In doing some research for a feature I’m putting together about unusual book bindings, I came across the book Bizarre Books by Russell Ash and Brian Lake. I immediately think this is a book I want to read, and possibly own. I love when people are so passionate about books that they write something like this. It makes the world, to my mind, more interesting, more accessible, and more connected. I’m going to order my copy as soon as I’ve finished writing this blog.
In stark contrast to the synopsis of Glenn Beck’s The Christmas Sweater, this synopsis has me itching to read the book.
In the course of their writing and publishing careers, Russell Ash and Brian Lake have collected hundreds of the book trades most bizarre titles. From unintended double entendres (Making It in Leather) and astonishingly specialized subjects (Great Locomotive Boiler Explosions) to weird books on sex (Sodomy and the Pirate Tradition), and religion (Hell: Where Is It?), the authors have left no page unturned in their quest. Along the way, they have also catalogued some noteworthy authors, including Violet Organ, Fernando Poo, Bishop Frediricus Nausea, and O. Hell. A final section looks at publishing curiosities, from unusual book bindings (a “fireproof” edition of Fahrenheit 451 bound in asbestos boards) to unfortunate tributes (Venereal Disease and Its Prevention, “affectionately dedicated” to the authors wife). Now revised and updated, Bizarre Books is a guaranteed good laugh.
Doesn’t that sound great?
