Some Frogs Have Their Own Rocks, Variations on a Theme from the Bark River

Always interested in frogs since I live in Frogtown, I found Claire Wiest's drawings so charming. She has attained just the right blend of realistic animal form and a little anthropomorphic human expression with the economy of line of a Chinese master; an accomplished artist indeed. "Some Frogs Have Their Own Rocks" features twenty original lino-block cuts by Claire Wiest, interpreting a fragment of life on the Bark River in southeastern Wisconsin. This is the first full length book conceived and completed in our tiny printery. In line and word we hope to entertain you with a unique view of life on the river. We also hope this book will stimulate your interest and involvement in the little presses, especially ours. "Some Frogs . . . " is published by hand in the tradition of the early private presses, and is a blend of original writing, hand-cut lino-blocks, letterpress printing and hand-sewn binding. It offers you, the reader, not only a story, but also a complete and original work of art. Some details in this book required particular attention. For instance, in those books using Fabriano all rag paper, the title page, and the colophon were printed damp to avoid over-impression. Each page was hand cut using a carpenter's square and a mat knife to preserve the paper's natural deckle edge. This edition of "Some Frogs . . ." was not casebound, but fully sewn on linen tapes, the boards being attached later in the forwarding process. The pages of this book were individually handled from twelve to fifteen times, with stray ink, dirt, fingerprints, and crooked set-ups constantly threatening the tranquillity of our printery. Now the hazards are past; the printing and binding is complete. We hope you'll enjoy some frogs with us. Tall 8vo. Light brown cloth stamped in black. Unpaginated. Written and illustrated by Claire Wiest. Edited, printed and bound by Robert Wiest. Copy #22 of 25 printed on Fabriano all rag paper. End papers, Moetachi Japanese design paper. Binding, hand sewn on linen tapes. Typeface, Goudy Old Colony, 12, 18, & 24 point.…