Category Archives: Fine Press Book Reviews

Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham; Published by The Limited Editions Club

Posted on October 19, 2020 by J. Davis

The title of W. Somerset Maugham’s novel has always seemed fraught to me. It seems even more so now. I wondered early on if it might be titillating but then I realized it was written at the end of the … Continue reading →

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Journey Round my Room by Xavier de Maistre; Published by Arion Press

Posted on July 18, 2020 by J. Davis

It’s been 100+ days since the “Stay at Home” order was issued for the state of California. While the state started rolling it back in stages a couple of weeks ago, our COVID cases are spiking and maybe we’ll be … Continue reading →

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The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald; Published by Thornwillow Press

Posted on May 13, 2020 by J. Davis

It seems that many of my school peer-group read The Great Gatsby in high school or college. Somehow, I never did. And for the subsequent 35 years I never got around to F. Scott Fitzgerald. I’d run across his name … Continue reading →

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Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu; Published by Providence Press

Posted on December 29, 2019 by J. Davis

Like it should, the Tao Te Ching  arrived exactly when I needed it. The Tao helped me get through a really rough patch of my life: a dissolving marriage, unbelievable animosity and accusations, and stressful negotiation of parental rights through … Continue reading →

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Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen; Published by Thornwillow Press

Posted on June 25, 2019 by J. Davis

Despite its reputation, somehow Pride and Prejudice remained unread for the first fifty years of my reading life. I’ve read some of her contemporaneous authors and classics but this one escaped my widely-cast net for one reason or the other. … Continue reading →

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Pedro Parámo by Juan Rulfo; Published by Arion Press

Posted on May 21, 2019 by J. Davis

I guess a book resonates with you if you have a dream about being in the town that is the setting of the book. A couple of days after my last reading of Pedro Páramo, I was in Comala, a … Continue reading →

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Moon as Bright as Water; Published by Chester River Press

Posted on March 28, 2019 by J. Davis

As a reader more than a collector, I’m blessed that I enjoy poetry as much as I do. For poetry readers, there is much more reading available in private press books than, say, a reader of novels or other lengthy … Continue reading →

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Dante’s Inferno; Published by Thornwillow Press

Posted on December 9, 2018 by J. Davis

“Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita mi ritrovai per una selva oscura…” “…Midway upon the journey of our life I found myself in a dark wilderness.” So begins Dante’s Inferno, the first in the trilogy that makes up The … Continue reading →

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The Intruder; Published by Midnight Paper Sales

Posted on November 15, 2018 by J. Davis

I have always been intrigued by Gaylord Schanilec’s work but have never had much opportunity to spend time with any of his books other than quick glances at CODEX. That changed when I noticed a friend’s name in a colophon … Continue reading →

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Bartleby the Scrivenor; Published by Indulgence Press

Posted on October 18, 2018 by J. Davis

Ah Bartleby! That most enigmatic scrivener who brought us the famous phrase “I prefer not to.” Bartleby is another interesting and strange character from the pen of Herman Melville, who seemed to have a knack for creating them.

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