美国国家公共电台 NPR When Making Books Was As Much Of An Art As Writing Them

 

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

When was the last time you picked up a book and studied how it was made - the typeface, the feel of the paper, the way the words look on the page? These days, as people read on phones and tablets, some books never even make it to paper. There was a time when bookmaking was an art, as refined and distinct¹ as the writing it presents. In a few places like Monterey, Ky., it is still that way. There, NPR's Noah Adams visited a bookmaker whose limited edition printings are known around the world.

NOAH ADAMS, BYLINE²: I went to Kentucky to spend a day at the Larkspur Press. It is a ways out in the country. The printer, Gray Zeitz, lives on a hillside beyond the low bridge that Sawdridge Creek³. Gray Zeitz has an aging farmhouse⁴ here, his carefully designed two-story print shop. The main press is old black iron. It runs at a stately rhythm. It was made in 1915 by Chandler & Price.

GRAY ZEITZ: I have had, and still do have, printers come in that used to work on presses like this, and they are just tickled⁵ to death.

ADAMS: Gray Zietz did go out shopping for new fonts for the press - the metal letters and numbers, punctuations, different styles of typeface - but he insisted on a point size 14. He was only 22 then, but he knew 14 was big enough to be easy to set and that would make sense for an older printer.

ZEITZ: I did that because I intended to do this all my life.

ADAMS: In the winter of 1974, Gray Zeitz left the University of Kentucky. He was only a half-semester away from finishing an English degree, but he'd been learning letterpress work - the way individually set type makes an impression in high-quality paper - and wanted to publish fine books, especially poetry. The moment seemed right; didn't need electricity at first or indoor plumbing⁶. He'd grow tobacco to sell, they'd raise and sell calves⁷, Kentucky writers would be featured, and they would have special editions that later got pricey, but Larkspur is best known for the books they can sell for $20 or $25.

ZEITZ: There was a point when my wife, Jean, came up to me and said, Gray, you're either going to have to start doing some of these jobs, job printing, or you're going to have to go out and get a job. And I thought maybe I'll do some wedding announcements. And that became interesting to me as well. I didn't - you know, thank goodness my wife forced me into it (laughter).

ADAMS: And so Larkspur Press became the county print shop - some extra money and it helped Zeitz think about design.

(CROSSTALK)

ADAMS: From the start, the neighbors included musicians, painters, candlemakers. They'd hold a festival at Larkspur. They still do. Lots of longtime fans show up from away, including Jack⁸ Campbell, who works in architectural design, but here his attention goes to printing.

JACK CAMPBELL: And this whole concept of texture⁹ and lightness, there's a kind of sensual quality just to the book itself.

ADAMS: And I met Gabrielle Fox who often stops by. She's a professional bookbinder who's done lots of high-end work for Larkspur. Every summer, she goes out to Colorado to teach at the American Academy of Bookbinding.

GABRIELLE FOX: And the books that they sell to their students to begin learning are Larkspur Press books. And the students come from all over the world to that school.

LESLIE SHANE: I have just sewn 20 of this little book of poetry by Erik Reece. It's called "Animals At Full Moon." And now I'm just cutting them apart.

ADAMS: Leslie Shane, the one full-time¹⁰ employee, shows me some of her work. Larkspur only brings out about four books a year, and they can be two years behind. It continues to be the slowest possible printing.

ZEITZ: What I'm doing now is knocking down the type. When the ink's ready, we'll put this on the press and pull a proof and see what we have.

ADAMS: At the end of the day, Gray Zeitz, a letterpress printer for 45 of his 68 years, shuts down his shop, walks at a careful pace up the hill to a house that was long ago painted purple.

(SOUNDBITE OF DOGS BARKING)

ADAMS: His two dogs come over from playing in the creek.

ZEITZ: I don't intend to retire. If I did retire, then I'd just print books, so I might as well stay in business.

ADAMS: Noah Adams, NPR News.

1 distinct   

adj.种类不同的，有区别的，清楚的，明显的

参考例句：

• I had the distinct impression that I was being followed.我清楚地感觉到有人跟踪我。
• The party split into two distinct groups.该党分裂成两个截然不同的团体。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

4 farmhouse   

n.农场住宅（尤指主要住房）

参考例句：

• We fell for the farmhouse as soon as we saw it.我们对那所农舍一见倾心。
• We put up for the night at a farmhouse.我们在一间农舍投宿了一夜。

5 tickled   

（使）发痒( tickle的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）愉快，逗乐

参考例句：

• We were tickled pink to see our friends on television. 在电视中看到我们的一些朋友，我们高兴极了。
• I tickled the baby's feet and made her laugh. 我胳肢孩子的脚，使她发笑。

6 plumbing   

n.水管装置；水暖工的工作；管道工程v.用铅锤测量（plumb的现在分词）；探究

参考例句：

• She spent her life plumbing the mysteries of the human psyche. 她毕生探索人类心灵的奥秘。
• They're going to have to put in new plumbing. 他们将需要安装新的水管。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 calves   

n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子，腓；腿肚子( calf的名词复数 )；牛犊；腓；小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 )；（冰川）崩解；生（小牛等），产（犊）；使（冰川）崩解

参考例句：

• a cow suckling her calves 给小牛吃奶的母牛
• The calves are grazed intensively during their first season. 小牛在生长的第一季里集中喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

9 texture   

n.(织物)质地；(材料)构造；结构；肌理

参考例句：

• We could feel the smooth texture of silk.我们能感觉出丝绸的光滑质地。
• Her skin has a fine texture.她的皮肤细腻。

10 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。