Archived News from the Poison Pie Publishing House.

December 25, 2016
Season's Greetings from Toxostoma rufum
During the month of December, this brown thrasher has maintained an out of season presence in the dogwood outside a window of the Poison Pie Publishing House. Normally a slender bird, he is puffed up to keep warm.

December 21, 2016
The Ornithological Collection of Uwetsiageyv
The in-house author of the Poison Pie Publishing House, David Keffer, has today (December 21, 2016) completed the writing of a novel-length manuscript titled, The Ornithological Collection of Uwetsiageyv. At the moment, he is feuding with the staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House for their lackluster (by lackluster he means non-existent) promotional efforts on his behalf and has insisted on "testing the waters" with other publishers before coming back to us with his tail between his legs. "Good luck!" we say to him. The novel is subtitled, "A Flight of Fancy in Two Hundred and One Parts". Each part, averaging about 400 words, was written over the course of two hundred days scattered through-out 2016. The manuscript is (by this time it goes without saying) a post-existential fantasy generated through a non-idiomatic improvisational creative process. The narrative (such as it is) follows a winged girl as she island hops in the Sea of Birds, doing her best to avoid a prophecy in which she is expected to lay to rest the age-old enmity between the barn owl and the crow. Who but the Poison Pie Publishing House will release such a book? Still, we have to let the author learn the hard way.

December 19, 2016
A Prayer for Irrelevance
Despite the fact that, after he shared two prayer books (A Prayer Book for the Damned and Jacob's Dream) with the pastor of his parish, the author was subjected to a sermon in which it was made clear that 'Catholicism is founded on fidelity not creativity', the heretic is at it again. Today, a new prayer unexpectedly appeared over lunch: A Prayer for Irrelevance.

December 10, 2016
Non-Idiomatic Improvisation of 2016
Despite the occasional derision that our endeavor brings upon us from respectable parties in both the literary and musical worlds, we at the Poison Pie Publishing House continue to insist that our publications are generated through a non-idiomatic improvisational creative process^1,2. The principle in-house author, David J. Keffer, studied (and continues to study) the discipline of non-idiomatic improvisation as practiced by musicians of the second half of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first century³. He then transferred this practice from music to literature. To our knowledge, Keffer is the only practitioner working in the cultural margin known as a literature of non-idiomatic improvisation. Seemingly inured to barbs and indifferent to a comprehensive absence of critical or popular reception, he remains compelled to employ this process, having generated dozens of novels⁴, illustrated books⁵ and prayer books⁶ for the Poison Pie Publishing House. He remains inspired by the example of those who practiced the art of non-idiomatic improvisation before him. He takes comfort in the words of the experimental American saxophonist, Ornette Coleman: "...I've tried to find a way to avoid feeling guilty for doing something that other people don't do."⁷

The staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House also believes in an egalitarian relationship between musician and listener or between writer and reader. If the author desires for one hundred people to read her/his books then she/he should first read a hundred books. That this formula cannot possibly apply to authors/musicians who sell a million copies of a book/recording only underscores the unbalanced and non-egalitarian nature of the contemporary book publishing and music production industry. Adopting such a philosophy naturally forces the curious reader/listener to seek out other voices. Those books/records that have already been read/heard a million times have no need of us; their work has already been accomplished. In this ambitious endeavor, we admittedly perform poorly. We accept the pursuit as a goal to which we aspire while conceding a routine failure to achieve it.

With this long-winded and nebulous disclaimer behind us, we present a dozen of our favorite recordings released in 2016!

• Susan Alcorn - Evening Tales (Mystra Records, 018, April, 2016, United States/Canada, lp, discogs.com)
  "This lp arrived in a cover and sleeve for Kenny Roger's Greatest Hits. Sure the cover had a unique silkscreen painted over the front and back of it but the sleeve inside was pristine, vintage KR. As if that wasn't cool enough the solo pedal steel guitar sent us over the moon."
  
  
• Oren Ambarchi, Keiji Haino & Jim O'Rourke - I wonder if you noticed "I'm Sorry" is such a lovely sound It keeps things from getting worse (Black Truffle Records/medama records, BT021/mr07, June, 2016, Australia/Japan, lpx2, discogs.com)
  "Side A features Haino on bağlama and voice with a rhythm section. Bağlama! Say no more."
  
  
• Harry Bertoia - Sonambient Complete Collection (Important Records, IMPREC 419, 2016 (originally released 1970, 1978), United States, cdx11+book+box, discogs.com)
  "For years we had to be satisfied with a 1978 warped vinyl copy of "Gong Gong/Elemental". In one fell swoop, we have everything! Many delirious days were spent in the company of these eleven discs on repeat."
  
  
• Anthony Braxton - Trillium J Composition No. 380 "The Non-Unconfessionables" (New Braxton House, NBH-906, April 1, 2016, United States, cdx4+dvd+book+box, discogs.com)
  "We continue to experience the wonderful confirmation that we lack the necessary apparatus or attenuation to appreciate the profundity of the Trillium opera cycle!"
  
  
• Peter Brötzmann & Heather Leigh - Ears Are Filled With Wonder (Trost Records, TR 147, 2016, Austria, lp+mp3dl, discogs.com)
  "Leigh on pedal steel guitar provides sometimes delicate and sometimes dynamic accompaniment to Brötzmann's reeds."
  
  
• Mary Halvorson Octet - Away with You (Firehouse 12 Records, FH12-04-01-024, October, 2016, United States, cd, discogs.com)
  "Halvorson expanded her septet with the addition of Susan Alcorn and wrote compositions that allow not only Alcorn but all eight voices to flourish."
  
  
• Vijay Iyer & Wadada Leo Smith - A Cosmic Rhythm with each Stroke (ECM Records, ECM 2486, March 11, 2016, Germany, cd, discogs.com)
  "We saw this piano and trumpet duet performed live in 2016! Best concert of the century thus far!"
  
  
• Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble - Moments of Fatherhood (Rogue Art, ROG-0068, 2016, France, cd, discogs.com)
  "In a year when our President-Elect said, African Americans and Hispanics are living in hell. You walk down the street and you get shot (Sept. 26, 2016), we especially need music like this which explicitly celebrates the many positive examples of African American fathers. Prescient."
  
  
• Pauline Oliveros, Roscoe Mitchell, Jon Tilbury & Wadada Leo Smith - Nessuno (i dischi di angelica, IDA 035, 2016, Italy, cd, discogs.com)
  "What can one say? When this music was performed on May 8, 2011, the combined age of these four musicians was 294 and a half years. One hears the passage of three centuries in this piece. Already, only three remain among us."
  
  
• Colin Stetson - Sorrow: A Reimagining Of Gorecki's 3rd Symphony (52Hz Records, 52HZ001LP, 2016, Unknown Country, lpx2+mp3dl, discogs.com)
  "A careful interpretation that caused us to relisten to the original several times then return to this new recording and listen again with renewed ears."
  
  
• Henry Threadgill w/ Ensemble Double Up - Old Locks and Irregular Verbs (PI Recordings, PI64, April, 2016, United States, cd, discogs.com)
  "This work is dedicated to Lawrence D. "Butch" Morris, a favorite of ours, who wrote, The idea that a music's outcome be predetermined is long a dead issue with me."
  
  
• And Also the Trees - Born Into the Waves (No label, AATTLP09, March 18, 2016, United Kingdom, lp, discogs.com)
  "Yes, we know this last album is not a work of non-idiomatic improvisation, but it is so lovely that we included it in our favorites all the same. We accept that non-idiomatic improvisation is not the only mechanism for the creation of beauty. (It's just the one we usually prefer.)"
  
  

December 3, 2016
Bestiaries of 2016

A kerchet from Imbelnhi's Bestiary.

As evidence of our fondness for books about beasts, the Poison Pie Publishing House published two bestiaries, The Faerienomicon and A Bestiary of East Tennessee in 2014 and 2015, respectively. In 2016, as part of the PPPH blog, the staff assembled an A Survey of One Hundred Bestiaries. Several of these bestiaries were published in 2016.

As the year draws to a close, we decided to bring to the attention of our readers a couple of our favorite such books published this year. There were numerous excellent candidates to choose from (in stark contrast to our recent presidential election). The two largest publishers of fantasy role-playing games (RPG) each released at least one bestiary in 2016. Volo's Guide to Monsters, published by Wizards of the Coast, was a second manual of monsters for the 5^th edition of the world's oldest fantasy RPG, Dungeons & Dragons. (For the curious, this is entry #123 in our survey. Obviously the staff felt compelled to exceed the original mandate of one hundred bestiaries.) The Villain Codex (entry #125 in our survey), produced by Paizo Publishing as part of the Pathfinder RPG, describes associates and practices of twenty villainous organizations, including an arcane society, carnival troupe, diabolical church, merry outlaws and scandalous pirates. Today, one expects a very high standard of quality from these two publishers. These books have excellent production values, including hardback binding, full color interior, illustrations of each entry rendered by a stable of talented freelance artists, visually appealing layout and careful editing. The text in each adheres to the style established for 5^th Edition Dungeons & Dragons and Pathfinder respectively. (The excerpts in our survey are an attempt to convey to interested readers these elements for all of the entries.) To be sure, readers will not be disappointed in either of these book of beasts.

The cover of Imbelnhi's Bestiary.

However, we chose neither of these books as our favorite bestiaries published in 2016 because there were two unexpectedly delightful surprises in 2016. The first of these is Imbelnhi's Bestiary (entry #92 in our survey), published by Flying NightBear Games as part of the Beyonder RPG. Imbelnhi's Bestiary is "a traveler's account of our continent and her creatures." This book presents no mere conversion of familiar beasts to an updated edition of rules, nor does it provide "additional descriptive color" to well known creatures. Instead, the entries in this bestiary are newly imagined, such as the kerchet, pictured above and highlighted in the survey. The book is clearly the product of a labor of love. Much care has gone into all aspects of its creation, from the writing to the illustrations to the production of the book in such a way that it brings to mind old leather-bound tomes of yore. If there is a criticism it is that not all of these entries include illustrations.

The cover of S. Petersen's Field Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors.

The other bestiary of 2016 worthy of special consideration is S. Petersen's Field Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors (entry #110 in our survey), published by Chaosium Inc. as part of the Call of Cthulhu RPG. This field guide is subtitled, A Field Observer's Handbook of Preternatural Entities and Beings from Beyond the Wall of Sleep, and contains entries on fifty-three creatures from the works of H.P. Lovecraft. Sticklers may point out that this book was originally published in December, 2015, but we did not get our hands on a copy until this year, so we are including it as a favorite bestiary of 2016. This book contains all entries from the long out-of-print S. Petersen's Field Guide to Cthulhu Monsters (1988; entry #108) and S. Petersen's Field Guide to Creatures of the Dreamlands (1989; entry #109).

Yog-Sothoth from S. Petersen's Field Guide to Lovecraftian Horrors.

In one sense, this hardcover serves as the long-awaited reissue as the wonderful text of the two original softcover publications is kept. However, the hardcover edition contains all new illustrations. The styles of the illustrations in the original and new editions are completely different. Therefore, we can happily advise others who are fond of the fiction of Lovecraft and/or bestiaries, that the arrival of the new edition does not make the old editions obsolete nor does familiarity of the originals preclude interest in the new release. In this book too, one senses a labor of love by a group of individuals who knew the community had been waiting decades for a hardbound reissue and were determined not to disappoint.

November 12, 2016
Philip Levine: The Last Shift
A final, posthumous volume of poetry, The Last Shift, by Philip Levine (January 10, 1928 - February 14, 2015) has been published this week. Also published is a collection of essays, My Lost Poets. Since our first introduction to the poetry of Philip Levine in the fall semester of 1988 at the University of Florida, his words have resonated with us. Because the Poison Pie Publishing House is run by bibliophiles, we have (rather purposefully) accumulated a collection of Levine books. At the inception of the internet, we created a page to feature the Levine books. This page continues to exist, largely ignored, which is just as well. We have added The Last Shift to the page, which is located here.

We occasionally featured quotes on the Poison Pie Publishing House blog, some of which have originated with Philip Levine. These quotes are archived here.

October 3, 2016
New Issue of the International Journal of Exploratory Meta-Living
Our wily friends over at the International Journal of Exploratory Meta-Living have surprised us with an unexpected issue, discussing the language of annual performance reviews. Improvements in this area, especially in terms of the vocabulary used in the classification of demonstrated performance, are provided. As always, the content of this issue and all previous issues from IJEML is available via free, anonymous download.

September 23, 2016
Stairs Going Nowhere:
A Twentieth-Century Tour of Knoxville
Travel back with me to the final year of the twentieth century. In visiting places where old buildings had once stood, one found now only empty lots, even in the heart of the city. In several cases, there was evidence, based on the size of the trees, that the lots had been vacant for some time. Frequently, the only remaining indication that an edifice had been present was a staircase leading up from the sidewalk. This photo essay, first published on the internet in 1999, follows the inimitable Poison Pie as he provides a tour of various Stairs Going Nowhere that existed at the time, primarily in the Fort Sanders, Downtown and South Knoxville neighborhoods of Knoxville, Tennessee.

September 18, 2016
A Survey of One Hundred Bestiaries
The bibliophiles at the Poison Pie Publishing House presented on this blog a brief description of a bestiary for each day from June 1, 2016 through September 8, 2016, which amounted to one hundred books about beasts. Since then they have added a few more such books taken from the shelves that line the halls of the Poison Pie Publishing House. One suspects, given their history, that the staff will continue to make additions to the survey as new bestiaries are published and old bestiaries find their way into their hands. It is unlikely that each new entry will be announced on the blog, so interested visitors are encouraged to check the survey on their own from time to time.

September 17, 2016
33 Contemplations on the Form of the Bear:
An Ursine Tour of Knoxville
There is more to Knoxville than the alphabet. Sometimes black bears from the Smoky Mountains wander into town. Usually they are tranquilized and returned to the forest. In the summer of 2002, the city of Knoxville distributed 33 decorated statues of bears around the city. The event was called, "Bearfoot in the City". Today, there is little record of it on the internet. However, the staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House took a couple days to visit each and every bear. Later in the same year they published a photographic tour of Knoxville via these bears, narrated by none other than, Poison Pie himself, Man of the Mushroom People. Since then, this photo essay has sat on the internet at the same old URL: 33 Contemplations on the Form of the Bear. Today, we dust it off and remind folks what Knoxville was like in 2002.

September 15, 2016
An Alphabetical Tour of Knoxville
People are always asking members of the staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House just what's so great about Knoxville and south Knoxville in particular. To provide an answer, at least in part to this query, we direct readers to An Alphabetical Tour of Knoxville, a photo-essay showcasing a feature of Knoxville (primarily south Knoxville but a few bits of the nearby downtown as well) for each letter of the alphabet. The guides for this tour are younger versions of Ruth and Joseph Keffer, co-authors of A Bestiary of East Tennessee and other illustrated books from the Poison Pie Publishing House. There is an all-ages game component to the piece. The photographs were taken in 2008 and 2009. The photo-essay has resided on the internet since that time. Today, we remind visitors to the site that it still exists and that the loveliness of Knoxville has not diminished too much in the intervening years.

September 1-8, 2016
A Survey of One Hundred Bestiaries
The bibliophiles the Poison Pie Publishing House had a good time presenting a bestiary for each day of the months of June, July and August. Those three months resulted in an investigation of 92 bestiaries. Here we take the first eight days of September to round that number up to an even one hundred.

As before, the staff has decided to highlight a different bestiary for each day of the month. In this gallery, we again present the cover of the book, and portions of a sample entry, most of which include some illustration of the creature as well as an excerpt of the accompanying description. We hope you enjoy perusing this month-long survey of bestiaries as much as we enjoyed compiling it.

In the bestiaries selected for this month, we include several tomes that compile catalogs of characters, some of whom may even be human. Of course, it is silly (not to mention anthropocentric) to suggest that Homo sapiens should be entirely excluded from bestiaries. We also note that we complete the survey with an entirely female cast for the month of September.

August 8, 2016
Wouldn't the Wood Weird is published!
The short novel, Wouldn't the Wood Weird, written by David J. Keffer is published by the Poison Pie Publishing House in both paperback and electronic formats. It is a post-existential romantic fantasy and is alternately titled, Impractical Prayers from the Spindle of the Void. It was generated through a non-idiomatic improvisational creative process.

"Making the world a better place without personal sacrifice is like making breakfast without maple syrup. It can be done, but it's not very sweet."

Wouldn't the Wood Weird has a thematic kinship with The Ruined Map by Kobo Abé, however there is little else, especially in terms of literary traits, in common between the two works.

A fuller description of the novel is provided here. It is available for purchase in electronic and paperback formats in the shop.

August 1-31, 2016
A Third Month-Long Survey of Bestiaries
The bibliophiles at the Poison Pie Publishing House had such a good time presenting a bestiary for each day of the months of June and July, that we decided to continue it for the month of August.

As before, the staff has decided to highlight a different bestiary for each day of the month. In this gallery, we again present the cover of the book, and portions of a sample entry, most of which include some illustration of the creature as well as an excerpt of the accompanying description. We hope you enjoy perusing this month-long survey of bestiaries as much as we enjoyed compiling it.

For our readers of tender years, we provide the following warning: In the bestiaries selected for this month, there are several themes, including angels, devils, demons, daemons and undead. That there is a disproportionate representation of evil creatures reflects the overwhelming interest of humanity, rather than any bias of our own, with creatures of the dark.

July 30, 2016
The Seal of House Hebeloma crustuliniforme in felt
The Seal of House Hebeloma crustuliniforme has been rendered in felt. This seal was created by Ms. M. Poonawala, who has a gallery of work featured in the The Experimental Laboratory of Symbology. The interest of the staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House in matters of felt is well documented in roughly two hundred felt finger puppets. Other work is gathered in the The Experimental Laboratory of Felt.

July 20, 2016
More Null_Sets
We have added several new Null_Sets visualizations of work from the Poison Pie Publishing House to the gallery. These visualizations were created by converting the text files of a written work into an image using the Null_Sets script created by Amy Szczepanski and Evan Meaney. The Null_Sets website is located here. The image shown here is the visualization of the novel, The Portable Library of Hong Samud, written by David Keffer in 2015.

Also uploaded is the visualization of the novel, Wouldn't the Wood Weird, written by David Keffer in 2016. These visualizations join a host of other works in the Null_Sets gallery at the Poison Pie Publishing House.

July 1-31, 2016
A Second Month-Long Survey of Bestiaries
The bibliophiles the Poison Pie Publishing House had such a good time presenting a bestiary for each day of the month of June, that we decided to continue it for the month of July.

As in June, the staff has decided to highlight a different bestiary for each day of the month. In this gallery, we again present the cover of the tome, and portions of a sample entry, most of which include some illustration of the creature as well as an excerpt of the accompanying description. We hope you enjoy perusing this month-long survey of bestiaries as much as we enjoyed compiling it.

June 24, 2016
Mary Halvorson vs. Régis Faller: A Juxtaposition of Four-fold Reviews
Our friends over at the International Journal of Exploratory Meta-Living have just published a new issue of the journal featuring a highly geometric review of four albums by the American guitarist, Ms. Mary Halvorson, and four children's books by the French author and illustrator, Mr. Régis Faller. Interested readers are encouraged to check the issue out via free, anonymous download.

June 1-30, 2016
A Month-Long Survey of Bestiaries
The staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House has a fondness for bestiaries. The publication of A Bestiary of East Tennessee in 2015 was the culmination of a lifelong desire to produce our own book of monsters.

There are, however, numerous bestiaries filling the shelves that line the halls of the Poison Pie Publishing House. For the month of June, 2016, the staff has decided to highlight a different bestiary for each day of the month. In this gallery, we present the cover of the book, and portions of a sample entry, most of which include some illustration of the creature as well as an excerpt of the accompanying description. We hope you enjoy perusing this month-long survey of bestiaries as much as we enjoyed compiling it.

April 24, 2016
Rufous-sided Towhee Faerie
As expected, Miss Ruth Keffer has released a new bird faerie into the experimental laboratory.

April 23, 2016
Rufous-sided Towhee
Miss Ruth Keffer is contemplating the release of a new bird faerie into the experimental laboratory. This faerie is related to the Rufous-sided Towhee, also known as the eastern towhee. However, we did not possess any rufous colored felt. Therefore, we set to searching the internet for just such a thing.

We discovered just what we were looking for in Merino wool blend felt sheets from Over the River Felt of Soddy View Lane in Soddy Daisy, Tennessee!

As a result, we expect to see the appearance of a Rufous-sided Towhee Faerie in the near future.

April 12, 2016
The Grand Temple Library of a Forgotten Warlord
We add another graphical entry to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. This piece is a collaborative effort utilizing the script of Mr. Henry Gorton, co-author of The Implacable Absence, and Ms. Marie Poonawala. This entry originates in The Portable Library of Hong Samud.

March 28, 2016
Radio Show: Voices from the Golden Age of Non-Idiomatic Improvisation
As a continuing effort of the course, The Golden Age of Non-Idiomatic Improvisation, at the University of Tennessee, the instructor, David Keffer, and a student, Amanda Fuchs, invite you to an evening of radio showcasing music from ten varied practitioners of non-idiomatic improvisation. The show is tied into the Big Ears Music Festival in Knoxville, Tennessee (March 31-April 2, 2016) with a playlist that features 8 tracks from musicians appearing in the 2016 festival, 1 track from a musician who played a previous festival and 1 track from someone who should be invited next year. The show airs about 8:00 PM (Eastern time) on March 28, 2016 on WUTK (90.3 FM). It will be streamed on the internet as well. A copy of the associated document listing the music played and providing a quote for a few of the musicians, which hints at their underlying motivations, is archived here.

March 26, 2016
The Arbor Inn
We post a graphic, illustrating the components of the perfect tree from the novel, The Augur in the Arbor Inn in the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology.

March 22, 2016
Brown Thrasher
After an absence of nearly six months, Miss Ruth Keffer releases a new bird faerie into the experimental laboratory. It is perhaps not a coincidence that the brown thrashers have just returned for spring in Knoxville, Tennessee.

March 17, 2016
Wouldn't the Wood Weird
To celebrate the sending of Wouldn't the Wood Weird to the printers, we post another entry from the novel in the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology.

March 15, 2016
Wouldn't the Wood Weird
The staff has received from the author today a completed manuscript of the forthcoming novel, Wouldn't the Wood Weird. The short novel is described as a post-existential romantic fantasy and is alternately titled, Impractical Prayers from the Spindle of the Void. A little more information is revealed here.

March 14, 2016
Lake View Arboretum
We add the first entry to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology from the forthcoming novel, Wouldn't the Wood Weird. There are also a couple of alternate versions in the Experimental Cemetery of Symbology.

March 2, 2016
The Seal of House Hebeloma crustuliniforme (in color)
We have an update to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. Hebeloma crustuliniforme is the scientific name for the mushroom, more commonly known as Poison Pie. Hebelomic acid A is the toxin suspected for making this mushroom unpalatable.

March 1, 2016
The Subterranean Library of the Diabolist
To usher in March, we add another entry to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. This entry originates in The Portable Library of Hong Samud.

February 29, 2016
The Seal of House Hebeloma crustuliniforme
We have a leapday update to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. Hebeloma crustuliniforme is the scientific name for the mushroom, more commonly known as Poison Pie. Hebelomic acid A is the toxin suspected for making this mushroom unpalatable.

February 28, 2016
The Akashic Archives
We have a Sunday update to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. This entry originates in The Augur in the Arbor Inn.

February 27, 2016
The Arbor Inn
We have a weekend update to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. This entry originates in, naturally, The Augur in the Arbor Inn.

February 26, 2016
Master Forkludre's Mirror Emporium
Today, we close out the week with another entry to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. This entry originates in The Augur in the Arbor Inn.

February 25, 2016
The Ornithological Collection of Uwetsiageyv
Today, we add another entry to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. This entry also originates in The Portable Library of Hong Samud. This design, like the previous entries, is the work of Ms. M. Poonawala.

February 24, 2016
Normal University of Hell, Phlegethon Campus Library
Today, we add another entry to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. This entry originates in The Portable Library of Hong Samud. This design, like the previous two entries, is the work of Ms. M. Poonawala.

February 23, 2016
Experimental Laboratory of Symbology
Today, we add another entry to the Experimental Laboratory of Symbology at the Poison Pie Publishing House. This entry originates in The Portable Library of Hong Samud.

February 22, 2016
Experimental Laboratory of Symbology

February 20, 2016
A Diversion on Saturday Morning
Today we post a forgotten diversion. Since 1995, NASA has hosted a site called the Astronomy Picture of the Day, featuring spectacular photos of the Earth and cosmos. From June, 2011 through April, 2012, the Poison Pie Publishing House borrowed some of these photos as background canvases upon which the antics of various fingerpuppets could unfold. Today, we remind visitors of one such three-panel story, A Meeting.

February 12, 2016
Wouldn't the Wood Weird
Undeterred by the fact that the two most recent manuscripts of post-existential fantasy generated in 2015 through a non-idiomatic improvisational creative process, The Augur In the Arbor Inn and The Portable Library of Hong Samud, have not yet found a home for publication, the Poison Pie Publishing House announces that yet another such manuscript is being created. A brief introduction to Wouldn't the Wood Weird is posted here.

January 20, 2016
Snow Day!
Although nary an inch of snow has yet fallen, the promise of snowfall in the afternoon has shuttered schools across the city of Knoxville. Rising early, our ritual of preparation for a day of work was thwarted by this news. Instead, a poem emerged unexpectedly before the sun had risen: A Prayer for the Unequal Distribution of Talents.

January 1, 2016
2015: The Year in Review at the Poison Pie Publishing House
2015 proved an exception to the rule, for all of the hypothesized plans of the Poison Pie Publishing House came to fruition, an outcome that had not previously been achieved nor one that the staff expects to reproduce again. Looking back at the goals of the previous End-of-the-Year Report for 2014, the Poison Pie Publishing House anticipated six works, including (i) a first volume of poetry, (ii) the next instalment in its eclectic series of post-existential novels generated through a non-idiomatic improvisational creative process, (iii) another illustrated book by the Keffer family of East Tennessee, (iv) a light-hearted fantasy role-playing module for children, (v) modest tinkering with an archival novel yet to be published and (vi) whatever other unruly beast happens to rear its head. While it may defy belief not only did the first five works come to pass but numerous other unruly beasts, some long dormant, surfaced. For those keeping track at home, the full list of works from 2015 includes

• A Bestiary of East Tennessee, an encyclopedia of local creatures, mundane and fantastic, rendered in felt by the Keffer family
  (PP-028-I, September 1, 2015, ISBN-13: 978-1516965366)




• Jacob's Dream, an eclectic collection of illustrations, imaginative descriptions and prayers associated with the angels observed ascending and descending the ladder in Jacob's vision from Genesis 28:12 by David & Ruth Keffer
  (PP-027-I, April 3, 2015, ISBN-13: 978-1511500777)



• A Prayer Book for the Damned, a book containing twenty-seven prayers, which deviate from tradition primarily in that they are more open in acknowledging the uncertainties, reservations and short-comings of the one making the prayer, by David J. Keffer
  (PP-026-P, July 9, 2015, paperback ISBN-13: 978-1503052253)



• A Bride for Chubbernut, a module containing sixteen light-hearted delves for role-players, young and old, in which the party travels as guard to Chubbernut, a bullywug crown prince, as he seeks to discover the meaning of love by completing tasks assigned to him by a legendary matchmaker, by David J. Keffer
  (PP-025-M, January 14, 2015, no ISBN)



• novelwise, a treatise on wisdom by process of elimination, an archival novel from 1995 by David J. Keffer
  (PP-030-T, September 2, 2015, ISBN-13: 978-1517098735)




• A Practical Introduction to Applied Statistics for Materials Scientists & Engineers, a technical monograph by David J. Keffer
  (PP-031-T, September 21, 2015, ISBN-13: 978-1517521936)




• A Practical Introduction to Numerical Methods for Materials Scientists & Engineers, a technical monograph by David J. Keffer
  (PP-030-T, September 21, 2015, ISBN-13: 978-1517356675)




• The Leg & Other Stories, a volume of thirteen selected short stories written from 1991 to 2013, in which one finds a type of carnage generally avoided in polite company, by David J. Keffer
  (PP-032-S, ISBN-13: 978-1517719401, not yet published: pending author's approval)



• The Augur in the Arbor Inn, a tautological myth of evolution by David J. Keffer
  (PP-033-N, written December, 2014-July, 2015, not yet published: searching for a good home)





• An International Journal of Exploratory Meta-Living, the open-source journal published five issues in 2015, on subjects ranging from the literary to the musical, including An Hour of Keiji Haino for a Sunny Day, which was subsequently translated in Japanese
  

Somewhat embarrassed by an unseemly productivity, the staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House have set more modest goals for 2016. They hope to bring a new post-existential fantasy generated through a non-idiomatic improvisational creative process, The Portable Library of Hong Samud, to life. They entertain the possibility that an illustrated book might yet emerge from the work being conducted in the experimental laboratory. Additionally, they remain open to unanticipated opportunities.

To our readers, we, the staff of the Poison Pie Publishing House, thank you for your patronage and support and we look forward to another mutually creative and unpredictable year.