I'd been following Greying Ghost on Twitter for quite awhile, but it was only a few months ago that I actually checked out their Tumblr and etsy store. And that was all it took to kickstart my intense obsession with this Massachusetts chapbook publisher!
Founded in 2007, Greying Ghost is an all-hands-on-deck, do-it-yourself publisher who creates all of their books in-house - from printing to binding to shipping. Each book is released as a hand numbered limited edition (usually of 75 or 100) and feature covers that are hand stamped or pressed with some of the coolest and most unique designs I have ever seen. The end papers, some of which are vintage news articles and sheets of music, are TO DIE FOR. This publisher has quite the eye for art. And that's one of the things that really hooked me - their books are works of art. Sure, you'll want to read them, but mostly, you'll be lusting after them as physical objects.
When I initially checked them out online, I unabashedly requested a few titles (they have 57 at the moment) for review. Their chapbooks run anywhere from page counts in the mid-teens to high twenties. And they read like swift sucker punches to the gut and violent slaps in the face, which is to say, I had severe physical reactions to their content.
Of the chaps they sent me - Treesisters, Going Attractions, Pistachio & Iris, and Profil Perdue - Treesisters was my favorite story. Joseph Riippi writes the most amazing prose... "When they find you, tell your reasons with your fingers." Pistachio & Iris is the most lovely looking with its dark grey cover and circular punchout, the electric blue end papers... if their books don't make you feel SOMETHING, you must be dead.
Greying Ghost goes beyond the chapbook, though. Recycling as much as they can, they create and sell gift tags, greeting cards, and other gorgeous items in their etsy store, by using leftover and unused paper from their books. I dare you not to fall in love with this publisher!!
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