The Hill is a collaborative work comprising text by Max Porter and engravings by Hilary Paynter, who are jointly credited as authors. It was published by Nomad Letterpress and Beaufort Bookshop of Bath in 2023 in a limited edition of 900 copies. Of these, 26 special lettered copies are bound in leather by Roger Grech and are presented in a solander box along with a portfolio of signed prints (pre-publication price for these specials: £1,095, full price: £1,200). But here I’ll be looking at one of the remaining 874 ordinary numbered copies which were offered at a pre-publication price of £60 (full price: £90).
There’s no slipcase on this occasion. But we receive a book with boards covered in a very nice charcoal-grey Fabriano paper. It is printed in black with an enlargement from one of Paynter’s wood engravings. This design of an enlarged relief print against a lighter background of similar hue is one that we have seen coming out of Whittington before (e.g., Britten’s Aldeburgh, Venice, Ebble Valley, Diary of an Apple Tree, and Midwinter). Those are among my favourite books, so it was great to see a similar presentation here. Overlaid on top of the grey paper is a strip of ivory-coloured Bugra-Bütten paper that stretches about two-thirds of the way across the width of the front board and wraps around little way onto the back. It is printed with the tile and authors’ names to the front, and a small typographic ornament on the spine. This contrasting overlay gives a distinctly modern sensibility to that classic design I mentioned, and I like it. The sewn binding has silver end bands and the endpapers are a black laid stock. The binding of the ordinary copies was handed by Green Street Bindery in Oxford, who I think have done a pretty good job. My copy came wrapped in a poster advertising the book’s launch event—a nice touch.
The book measures a square 260mm × 260mm (10¼˝× 10¼˝) and contains 36 pages of Zerkall mould-made paper. The top edge is trimmed while the bottom and fore edges have been left with a deckle. As many readers will know, the Zerkall mill, which supplied nice paper for many excellent editions, was forced to end operations in 2021 after catastrophic flooding in the area. The Hill is therefore printed on some of the last sheets ever to be produced, which is a real shame because I am very fond of their cotton-rich smooth fine papers.
Here’s something cool: turning past the endpapers, we get our first blurry glimpse of the title page—blurry because it is viewed through an intervening sheet of translucent paper. This paper, perhaps oriental in origin, is similar in appearance to tracing paper but with much nicer pliability and both a rough and a smooth side. Printed on this frosted window into the book’s world is simply “Any Hill. Overlooking any town.” we are thus invited to peel our way through the mist, turning the page to reveal a clear view of the title. As an aside, I first saw this design trick of printing onto translucent papers that reveal something of the material beneath in a preview of Gaylord Schanilec‘s American Crow. I liked it then and I still like it now: it certainly gave me a minor thrill of exploration. It’s a feature that will also be repeated a few pages later.
The title page is, in some respects, a simple affair. But this gives maximum exposure to the title itself, which has been elaborately carved into wood by Hilary Paynter. Paynter’s engravings throughout are richly detailed and bursting with life. Some have multiple layers of interest receding into the background. Other are packed with features to entertain those willing to spend more than a few moments looking at them. There are ten illustrations ranging in size from almost full-page to miniature vignettes. This number does not include the engraved title, or the small engraved “NL” on the colophon page. As one would expect from the press, the reproduction of these intricate engravings is flawless.
Max Porter is an award-winning author perhaps best known for his maiden novel, Grief is a Thing With Feathers. Like that book, The Hill occupies a kind of liminal territory between prose and verse and has a distinctly experimental flavour. Indeed, from James Thomas‘ afterword, which gives a brief but instructive account of the book’s artistic genesis, we learn that the text was cut up sentence by sentence and placed into a mixing bowl to be rearranged in collaboration. I think it will be appreciated particularly by my British compatriots and others who can decode the minor and mundane cultural references littered throughout like so many discarded packets of Quavers.
The text is set primarily in Walbaum, with the occasional use of Stern Pro, in various sizes. It is also arranged artfully on the page, sometimes in isolated fragments, sometimes wrapping around images, sometimes even spilling onto the adjacent page. Typographically, it’s a pretty interesting book to look at.
In sum, this is another great example of fine press publishing from Nomad Letterpress. I see it appealing not only to those who follow the steady flow of material coming out of Whittington, but those who know and like Max Porter’s writing, those who appreciate fine wood engraving, those who enjoy books that evoke a bucolic England, and those who are looking for a way to sample modern private press publishing at a modest and reasonable price. I’d gladly recommend the book to people in all of these categories. ■
Where to buy
At the time of writing, the ordinary and special lettered editions are still available directly from Nomad Letterpress and readers are cordially encouraged to exhaust this supply before searching elsewhere.
Those reading at a time when the book is out of print and has had time to filter through to the secondary market can look for used copies at eBay US*, eBay UK*, AbeBooks US*, or AbeBooks UK*.
You can view what other editions from Nomad Letterpress are currently in print at the press’ online shop. Or you can browse Nomad Letterpress editions in the secondary market at eBay US*, eBay UK*, AbeBooks US*, or AbeBooks UK*.
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Miscellaneous
Here is the official page for this publication at the Nomad Letterpress website.
You can also visit the websites of Max Porter and Hilary Paynter.
The press released the following video about the book and its production:
The Ubiquitous Book blog 