in

>98 DMulvee: Always a good move

>96 dfmorgan:
I wonder how much marketing strategy this really is.
Beowulf is sold one third aswell if you use the shopping cart trick, but they don't notice you about it.

>97 ultrarightist:

Definitely not overrated.

>100 Ragnaroekk: Could it be because Beowulf was released over a year ago and this sold one third within the first 24 hours?

>102 santiamen:
Could be indeed, but then they do add it manually and not automatically.

Here are snaps and initial thoughts. It definitely feels it has more heft to it than from looks alone as it doesn't appear like a large volume. As >79 EPsonNY: mentions it does get lost among other Folio volumes without a solander case to help make it stick out. Interestingly Folio don't mention what kind of leather they used in the colophon. It's not a particularly large LE and feels on the small side but I love smaller LEs that are easier to handle.

I'm still not quite convinced about the illustrations however I think Folio has wrongly pitched the marketing, especially their overemphasis on those illustrations on the listing page (though to be fair it is consistent along with their other listings that sample the standard full page illustrations), as the real star of the show are the drop caps and chapter title pages, some of the best I've seen in a Folio volume. Unlike some other books these caps don't repeat, included are a number of caps beginning with T, there is such a variety. I've never read Canticle before so I can't say for certain whether the caps somehow reflect the story of society making progress again given one of them has a computer chip design and another has a rocket ship. Elliot Lang in the video on the listing page mentions the intention to make it look like an illuminated manuscript but that's pretty much all that's mentioned about them and totally undersells their prominence throughout the book.

Before it was listed I was hoping 375ish and was a little hesitant at the 400 listing though it didn't stop me instantly buying it but now that I've seen the range and the effort put into those drop caps I now have no regrets spending so much on it.

>105 wongie: Excellent typographic design. This is the sort of treatment FS should have given the Name of the Rose.

>105 wongie: Thank you so much for your review 🙏🏼 Looking forward to receiving mine…

>84 bacchus.: This is exactly where I am. I've been begging for it for years, but not at $600. Hard pass, as much as I love the novel.

>108 chrisrsprague: Which is really $689 (and some change) with tax and shipping. Which gave me a pause so I am still mulling over it... It looks like a gorgeous book and I really would like a nice copy of this novel but...

>108 chrisrsprague: >109 AnnieMod: I'd be surprised if a standard edition didn't appear in due course, given the genre - Folio's most profitable - and the small format.

>107 Dr.Fiddy: Seconded. Looks gorgeous :-)

>105 wongie:

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and photos. That's really another example of poor marketing on the part of FS. Those drop caps and chapter title pages are really appealing, and I could imagine that they might not be in two colours in a standard edition. Although at this price, gold foil would have been a nice addition as opposed to what seems to be a light brown? Or is that just the photos? This kind of thing is sometimes hard to catch well in photos.

>112 SF-72: Folio has it down as gold ink, it's quite a subtle metallic effect, not quite as glaring as foil used in past FS illuminated manuscripts or even the gold of the gild edging. I'll see if I can record a video of the shimmer tomorrow in natural daylight and convert it into a gif to post here.

>113 wongie:

Thank you!

As someone who was dismissive of the illustrations, I do admit those drop caps are absolutely lovely.

There are 12 full-color illustrations in the book including 2 double-page spreads, all traditionally hand-crafted with borders added in digitally. The illustrator created the work from cover to cover, and he speaks about it here on his Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/C90Gh-Cx-6h/ (Instagram.com/ellistrator) After looking at the original paintings he posted on his website you can tell that he painted everything, and added the borders afterward. The illuminated drop-caps are gold ink (same as the title pages) and it has a sheen to it. The box is also gold and shiny with a nice heft, with an intricate design and motifs that you can tell the artist kept consistent throughout. It's a complete package and well worth the price in my opinion.

>116 MELDEN: Thanks for sharing your thoughts and the link!

To me the book looks beautiful. I like the illustrations, drop caps, endpapers, bindings, book and slipcase covers and overall design. The price point is the only thing holding me back. In my opinion, and as others have commented, there is better value out there. I am still tempted.

>116 MELDEN: Welcome to LT and FSD :)

>112 SF-72: Here's a video: https://i.imgur.com/6fWWWfr.mp4 Unfortunately it's cloudy today so had to use a desk lamp after all but it actually helps makes the shimmer more apparent. As you can see the gold shimmer effect is quite subtle even with an led pointed right at it, without knowing it was meant to be gold ink and in the wrong lighting I would think it could easily be mistaken for light brown which altogether adds to the rather poor marketing and lack of emphasis on these elements of the production.

>120 wongie:

Thank you very much. I can see it, but as you say, it is very subtle. I did think it was brown in the photos above, and in this price range, I would expect somewhat better gold ink, foiling or some other solution. These decorative elements, so to say, are supposed to be like those described in the novel and in actual medieval illuminated books, and that didn't really work out here. That being said, the art is gorgeous - it's the transfer to the book, the marketing and price that are unfortunately an issue, at least for me.

>105 wongie: thanks for taking the time to post all those photos. I am much more favorably disposed toward this edition than before after seeing the interior design and decorated capitals, though I still think the materials are rather unimpressive for the price.

I actually like the art style. Though, and this is admittedly completely an idiosyncratic preference, I find the spindly tonsured profile on the cover profoundly ugly, and that kind of kills the potentially ornate beauty of the book for me.

It could be an SE buy for me, assuming there is an SE, if they bind in cloth rather than paper (long shot according to recent base rates, I know).

Forgive the tangent, but imagine if the illustrations were in the style of Valenti Angelo like he did for the LEC Song of Roland, but with all the lost tech elements integrated flawlessly. Now that would be a nice take on the story.

>105 wongie: Once again a forum member provides a better sales pitch in pictures than the official marketing. Thanks for the detailed shots.

My copy has arrived. I love it, very glad to have a nice edition of the novel. It had been on my shortlist of titles I wished folio would produce since I first read it. The page design and drop caps etc. are all great, slipcase nice and sturdy.

...But, I really don't know why it's limited to 500 copies and costs £400. It's definitely a clear cut above a standard edition, but it doesn't have anything truly special elevating it beyond a (decent) fine edition.

Ultimately I have absolutely no regrets regarding the purchase, as I really wanted a nice edition of it. I've had plenty of bargains in my collecting, this just isn't one of them.

Received my copy today. My first FS book and - really - my first finer edition of any kind.

It’s a lovely book but I do have one minor question: how (in)tolerant of imperfections is it reasonable to be for an edition of this kind?

There are a couple of quite minor areas where the edge gilding doesn’t seem to have taken properly. It’s really only a couple of patches perhaps 5mm long and the thickness of only a few pages and I honestly don’t know if that’s to be expected or not (never had an edge-gilded book in my life)!

I’m broadly fine with the way it looks now but I guess I wonder if any imperfection could be a starting point for it getting worse in future?

>125 cyber_naut:
Edge gilding is almost never absolutely perfect, and what you describe is probably within acceptable limits.

>126 wcarter: thank you - expectations managed!

I fully intend to enjoy reading the book over the weekend so, assuming I don’t observe any deterioration, I’ll put it out of mind.

>127 cyber_naut: Any gilding can rub off while reading if when turning pages if they are rubbing against something as they turn. I carelessly rubbed the bottom corner off an Easton Press book when reading it on my lap once. Take care.

>128 PartTimeBookAddict: notes, thanks!

In this case these don’t appear to be damage/rubbing per se, just where the gilding hasn’t been applied (so the white of the paper is visible).

>125 cyber_naut:

I would consider gaps in the gilding a flaw depending on their size, but they are certainly not an uncommon one. Whether or not it bothers you is something you'd have to decide. I have kept books with smaller gaps and they didn't get worse through what I would call regular reading, but returned ones with long scratches in the gilding. That can also happen with books directly from the publisher and is something I do have a problem with. What you've got doesn't sound bad or unusual, but that's based on your description. I often find small errors like this near the edges of the gilding, little pinpoints without gilding are also something I've often seen.

Got mine a moment ago. The book is gorgeous. It feels good in the hand. IMO, it’s much more on target than the recent 1984 release, which I also own.

Initial impression is that it is a little smaller than I expected (I should have read the dimensions!), in my mind I assumed it was like the Moonstone. Not sure I see where the extra cost over the Moonstone has gone, but I hope to read it in the next week and then will be in a better position to comment on the overall values

>125 cyber_naut:

A tiny speck of gilt film was still attached to the fore-edge of my copy. It fell off when I opened the book and left the white spot seen in the image. It's not ideal, but I will not be asking for a replacement.

>105 wongie:
Josef Spinner bindery is doing very good SE's. I thought until shortly that Folio wouldn't take them anymore for binding contracts.
I wished this book would have been done by a old school bindery instead of a fully automated one. The knowledge about that together with the price is hard to swallow.

The design and art of this book is really top notch. Really great. I hope for the SE, but don't think it will ever come...

>134 Ragnaroekk:

It would be kind of stupid to design all this and then use it only for a limited edition, but let's wait and see. I guess it will depend on sales.

After reading it (as an ebook to make an informed decision about buying or not), I can say that I think it's a really good novel and I would like to have it in a nice edition, but not at this price. It would take a book I absolutely love to get me to hand over that kind of money for what you get.

I just received an email that over half has been sold.

A customer review of the Riddley Walker LE from the FS site that applies to most of my experiences with FS LEs, including Canticle: "This is a beautiful book. I didn't realise how beautiful until I received and read it." (my emphasis).

I just finished my read through and I'm in awe. Yes, there was the usual reaction when I received the LE of "okay yeah it's beautiful, so what?" and then after reading just a few pages, I remember, "oh yeah, THAT'S what" (THAT being the perfect FS LE reading experience). But way beyond that, something that really makes this edition special is Lang's illustrations. At a very shallow level: the cover. I have a tendency to look at FS doing half-leather covers and think about it as a lazy choice for making a book "special" - that single stripe of leather cutting through the left side of the book is not the height of book design (even though I'll admit that it does fit really well with the vibes of the 3 recent LEs it's been used on, and I'm glad they do make the spines special each time) - but when you're looking at Lang's detailed and compelling cover illustration, you can't really complain about laziness. There's so much to look at before you know anything about the story, and then there's even more to look at once you've finished the book. And of course it just looks really good. But at a significantly deeper level, the plethora of gorgeous, absurdly wonderful illustrations really SHAPE the reading experience in a way that doesn't always happen with illustrated books (or at least it did for me). I've seen people refer to this book as "boring" or "slow", but thanks to these illustrations, I never felt that way even once. In addition, the style and detail of the illustrations directly affected my experience of Canticle — I experienced the world and characters the same way that Lang drew them and brought them to life. There is no other edition of Canticle that would've given me this exact experience, and for that I'm thankful because I cannot imagine a superior way for myself to have experienced this book. Lang brought the wit, humor, and sheer presence of this story to the forefront through his art in a way that I not only could not, but also probably would not bother to put in the effort to attempt if I was just reading any old edition. The impact and placement of the final illustration was the equivalent of a mic drop.

I can easily see myself DNF-ing this story if I had attempted it as a library book or an ebook - the need for instant gratification and whatnot, even when it comes to storytelling - but through this LE I was really able to enjoy and appreciate a book I may not have otherwise picked up, and that's something I really appreciate about FS LEs!

P.S. I almost forgot to mention this, but something I really love is how the pseudo-illuminated drop caps at the beginning of each chapter start out so perfect and neat, and in some of the last few chapters (particularly chapters 27, 28 and 30), they seem to become spotted and damaged or worn-looking where at first you wonder if there's something wrong with your copy, but then you realize that ah, it's a reflection of the state of the world in the story. It's subtle, but really cool imo, and really speaks to the amount of thought that the illustrator put into this book! (I also just scratched the page edge gilding a bit while going back and looking through these last chapters so brb while I regret my life choices.)

>137 BooksFriendsNotFood: Nice to read such a positive review. Good to know the book is bringing pleasure to someone.

>138 Pendrainllwyn: ヅ

>137 BooksFriendsNotFood: You nailed it exactly. And your drop cap note, exactly. Wow, well said.

>140 MELDEN: It's so awesome to hear that you had a similar experience with it! 🙌

Did Folio raise their price on this? Some of the comments remark the price is $400, but on the website it is $600.

Website now says out of stock. The wait for an SE begins. Wrong thread.

>142 nau2002: In the UK, it's £400. In the USA, it's $600 (roughly £468).

>143 A.Godhelm: website shows 154 copies available. Perhaps you mean King of Elfland’s Daughter, which does seem to have sold out.

>145 cyber_naut: You're correct. That's what I get for multi tabbing.

>144 HonorWulf: $835.00 Australian

>97 ultrarightist: Totally get that, I just read this as an e-book and TBH the writing style didn't blow me away with its quality. After reading through to the end though, it's certainly a valuable book (there's a 'Grand Inquisitor'-like section later in the book where a monk is justifying his religious position), and now that I look at the LE it's appealing more and more. The illustrations with their New Mexico Japanese style, and the beautiful binding, endpapers and decorative drop caps and chapter headings (thanks >105 wongie:) now seem bang on to me. I'm tempted but yeah, looking at Catch 22 as well as Flowers for Algernon, I'm not sure I want to spend €530 for this (including tax and postage to Germany). To me it's a beautiful rendition of the book though.

>148 stopsurfing: Perhaps one day I'll give it another try as an e-book. I don't deny that the typography of the FS LE edition is appealing.

68 copies remaining. Seems to be selling fairly well.

Hi, all!

Would someone who already bought a copy kindly post a photo of the page listing the illustrations and their placement in the book? Surprisingly, Folio itself has not been very helpful in this regard when I contacted them directly.

Not sure there was a page stating this?

>151 vorod:

>153 wongie: Thank you! Just what I was looking for :)

I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to mislead!

>155 DMulvee: No worries, all good! :)

6 copies left.

Make that 2.

Make that 0.

>160 3040: the slipcase is good. Thicker and sturdier than the normal standard. It’s a kind of metallic cloth, so feels rougher than you might normally expect. The printing on the slipcase is well done on my copy.

Perhaps the only thing worth noting about the slipcase (the whole edition really) is that it’s a bit smaller than average for LEs at only 9.5 inches all in. That doesn’t bother me in the slightest but don’t expect a lot of ‘shelf presence’!