Rainmaker Editions is a recent discovery for me.  A few months ago, I purchased a copy of Arion Press’ Venus & Adonis from Jeffrey Long of Long Brothers Books in Seattle.  He was so kind and professional during the transaction that I made a point of browsing his other offerings to support his shop again if I could.  In doing so I stumbled across The Chain, a short story by Tobias Wolff, illustrated with wood engravings by Gaylord Schanilec, and published by Rainmaker Editions.

After a bit of digging, I learned that Rainmaker Editions was a venture organized in the early 2000s by the University of Nevada Las Vegas’ former International Institute of Modern Letters, founded by Glenn Schaeffer.  One of the aims of the imprint was to raise funds for the University’s City of Asylum program, which supported ‘writers in exile, now living and writing without fear in the United States.’  A noble and worthy endeavor indeed and one that Rainmaker accomplished via its fine press book sales. Proceeds from the book sales also supported the translation of new works into English by those writers in exile.

The talent tapped by Rainmaker for its books includes Salmon Rushdie, Toni Morrison, Barry Moser, Gaylord Schanilec, Peter Koch, Bradley Hutchinson, Inge Bruggeman, and many more all-star names. The renowned authors all donated their works to support the cause and fund the protection of persecuted writers.

Before it ceased operations, Rainmaker Editions published nine titles, issued individually but also as a nine-volume Freedom of Conscience set. The works are:

• Five Poems by Toni Morrison, illustrated with silhouettes by Kara Walker and printed from photopolymer plates by Peter Koch in an edition of 425 copies (399 standard and 26 deluxe). Five Poems is set in Rialto Piccolo, a typeface designed by Giovanni de Faccio and Lui Karner, and is printed on Rives BFK paper. The deluxe edition is case-bound with cloth boards and features a quarter-leather binding. It comes enclosed in a drop-spine box. The regular edition is case-bound in Fabriano Ingres-covered boards printed with a Walker design and comes housed in a cloth-covered slipcase. Binding and housing are by Jace Graf at Cloverleaf Studio in Austin, Texas.
• The Firebird’s Nest by Salmon Rushdie, illustrated with four original linocuts by Alfredo Benavidez Bedoya of Argentina and issued in an edition of 125 copies (99 standard and 26 lettered). The book, designed and typeset by Victoria Hindley, was printed letterpress from Poliphilus and Acolyte types on Somerset Velvet paper by Marnie Powers-Torrey and Jennifer Sorensen at Red Butte Press. The quarter-leather binding and drop-spine box, designed at the press, were executed by Craig Jensen at BookLab II.
• The Gatekeeper (the first chapter of The Fall) by Joyce Carol Oates. Published in a signed deluxe edition of 125 copies (99 numbered and 26 lettered), the book, set in Hermann Zapf’s Zapf Renaissance, was designed and illustrated by Barry Moser and printed letterpress by Bradley Hutchinson in Austin, Texas. The book features six original woodcuts by Moser, including two full-page fold-out leaves, and is printed on paper handmade by Cartiere Enrico Magnani in Pescia, Italy. The quarter-leather and cloth binding and drop-spine box are by Jace Graf at Cloverleaf Studio in Austin, Texas.
• Spirit of the River (an excerpt from The Darling) by Russell Banks. Published in a signed edition 425 copies (399 numbered regular and 26 lettered deluxe). The book was designed by artist Barry Moser and printed letterpress from photopolymer plates by Bradley Hutchinson at Digital Letterpress in Austin, Texas. It contains three illustrations printed from original wood blocks designed and engraved by Barry Moser. Spirit of the River is set in Matthew Carter’s Galliard and features Forum and Ovidius display types. The book is printed on Magnani, a paper manufactured by Cartiere Enrico Magnani in Pescia, Italy. The deluxe edition is housed in a drop-spine box and features a quarter-leather case binding over cloth boards. The case-bound, cloth-covered regular edition is protected by a paper-covered slipcase. Binding and housing are by Jace Graf at Cloverleaf Studio in Austin, Texas.
• Samarkand and Other Markets I Have Known is a long poem by Nigerian playwright and Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka. Published in a signed edition of 425 copies (399 numbered regular and 26 lettered deluxe). The book was designed and typeset by Victoria Hindley, creative director for Red Butte Press, and printed letterpress from photopolymer plates by John Balkwill with assistance from Marnie Powers-Torrey and Antonia Nelson. Four original color woodcuts by artist Robert Kleinschmidt are handsomely displayed throughout. The wire edge binding was produced by Daniel Kelm at Wide Awake Garage and features boards covered in Japanese Kyosei-shi handmade paper, with the exception of the deluxe edition, which is covered in suede. The deluxe edition cloth-covered drop-spine boxes and regular edition Kyosei-shi-covered slipcases were produced at the Campbell-Logan Bindery.
• Who’s Afraid of the Tasmanian Wolf? (adapted from a lecture on the future of Japanese culture) by Kenzaburo Oe. Published in a signed edition of 125 copies (99 numbered and 26 lettered). The book was printed letterpress from Bembo types — cast by Michael Bixler and adjusted by the printer’s hand — on dampened Somerset Book paper by C. Mikal Oness at Sutton Hoo Press. The book was translated by Kunioki Yanagishita and features original Japanese calligraphy by Kazuko Akiba. The quarter-leather case binding and drop-spine box, designed at the press, were executed by Campbell-Logan Bindery. The covers are printed with excerpts of the text in the author’s own calligraphic hand.
• Coffeehouse Days is a witty and exuberant story from leading Albanian writer Ismail Kadare. Translated for the first time into English for Rainmaker Editions, it is published in a signed edition of 125 copies (99 numbered and 26 lettered). The book was designed and printed letterpress on Nideggen paper by Peter Koch, Printers. The text is set in a decayed version of Paul Renner’s Futura that was designed especially for the edition by Christopher Stinehour. Coffeehouse Days features original photomontages by Peter Koch, also printed letterpress, and is enclosed in a distressed metal box fabricated by G. and L. Manufacturing. The inner cover binding is by John De Merritt, Bookbinder.
• Trying to Save Piggy Sneed is a short story by John Irving and published in a signed edition of 125 copies (99 numbered and 26 lettered). It is illustrated by Gilbert Neri with images created by placing heated elements onto fax paper. These digitized images were then made into photopolymer plates and printed by Inge Bruggeman at Textura Letterpress. Ann Marie Kennedy made the cover, end sheet, and ‘scrap’ papers by hand. The binding was designed by Anna Embree and Inge Bruggeman and executed by Anna Embree. Housed in a cloth covered solander box with spine label.
• The Chain is a short story by Tobias Wolff. Set in Adobe Jensen MM and printed on Zerkall book paper by Shari DeGraw of Empyrean Press in an edition of 125 copies (99 standard and 26 lettered). Gaylord Schanilec carved four original wood engravings from maple blocks for the edition. Emmy Ellison bound the sheets and created the solander boxes at her studio in Lisbon, Iowa.

My Rainmaker book, the standard edition of The Chain, is a short story by Tobias Wolff that begins with an attacking dog, “a big black wolf-like animal attached to a chain,” and follows the chain of events set off by the attack.  It is a story of revenge and a cautionary tale and I found it an enjoyable, though brief, read.  Gaylord Schanilec’s four engravings compliment Wolff’s storytelling well.  Schanilec focuses on the setting over the action and his trademark multi-color engravings jump off the page.

The book is beautifully bound in quarter black leather with paper sides printed with a repeat of Schanilec’s engraving of the dog from the story’s opening scene.  The title is blind stamped on the spine. It is encased in a shimmery, cloth-covered solander box with a paper spine label.  

Rainmaker Editions was a nice discovery and the quality of the production was impressive enough that I’ll be keeping an eye out for some of their other titles in the future, especially those printed with moveable type.  It’s a shame the imprint is no longer commissioning work. At the time of this writing, both states of both the Banks and the Oates books are readily available on the secondary market and other titles pop up from time to time (and there is currently a tempting, though expensive, copy of Nobel Price winner Kenzaburo Oe’s Who’s Afraid of the Tasmanian Wolf on AbeBooks).

EDITION DETAILS:

• Author: Tobias Wolff
• Illustrator: Gaylord Schanilec
• Illustrations: Wood engravings.  Four in total.
• Printer: Shari DeGraw of Empyrean Press
• Binder: Emmy Ellison, Lisbon, Iowa.
• Paper: Zerkall, deckle edge
• Type: Adobe Jenson MM (photopolymer printing plates)
• Limitation: 125 copies
• States: One. Bound in quarter black leather and paper over boards and presented in a cloth-covered solander box with a paper spine label.
• Signed by the author (Tobias Wolff) and the illustrator (Gaylord Schanilec).
• Publication date: 2008