Lettered Creatures

by Brad Leithauser, Mark Leithauser (Illustrator)

Brad and Mark Leithauser are brothers, born in Detroit in the 1950s. Brad is a bard (the author, most recently, of the novel in verse, Darlington's Fall), and Mark has made his mark as a painter and draftsman. They share the same exquisite family wit, one born in precise observation matched with intellectual playfulness. This wit is on display on every page of this remarkable alphabet book, each spread of which is devoted to an emblematic creature—an appetitive Anteater, an annoying Fly, an addled Joey, a prickly Porcupine, and twenty-two more. On the left of each spread is an eight-line poem; opposite it is a delicate, complementary pencil drawing, reproduced here in exacting duotone. The poems will remind readers sometimes of Marianne Moore, sometimes of Ogden Nash; the detail of the drawings will remind them of John James Audubon and their pointed humor of Tenniel's Alice in Wonderland. But comparisons are odious here: this book is a duet by two great contemporary artists, a unicum by any description.

The Limited Edition Hardcover comes with a signed slipcase.

In this charming yet thoroughly modern emblem book, the animal subjects consider their own significance; they do not allow moralizing meanings to be plastered on them. If the ingenuity with which these animals speak for themselves makes its allusive bow to Marianne Moore and La Fontaine, Brad Leithauser frames his own kind of epigram, with his own tones of pointed observation and with a formal skill few poets still possess. And Mark Leithauser's drawings depict the creatures revealed in the verses—not always the same creatures as their real-world counterparts—with analagous graphic wit. -JohnHollander

Brad Leithauser has both eye-knowledge and heart-knowledge. He is a poet open to the world, and artfully open in what he makes of it. His poems have the high morale which comes of enjoying one's perceptions, finding just the right words for them, and heightening those words with suitable form. -Richard Wilbur

Mark Leithauser's art, often stimulated by his daily contact with global masterpieces at the National Gallery, is both accomplished and thought-provoking. His deft etchings . . . meticulously detailed . . . suggest an affinity with Albrecht D�rer; his trompe l'oeil oil paintings . . . would make John F. Peto, Salvador Dal�, and Richard Estes proud. -Art News

Finally, a work of sublime charm: Lettered Creatures. Author Brad Leithauser and artist Mark Leithauser have created an alphabet book of witty worldliness: the worlds of Anteater, Yaks, and Zedonks. Leithauser's light verse moves nimbly among taut rhythms and relaxed, golden conversation, while on the other side of the spread an image of deeply humorous exactness lovingly looms. Fabulous! -Tom D'Evelyn, Providence Journal

Genres: Poetry, Art

64 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

BRAD LEITHAUSER is a widely acclaimed poet and novelist and the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including a MacArthur Fellowship. This is his seventeenth book. He is a professor in the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University and divides his time between Baltimore and Amherst.

Reviews

[Danielle T · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars, but rounding down for GR. I came across this at Browsers Bookstore when looking for a children's book for a baby shower, and considered it for that purpose (mom to be is a marine biologist) but 1) I really liked the illustrations too and 2) while the prose can be read to children, it definitely feels more... I dunno. Different audience (especially if you read the dustjacket flap). "For adults" though I do think younger readers could get it.

The pen and ink illustrations are far stronger to me than the poetry- didn't really have any strong feelings about most of the poems, but the illustrations are wonderful (I particularly like the pangolin with the pitcher plants even though Sarracenia are native to North America, not Asia). A lovely addition to our shelves.

[Juli Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I"m really not sure how to classify this one. It is an illustrated alphabet book distinctly for an adult audience. The illustrations are splendid and worth a gander. The poetry, however, leaves a great something to be desired, even for light verse. It was clearly written for those who do not commonly read poetry, and I have to admit that some of the overly explicit puns felt condescending. At some times, a delightful turn of phrase or spot of humor made me chuckle, but I more often felt myself rolling my eyes just a tad.

[Jim Mason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whimsical and delightful. Great verse and eye drawing illustration.

[Godine Publisher & Black Sparrow Press · Rating 5 out of 5]

"In this charming yet thoroughly modern emblem book, the animal subjects consider their own significance; they do not allow moralizing meanings to be plastered on them. If the ingenuity with which these animals speak for themselves makes its allusive bow to Marianne Moore and La Fontaine, Brad Leithauser frames his own kind of epigram, with his own tones of pointed observation and with a formal skill few poets still possess. And Mark Leithauser's drawings depict the creatures revealed in the verses – not always the same creatures as their real-world counterparts – with analagous graphic wit."
—John Hollander

"Brad Leithauser has both eye-knowledge and heart-knowledge. He is a poet open to the world, and artfully open in what he makes of it. His poems have the high morale which comes of enjoying one's perceptions, finding just the right words for them, and heightening those words with suitable form."
—Richard Wilbur

"Mark Leithauser's art, often stimulated by his daily contact with global masterpieces at the National Gallery, is both accomplished and thought-provoking. His deft etchings . . . meticulously detailed . . . suggest an affinity with Albrecht Dürer; his trompe l'oeil oil paintings . . . would make John F. Peto, Salvador Dalí, and Richard Estes proud."
—Art News

"Finally, a work of sublime charm: Lettered Creatures. Author Brad Leithauser and artist Mark Leithauser have created an alphabet book of witty worldliness: the worlds of Anteater, Yaks, and Zedonks. Leithauser's light verse moves nimbly among taut rhythms and relaxed, golden conversation, while on the other side of the spread an image of deeply humorous exactness lovingly looms. Fabulous!"
—Tom D'Evelyn, Providence Journal

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Smart playful poems coupled with fantastic pen-and-ink drawings. Incredibly fun.

A book lover's book...not for the Kindle set.