This book has been two years in the making and is a Fine Press edition of a pulp classic.
To create this edition, we are using binding and stitching methods that can only be done by hand craft binders, along with full metal (monotype) letterpress and relief prints. This, combined with large fold-out colour illustrations, will create an impressive and exciting reading experience.
‘Who Goes There?’ by John W Campbell Jr. was first printed in 1938. It is considered a sci-fi classic and, in 1973, the story was voted by the Science Fiction Writers of America as one of the finest science fiction novellas ever written. The story has been directly adapted to film, first in 1951 as ‘The Thing from Another World’ by Christian Nyby and again in 1982 as ‘The Thing’ by John Carpenter.
In 2018, it was discovered that ‘Who Goes There?’ was actually a shortened version of a larger novel previously written by Campbell. The expanded manuscript including an entirely different opening, titled Frozen Hell, was found in a box of manuscripts sent by Campbell to Harvard University.
We present the full unedited novel version of FROZEN HELL.
ARETE SAY:
When Phil and I started Arete I wanted to create books which felt like the kind of books that artists from the early part of the 20th century produced. Books like Matisse’s ‘Jazz’ – huge volumes which gloriously showed the art in large sizes.
We thought why not make a contemporary version of those books?
Arete are pleased to present to you:
FROZEN HELL
by John W Campbell Jnr.
ROMAN
The Roman edition is limited to 30 copies for sale and is half-bradel bound in white Harmatan ‘Katsina’ goatskin leather with multiple cut-outs to the front board.
The ice cave structure on the front board of this huge edition is created with multiple layers of thin binder’s board hand cut and laminated together. The leather is then painstakingly moulded and formed by hand until the layers reveal themselves. Once the leather is set, the inside of the ice cave is carefully foil blocked in two colours. Both the front and back boards for this edition are around 10mm thick which creates a considerable and weighty book.
All of the plates are tabbed or sewn in, allowing the double, treble and quad plates to open out without a stitched gutter.
The endpapers for this edition are an original, hand marbled design by Freya Scott of Paperwilds.
The book comes housed in a half-bradel bound solander box, also covered with Harmatan ‘Katsina’ goatskin leather. The front board is split to create a crevasse in which the buried flying saucer lies. The saucer is foil blocked in three colours and the edges of the crevasse are hand cut from board before the leather is applied and then carefully moulded around the jagged edges. On the spine is a silk paper label, foil blocked in two colours. The solander box trays are double thickness and are covered in white Colorado cloth and lined with white suede and white leather. The large tray contains a foil blocked silhouette of the ‘thing’. Inside the small tray, under the book, is a cloth bound portfolio with a three-sided pocket containing an original, mounted sketch by Greg Manchess.
Binding is by Richard Tong and Sam Cartwright at Lyra’s Books/Ludlow Bookbinders.
You can see videos of how this edition is created HERE
Printed letterpress in two colours by Phil Abel and Robert Hetherington on a
Heidelberg cylinder press at Hand & Eye Editions.
Set in metal monotype Baskerville 12pt.
Cast by Nick Gill at Effra Press.
The paper is Magnani Pescia 160 gsm
Trimmed page size –260mm x 390mm / 10.25in x 15.35in.
Page count – 166
Number of illustrations – 16 colour plates, 2 four-page foldouts, 4 double page spreads and 1 three-page foldout plate.
13 black and white relief printed illustrations.
Signed by the artist Greg Manchess.
Limitation – 40 copies of which 30 are for sale and 10 Hors de Commerce
Price: £2950
You can follow clips and information on our blog here: https://arete-editions-blog.com/ and on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AreteEditions
ESTIMATED PUBLICATION Spring 2024
Published editions may differ slightly from mock-ups and prototype designs.