The Cosmic Sidereal Galactic Abecedarium of the Universe & Other Tangential Star Ephemera

Sibyl Rubottom & Jim Machacek

The Cosmic Sidereal Galactic Abecedarium of the Universe (& Other Tangential Star Ephemera)

By Sibyl Rubottom, Jim Machacek
San Diego, California: False Bay Editions, 2001. Edition of 26.

8 x 8" 20 page. As the title promises, this ABC extravaganza covers a lot of (mostly) extraterrestrial territory. Each letter of the alphabet boasts five representative words: "N is for Newton Neptune Nova NASA and Nebula." At least one word from each list is expounded upon either textually or pictorially. Pages come alive with windows, fold-out features, tipped-in plates, simple pop-ups and books within the book, including a small accordion and a rotating flexagon. Full of brief quotations from such sublunary luminaries as Shakespeare, Whitman, Byron, Wilde, et al. Longer textual excerpts from Eudora Welty and Floyd Skloot convey contemplations of the night sky. A sense of playful exploration abounds. Each name or term is explained briefly in a glossary that is three vertical pages mounted onto a printed card that slips out of a planetary pocket like a Tarot card. Letterpress text from Venus and Clarendon types with visuals created using photopolymer plates, wood type, monoprinting, digital imaging, and a zinc plate for the cover. Papers are Somerset Book, Fabriano Rosaspina Bianco and Rives BFK. The wraparound cardstock cover is fully printed and tabs closed at the front. It prominently features the Taurean Bull emerging from among the constellations. Star-speckled translucent end sheets complete the effect. A colorful cornucopia of the cosmos!