Every hand bound book or journal I sell is supposed to contain a little slip of paper providing people with some basic care instructions. The hand bound copies of Worshiping Loki sent out in late August did not contain these bits of paper. I couldn’t find my supply of them and it would have taken several days for me to have more printed; I opted to ship the books even without this little extra item.

The information on this little piece of paper is now contained here: https://walkingtheheartroad.com/hand-bound-books/  This way the information is available at all times, to anyone who needs it. Hand bound books are just a little different than traditional books; they feel a little different, function a little different, and react to changes in humidity just a little differently. I’ve had no shortage of traditional books bow and buckle as I’ve brought them from, say, San Francisco to Salt Lake City (and vice versa), so bear in mind that any sudden change in humidity can cause a book to behave a little strangely. This is normal and it can be easily corrected with a little time and patience.

Hand bound books are creatures of wet and dry. They are responsive to their environment, which means that they can be shaped and, to some degree, reshaped as necessary. If you’ve received your little black and gold book and discovered that the cover boards are crisp and lovely one day and slightly bowed the next, please refer to the hand bound books page. Your book is simply reacting to its environment. Set it under weight and in a couple days it will start to behave again.