Episode 126: More Japanese Binding

The first picture is a picture of my be-jeaned knees. Pretty, no? Between the knees you can see the kado-kami (edge papers) that support the text block and go under the cover and around the corners at the head and foot of the book. You can also see the thread wrapping around the edges.

This second picture is of the covers of the two recycled volumes of The Priests of Hiroshima: An Historical Love Story. What is the story about? A medical student and a Japanese student discover an antique bookstore in Istanbul with a talking cat that has perfected time travel. They go back to Mainz, Germany to watch Gutenberg build his printing press, avoid arrest, watch a nun and priest fall in love, and discover their joy of life. Nothing whatsoever to do with Hiroshima or those semi-famous priests.

One of the better things about the Japanese binding? It can be done fairly quickly with no waiting around for glue to dry. (Except for the kado-kami.)