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Simon Snootle Book Reviews
Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories
© 2009 Lorin Morgan-Richards
'From my Bookshelf' blog spot, reviewed by Tapestry100
I receive an email not too long ago from Lorin Morgan-Richards wondering if I would mind reviewing his book, Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories. I'm leery of reviewing home-published books; I've received some less that stellar books this way in the past, but I thought I'd at least do a little research and looked the book up on Amazon and LibraryThing. After discovering that it has received 5 stars across the board at both of these sites, I thought I'd go ahead and offer to review it.
Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories is a collection of seven short stories that introduce us to a variety of characters who all live very bizarre lives. For instance, Simon Snootle himself lives in a cistern with some cats, where he fell as a child and his parents never bothered to pull him out, in fear of what else may come up with him; or Mr. Slowbug, who may or may not have discovered that he is forever more going to be a fashion accessory. The stories are quirky and unusual and the accompanying illustrations fit the mood of the stories perfectly. I honestly think that unless you are a fan of the likes of Edward Gorey or Tim Burton, you probably won't get much out of these stories; but the Gorey and Burton fans will love this book.
What makes the volume really shine, however, is the physical book itself; it is handmade! In the author's own words: "...I wanted to make sure I had a personal connection with how each book was created...writing, illustrating, drafting, printing, binding, and pressing each by hand." To say that Lorin Morgan-Richards made a small work of art out his book is an understatement. The book is printed on acid-free paper and bound in a faux-leather cover, and the finished product is a loverly little edition that has a slight quirkiness and imperfection to itself that goes right along with the characters that are held inside it's pages; honestly, I could easily see this sitting on any bookshelf in any store, it is so well presented.
Fans of Gorey and Burton and the like, don't hesitate to pick a copy up for yourself, as I don't think you will be disappointed. Morgan-Richards has created a host of fun characters and has given them a place to live in a beautiful, homemade book. The stories are quick and it won't take you much time at all to finish reading the book, but the overall package and the effort that Morgan-Richards put into his book from start to finish will certainly impress you as it did me.
Bergers Book Reviews - reviewed by Alice Berger
In picking up Simon Snootle and Other Small Stories, one immediately notices the fine craftsmanship in creating this little book. Each copy is assembled entirely by hand with acid free linen paper and faux leather.
This collection of short stories tells of characters who have fallen into misfortune, sometimes literally, and can’t quite seem to figure out how to get out of it. The title character, Simon Snootle, spends most of his life in a cistern with the neighborhood cats, a boy desperately longs to be an earwig, and a shrub loves to steal hats and hairpieces. No happy fates await these poor lost souls.
In a style reminiscent of Edgar Allen Poe crossed with Edward Gorey, Lorin Morgan-Richards presents these gloomy tales of dark humor. They serve as a reminder that no matter how bad our lives may seem, they’re nowhere near as bad as they could be. At least we can still laugh at the absurdities of life.
Disdeinen.net, reviewed by Disdain
When I first opened the envelope I was taken completely aback by the physical construction of this book. From the inset hard-cover to the luxuriant quality of the paper this is a book you almost want to leave on display as a piece of art.
The physical beauty of this book is no mistake: author Lorin Morgan Richards hand-made it.
Simon Snootle and Other Small Stories is a collection of short works, which all together make what seems like a Gothic storybook. The overall effect is darkly charming and rather romantic, an effect brought together by the pen-and-ink illustrations and choice of typography, which has a slightly rough quality. The stories are economical (some no longer than a page), and all have a literary feel to them, something that makes one think this book heralds from a different era.
It is obviously quite rare to come across a hand-made book, so I decided to ask the author to elaborate on the influences behind this very creative work.
Disdeinen.Net: The feel of the paper and the cover design really enhance the illustrations -- did you have a specific aesthetic in mind when choosing the materials?
Lorin Morgan Richards: In choosing my materials I wanted to keep an organic feel to the book. Some might consider this an art book, but I was really just trying to give it some life. Having seen what is being printed by majors these days with poor quality paper, I wanted to provide the reader with a book that carries more value near the same price and that can last for generations. Nothing would be more inspiring to me than to know my books are treasured like an heirloom.
DdN: Was there any particular inspiration for the book -- did you have a theme in mind that the stories were written for?
LMR: Inspiration has come from dreams and life experiences. For example, my first story 'Simon Snootle' about a boy that has fallen into a cistern with the neighborhood cats is inspired by my childhood when I always had like 20 cats around, and we did use a well and cistern, a type of holding tank, for our bath water instead of being hooked in to city water pipes. This meant that there were times we had to go down and clean the cistern out. There, I remember seeing all sorts of strange things like fish and frogs and could never figure out how they appeared. Over time I realized they must have either fell in, came from birds, or originally been bucketed from the well.
DdN: How long have you been making books? What kind of time commitment is involved with producing this type of book?
LMR: This is my second book. The first of which has been shelved temporarily. I have been writing stories since I was a child, and my other muse is of course music. Each book takes approximately 1 and half hours to make by hand. Thankfully, bookbinding can be very therapuatic.
DdN: The illustrations have a distinctive look -- were they created using illustration software or "classical" techniques (ie: pen-and-ink), and what was the reason for using the technique you did?
LMR: I prefer the use of pencil, pen and ink. However I'm not opposed to use watercolor sparingly. My interests are in the Victorian and Edwardian era illustrators, and I have a deep fondness for the use of early woodcuts and old quilting patterns.
DdN: What would you consider the intended audience for these stories?
LMR: My audience mainly consists of those that enjoy satire and dark humor. People that take themselves too seriously probably would not get my jokes.
DdN: Name a few of your favorite writers, visual artists, or filmmakers -- what inspires you about their work?
LMR: Local to Los Angeles, I appreciate cartoonist Angus Oblong and Roman Dirge. I also find the old Victorian photo manipulation of Mark Mothersbough entertaining, as well as films by Crispin Hellion Glover. Outside of authors like Edward Gorey, Edward Lear, and Charles Addams, I find folktales and their origins very interesting. A few years back, I took a trip through Germany following the fairytale road, the path by which the Grimms Brothers collected their stories (they were actually first collected by Frau Viehmannin). It was fascinating to see how local customs affected the stories. For instance, in the story of little red riding hood the red cloak and outfit the child wore was traditional to that specific area [Schwalmstadt]. So I went on to study folklore in college, and focused on Native American cultures.
DdN: Do you have any new projects in the works? If so, can you tell a bit about them?
LMR: I am currently writing a new novel about the caretakers of a funeral home, and I have another set of short stories I am finishing up for next year entitled 'A Boy Born from Mold'.
Macabre Cadavier, reviewed by Emmanuel Paige
Upon first receiving Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories I was immediately impressed by the craftsmanship. It is obvious that the author has put heart and soul into this work of art. This book is hand crafted, stitched and bound using faux leather, and illustrated by the author. There are 19 illustrations and 68 pages on acid free paper. It comes with a nice built in bookmark.
Lorin Morgan-Richards has a unique tone and style all his own, and the stories are told in a fashion that pulls the casual reader in with wonderful fancy and the magical quality of good story telling. The high quality illustrations are rendered in sharp crisp lines and add to the wonderment instilled by these fanciful tales. The book contains seven short stories that are reminiscent of Shel Silverstein, Dr. Seuss, and Daniel Handler.
Simon Snootle was such a gracious host is a story of a boy that falls into a cistern and lives there with the neighborhood cats.
Mr. Slowbug and Ms. Shellquick is a tale about a slow moving man who sees ghosts , a fast moving woman who sees very little, and a strange kind of purse.
Peter Puddlestick and the Precious Plot is the story of a man who finds an odd sort of pet in the middle of the road and takes it home for keeps.
The Life of Otto Loud is a strange little tale of a man who likes to drink a bit too much.
The Callous Shrub is a tale of a shrub and Mr. Beufus T. Diver who loses all of his toupees when passing by the shrub.
The Earwig and Mrs. Snipit is the story of a boy who befriends an earwig and how he gets lost one day on the school bus.
The Boy Who loved Beef Sandwiches is a tale of a gluttonous boy who gets his just deserts after dining on a wild boar.
Simon Snootle and OTHER small stories will delight adults and children alike, renewing them with the magic and wonder of story. This is a keepsake book and, in a modern world where books can be created and printed in minutes, this one stands out as refreshingly unique and a true work of art.
Fatally Yours - For the Love of Horror, reviewed by Fatally Yours
In this tiny tome, author Lorin Morgan-Richards has woven the most whimsically woeful stories this side of Edward Gorey! While the seven stories and their accompanying illustrations are sure to delight, the binding and the outside cover of the book are sure to thrill as well. For, you see, the book is all hand-bound by the author and has the look and feel of a book that will be treasured for many years to come. In fact, it feels more like an heirloom art piece from the Victorian era than a book, but then that would discount its many imaginative stories contained inside!
Book Description:
Simon Snootle and Other Small Stories describe seven misguided tales of humorous woe by several downtrodden characters that are simply looking to be themselves. The book begins with Simon Snootle, a meager young man who lived most of his life at the bottom of a cistern with neighborhood cats. He is not aware of any tragedy of the situation, but rather makes the best of it, knowing that eventually more things will fall in as he did.
Simon Snootle is a unique and peculiar book and those with an appreciation for darker literature and odd tales in the tradition of such Gorey classics as The Gashlycrumb Tinies will no doubt cherish this pocket-sized collection of “small stories”. Its hopeless gothic romantic stance coupled with dark satirical humor and whimsical illustrations will definitely appeal to kindred spooky souls of mine who don’t take themselves or life too seriously.
Mentenebre Magazine (in Spanish)
Lorin Morgan-Richards es un escritor e ilustrador de Los Angeles que acaba de debutar en el panorama literario actual. Su propuesta es muy original y, dados los tiempos que corren, parece esta es una de las pocas vías para abrirse camino en el duro panorama literario. Para ello ha decidido elaborar sus libros de manera totalmente artesanal y en edición estrictamente limitada.
Lorin ha tenido la gentileza de pensar en Mentenebre como una de sus vías para la promoción y hemos recibido con mucha ilusión un trabajo tan especial como lo es este.
Se trata de un pequeño librito de unas dimensiones apenas e un DIN A6, con lo que todo en él es pequeñito: los textos y las simpáticas ilustraciones. Siguiendo esta tónica sus historias son también pequeñitas, microcuentos.
Cuando he leído los cuentos me han recordado a los increíbles cronopios de Julio Cortázar, pero en esta ocasión más que ingeniosos los cuentos tienen un cierto toque de humor y retratan a personajes de singulares caracteres que miran hacia si mismos y poseen una personalidad cuanto menos especial. Desafortunadamente mi inglés no es tan bueno como para captar todas las sutilezas de su lenguaje y que sin duda son el punto clave para disfrutar plenamente de estos microrrelatos.
Afortunadamente están las ilustraciones que sirven de apoyo al texto, nos sirven para visualizar a los personajes, y en ocasiones sirven de aclaración para el contexto de los cuentos. Son unos dibujitos un tanto naif, pero resultan la mar de simpáticos.
El conjunto tiene por tanto un gran encanto, es un librito muy especial y que quiero recomendar, sobre todo a aquellos lectores con cierto nivel de inglés, necesario para captar en toda su dimensión el mensaje que quiere trasladarnos Lorin Morgan-Richards. La manera de adquirirlo es vía internet. Si lo quieres date prisa en conseguirlo. Lo disfrutarás.
Dread Central, reviewed by Elaine Lamkin
When I received my copy of the charmingly macabre (and completely handmade) book Simon Snootle and Other Small Stories, the first thought that went through my mind was Tim Burton and his The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy as well as Edward Gorey’s The Gashlycrumb Tinies. Burton’s book tells the gruesome tales of lonely, misunderstood children while Gorey’s classic is a lesson in learning one’s ABCs via the strange demises of 26 children.
Morgan-Richards’ beautifully hand-crafted little book also tells strange tales, but her stories are more like those from the Brothers Grimm or Hans Christian Andersen. The title story tells the tale of a young man who has lived most of his life at the bottom of a cistern along with many of the neighborhood cats. He does not see his situation as anything odd because he knows that eventually everything he needs will find its way into the cistern. The other six stories are equally woeful but not necessarily hopeless.
I love this book! The seven stories are all unusual: "The Callous Shrub," "The Boy Who Loved Beef Sandwiches" and "The Earwig and Mrs. Snipit" are among the other tales told. And the little book (4-1/2" by 5-1/2") is a lovely little treasure. Morgan-Richards writes, illustrates, drafts, prints, binds and presses each book by hand, making each book slightly different from the other.
This is truly a collector’s item and one fans of Gorey and Burton will thoroughly enjoy.
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