I feel that I need to present an up-front apology that I'm a sciencey person, not a literary person, so a lot of this review focuses on the object created. It is not a critique or assessment of the quality of the chapters and content contributed by individual authors.
The Crumpled Linen Press is a new publisher created to reproduce the manuscripts of M.R. James (and apparently other leading literary figures). The series editors are Paul M. Chapman and Mark Jones... known by many as the 'Doings of Doyle' podcast gentlemen. And what a wonderful logo!
I was incredibly excited when this manuscript series was announced - partly bceause I love James, and partly because I knew how deeply Mark and Paul would think about how to organize and arrange of book centered around a manuscript. I deeply admire the Baker Street Irregulars manuscript series, so seeing this product is an interesting comparison.
The first manuscript book is for 'Oh, whistle and I'll come to you, my lad' was first published in 1904. The cover includes an illustration by Sarah Coomer, which pre-dates its use for this book, but really is perfect as it was 'inspired by Jonathan Miller’s iconic adaptation' of the story. The book is beautiful quality, in a large page format with glossy pages.
Along with the book, there were several 'bonus' items included (I may have had to pay for them). Included in the envelope above were a set of six art prints including two illustrations published with the original story, an extra art card showing the cover of the book, and a whistle (see below). But what I really want to point out above is the most important thing of all - how the book was packaged. The book was thoroughly packaged in padded wrap, and taped, and then shipped in a solid cardboard sleeve box. As a result of this care, the book was absolutely perfect when it was delivered.
The whistle included is the perfect piece 'faux original' item - it is engraved and bears the inscription 'Fur Fla Fle Bis' as shown in the original edition of the story. The editors suggest that owners 'blow it at your own risk'. The hardcover of the book also shows the same 'Fur Fla Fle Bis' - a lovely touch (again!).
To the book itself. Each volume is numbered and signed by Mark and Paul - I wasn't among the privileged with a low number.
To the book itself. Each volume is numbered and signed by Mark and Paul. I assume the numbered the volumes for people based on how much the like them.
To the contents of the volume.
The book opens with a foreword by perhaps the ideal person - Pulitzer Prize-winning book critic and Washington Post columnist, Michael Dirda. Michael has a quite-literally encyclopedic knowledge of literature generally, and Victorian and post-Victorian literature particularly, and his forward a great 'get'.
We then have an Introduction by Mark and Paul, providing a nice overview of the volume and series concept, and background to the story and its creation.
We then get to the center of affairs, and in this book is something I love - BOTH the full manuscript images with transcription, AND an annotated story text (contributed by multiple people). This is truly ideal - I often find I can access annotated editions of stories, or manuscript editions, but rarely if ever BOTH. This manuscript is owned by King's School, Canterbury (just the oldest continually operating school in the world at 1,500 years-ish). One interesting feature is that annotations are from multiple scholars - each annotation is attributed to the contributor. This provides a nicely balanced effect on commentary. The approach is not unique - for example the Baker Street Almanac includes an occasional series of annotated stories with many contributors - but the James annotations are effectively 'first in class' to co-opt a scientific phrase.
Extended commentary on many aspects of the story and the manuscript are contributed in she subsequent chapters. I greatly enjoyed the origins of the publication (and a pretty random Australian connection). It is to be expected that there would be literary commentary on the stories and influences, and I was really impressed that the story of McBryde the illustrator and his friendship with James was given careful attention along with excellent reproductions. Provenance on the manuscript is required and was well-performed. The manuscripts in this series are all held by public institutions rather than private owners, and future editions may be slightly limited by what appears to be a fairly common path to King's or Eton.
An excellent feature of the book structure was three dedicated chapters for each adaptation. This is a wonderful foundation for future books, and assists draw the reader to each adaptation and its highlights, deviations, and weaknesses, in turn.
Copies are available at
Crumpled Linen Press, and you should buy one immediately. It's well worth owning, and continues the tradition of manuscript facsimiles bringing us closer to a literary creator.
Was there anything missing from the volume? I'd love to see what Mark and Paul left on the cutting-room floor. I'd like to see a chapter on the 'cover art' and design motifs for various editions, including dust-wrapper designs. That of course could be created for each volume James created, and parachuted into a future volume with more limited content.
In summary: Congratulations to Paul and Mark - this is the best-designed and presented manuscript volume I've seen!
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