Feather, Leaf, Bark & Stone

Description

Feather, Leaf, Bark & Stone is a book of poems and meditations with a difference. More than a hundred short texts have been typed onto small squares of gold leaf, then photographed. These pieces are arranged in a sequence which culminates in a glorious final section made up of texts typed directly onto leaves, bark and feathers. This book is full of the light and wind that fills the Pembrokeshire coast where it was crafted, each page anchored to the landscape by the mechanical rhythm of Jackie's antique typewriters. The result is a collection of individual artworks to be both looked at and read. It is poetry re-imagined by a visual artist; words transformed back into their original function as images. Feather, Leaf, Bark & Stone announces a new departure for Jackie Morris and confirms her as an artist and writer at the peak of her power.

Jackie Morris is an author and illustrator. She studied illustration at Hereford College of Art and Bath Academy and has written and illustrated more than fifteen books. The Lost Words, co-authored with Robert Macfarlane, won the Kate Greenaway Medal 2019 and Morris was nominated again for The Unwinding in 2021. She lives in Pembrokeshire. @JackieMorrisArt

For Jackie Morris: 'Beautiful, lyrical and lovely' Joanne Harris on The Wild Swans 'Jackie Morris does more than tell a story; she conjures glorious landscapes of the heart' Meg Rosoff For The Unwinding: 'The tales feel like half-remembered dreams, peopled with fairytale characters and magnificent creatures' Rebecca Armstrong, i Paper Best Books of 2020 'A quiet masterpiece . . . a love story, a hope story, a story out of time, out of stricture, out of the narrow artificial bounds by which we try to contain the wild wonderland of reality because we are too frightened to live wonder-stricken' Maria Popova, Brain Pickings Praise for The Lost Words: "Every page is enthralling." --New York Times "Stylish and melancholy, The Lost Words is a book to savor." --Wall Street Journal "Art, verse, and nature are combined with entertaining elegance in The Lost Words . . . This large, quality hardcover allows words and watercolor to shine and results in a work that can be left open at any page to stunning effect." Shelf Awareness "Utterly enchanting, it's a celebration of nature -- but also language itself. If I ran the world, it'd be in every school library and classroom possible." Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast "This union of natural history, poetry, art, and whimsy is, indeed, a truly enchanting all-ages book of life to contemplate, read aloud, and share." Booklist "A sumptuous, nostalgic ode to a disappearing landscape." Kirkus Reviews Praise for The Unwinding: "A quiet masterpiece . . . a love story, a hope story, a story out of time, out of stricture, out of the narrow artificial bounds by which we try to contain the wild wonderland of reality because we are too frightened to live wonder-stricken." Maria Popova, Brain Pickings "The tales feel like half-remembered dreams, peopled with fairytale characters and magnificent creatures." -- Rebecca Armstrong, i Paper Best Books of 2020