Heroes & Criminals Press ~ Iowa
(Jessica White)

Lost Land
By Lawrence Pun (English translation by Michael Judd)
Iowa City: Heroes & Criminals Press, 2009. Edition of 50.

5 x 7"; 34 pages. Dos-à-dos construction. Letterpress printed from metal type and photopolymer plates on Nideggan paper. Text in English and Chinese. Hornet's nest used for cover decoration on Twinrocker paper. Includes two drypoint intaglio frontispieces by Jessica C. White. Cover of handmade Twinrocker paper. Cover paper decorated with segments of hornet's nest.

Heroes & Criminals Press: "This book includes both the original Chinese and the English translation of The Lost Land, a short story about memories, life, and death in the guise of progress, by Lawrence Pun, a writer and teacher based in Hong Kong."

This was Jessica White's Final Project for the UICB certificate. Lawrence Pun was in the International Writing Program in Iowa City.

Jessica White: "This is a modern day fairy tale about Mnemosyne, a self-proclaimed 'witch of memories' living in a cave located in an overgrown and crumbling playground. People come to seek her help, but ultimately it's up to each individual to construct a personal past and future. In the end, it's Mnemosyne who has no control of her own destiny, and is buried in the destruction of these ancient sacred grounds for the sake of commercial progress. The story is by Lawrence Pun, an award-winning author based in Hong Kong."
$200

Beasts of Burden
quotation by Henry David Thoreau
Iowa City, Iowa: Heroes & Criminals Press, 2007. Edition of 30.

3.5 x 9.625" closed, extends to 42"; 13 pages. Accordion structure, last page attached to back board. Printed and bound at the University of Iowa Center for the Book from pressure prints. Handset Bembo on Rives Lightweight paper.

A ghostly panorama of animals with a quotation from Henry David Thoreau: "They are all beasts of burden in a sense made to carry some portion of our thoughts."
$65

ELEPHANTS
A practical guide
By Jessica White
Iowa City, Iowa: Heroes & Criminals Press, 2007. Edition of 30.

4.75 x 6"; 10 pages. Printed from hand-set Palatino type on Arches Text laid paper at the University of Iowa Center for the Book. Hand-sewn stab binding.

A chapbook about elephants, with original wood engraving. Text derived from Wikipedia, "copyleft 2007."

Jessica White: "This book is dedicated to all bibliophiles who love to look at fine press books, not necessarily to read them."
$25

By Jessica White
Iowa City, Iowa: Jessica White, 2005. Edition of 10.

6.5 x 5.75" case. Images from 1903 Gray's Anatomy. Printed on Canson Ingres.Fold out pages similar to a flutter construction.

Jessica White: "The images are from the 1903 edition of Gray's Anatomy, and yes, the title page echoes the wording from that book, with slight changes such as my name inserted as the author (J.C. White). The rest of the text is original (by me), as well as the drawings of 'secrets' that are integrated with the anatomy images. The book is essentially about the ways that I imagine secrets enter into and affect a person physically before becoming lodged, maybe permanently, in the kidneys. This idea came up during a time when a friend of mine was dealing with kidney stones."

Text: "The secret will often lodge in one throat, creating the sensation of a lump. This may result in difficulty in swallowing and a lack of breath."
$100