Mornings at Jack Pine

10 Friday Apr 2026

Posted by Deep Wood Press in Glenn Wolff, Jerry Dennis, Letterpress, Manhattan Fine Press Book Fair, Mornings at Jack Pine, Presentation bindings

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art, Books, fine press books, Glenn Wolff, Jerry Dennis, Letterpress, Mornings at Jack Pine, wood engravings

I’m pleased to present the newest book from Deep Wood Press, Mornings at Jack Pine by Jerry Dennis with ten wood engravings from Glenn Wolff. This is also the first book to kick off my Midwest Author Series, more on that below. Jerry turns his keen naturalist’s eye inward as well as outward, finding in the landscape of northern Michigan a mirror for grief, love, mortality, and the fierce pleasures of being alive. Graced with Glenn Wolff’s exquisite illustrations, Mornings at Jack Pine is a small book with large ambitions — funny, tender, elegiac, and shot through with the kind of hard-won wonder that only comes from paying close attention to the world for a very long time.

Set against the rivers, jack pine barrens, and lake country of the upper Midwest, the poems in Mornings at Jack Pine move between precise observation and lyric meditation. The first section is rooted in closely observed rhythms of the natural world — trout rising in tailouts, deer standing in morning mist, a barred owl calling through spruce trees at dawn — and shadowed throughout by the recent death of the poet’s father. The second section unfolds as an extended self-portrait of a man at sixty-nine: a writer, husband, river-watcher, and devoted caregiver to his wife, who is battling dementia. Together, the two sections form a meditation on time, impermanence, and what it means to remain loyal to a place, a person, a life.

The three of us have worked on books, broadsides and fishing fantasies for nearly 20 years now and it is always a pleasure to once again craft a thing of beauty that embraces our creative efforts in such a personal way.

The standard lettered copies are quarter bound in a cool green/black smooth goat with dark green Asahi book cloth over boards. Copper foil stamped spine, inset panel with printed title and a small pine tree I carved out of a chunk of lead and blind stamped onto the leather. The book is printed in 3 colors, 6.5×10″ (16.5×24.8cm), 51 pages and includes a slip case. $600.00

26 lettered copies on Somerset Book
5 deluxe on my bespoke Saint Armand paper leftover from the Wind in the Willows edition.
15 copies for the Guild of Bookworkers Midwest Chapter for the forthcoming “Open Set” exhibit on Hahnemühle Biblio.
250 copies in a paper binding on Mohawk Superfine printed in 2 colors.

Note the Guild of Bookworkers edition – this means that, hopefully, within a year 15 copies of this book will have an exhibition by 15 individual bookbinders creating all kinds of fun, interpretative and high class bindings. Looking forward to it!

As I was waiting for delayed shipments of book cloth and marbled end papers I had time to bind one of the deluxe copies. This copy is bound onto cords, sewn headbands, full smooth goat leather binding that has blind tooling around the bands, title foil stamped in copper and a leather onlay inspired by one of Glenn’s prints. Housed in a drop spine box (sidewalls match endpapers) with title on spine and cover. $1000.00

This is the first offering from my Midwest Author Series which will continue to showcase incredible writers and artists in future editions. I have a talented editor/writer liaison onboard, Helen Raica-Klotz, who moved to my part of the world a few years ago and started a brilliant visiting author readings/workshops event, Antrim Writers Series, for which I create little broadsides for the readings four times a year. After I return from the Manhattan Fine Press Book Fair I will be printing the edition of 250 on my automated ATF Little Giant cylinder press which will be released later this summer. In recent years, though I very much appreciate my fine press collectors, I have noted my books are being snagged by investors instead of collectors/collections and the prices are often out of reach for many people I would like to own my books. This is an effort to reach a larger, poorer and yet appreciative audience. The planned price for these copies is $75.00. The list of future writers and artists is humbling to me, there are so many talented individuals I want to pair together into beautifully presented books. This formula will continue with small editions in fine press and an extended run (perhaps larger) where the contributing creators can also benefit from larger exposure in my quaint little world of global book stuffs.

Recently there have been several print releases that feature me and my Deep Wood Press:

CODEX Papers: Volume 5 – I was honored to be asked to contribute to this volume and it turned into a 15 page photo exposé emphasizing the craft of making fine press books at DWP. This showcases the various studio spaces and disciplines including type casting, engraving, printing and binding. $35.00
Assembling: The Art of Translation – My second appearance in a CODEX Foundation Assembly/Exchange portfolio and I am once again honored by inclusion. This is a grouping of 25 contemporary prints by well-known and well-collected artists, printers, and publishers of artists’ books associated with The CODEX Foundation from around the globe. Presented in a beautiful drop spine box. $3200.00
Why Make Books by Hand? – Published by No Reply Press, 15 book makers respond with short essays to the question “Why make books by hand” in an edition of 150ish. $135.00 (sold out)

Some images from the creation process of the book.

As I mentioned above, I will once again be attending the Manhattan Fine Press Book Fair on May 2nd. Come find me at table C4, I have a few VIP passes to gift, there’s still time to send you one! Join me and 30 other fine press publishers from around the world for an overwhelming day of books – the 66th Annual ABAA New York International Antiquarian Book Fair is just across the street at the historic Park Avenue Armory. One day only, 9am-5pm, 869 Lexington Avenue, New York NY

On one final note — I will be teaching a linoleum cutting and typesetting workshop once again in Les Baux de Provence, France this fall at the Foundation Louis Jou, on October 9-11. The preceding weekend I will be the studio technician and printer for a wood engraving class taught by Joanne Price AND Rebecca Gilbert! This is an incredible opportunity to work in Jou’s former studio (1881-1968) equipped with 3 Stanhope iron hand presses and his own proprietary family of harmonious type. Even better, participants get to stay in the studios in Les Baux as part of the workshop price. As a board member for the foundation I organized this workshop series with Joanne 3 years ago and it was a tremendous success and way too much fun. More on all of this in a future blog post.

The LIQUORSTORE pomes

15 Tuesday Oct 2024

Posted by Deep Wood Press in James Bernard Gross, Letterpress, The LIQUORSTORE pomes

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Books, fine press books, James Bernard Gross, Letterpress, Poetry, The Collectable Book Vault, wood engravings, writing

Yes, that’s correct, The LIQUORSTORE pomes by James Bernard Gross with an introduction by Toby Olson, is the latest book rolling out of the Deep Wood Press foundry/pressroom/bindery. This book is a collection of 36 poems centered around James’ father Herman Gross, growing up in Gary and Chicago and the Liquor Stores Herman owned. A homage to family, life in the rustbelt in the 1950’s and 60’s and the adventures, joys and hardships that left an enduring charming impression on James. On the authors wish the poems are printed on the recto side of the page spread only.

Cast in Garamond #3 on a Linotype model 31 along with hand set ATF Garamond types and printed on Hahnemühle Biblio in two colors on a Vandercook 219 OS the book includes two wood engravings by Chad Pastotnik. Quarter bound in Harmatan Oxblood goat with Asahi heavy textured grey linen cloth over boards with marbled end papers. Title foiled black on spine and on the cover in gold on a brown goat skiver. Designed, cast, printed and bound by Chad Pastotnik at his Deep Wood Press. Edition of 55 books, 5 press copies and 2 press proofs — 109 pages, $500.00.

My website is currently a hot mess during reconstruction thanks to a well meaning web designer trying to decode my ancient cobbled HTML. For purchase inquiries please contact me.

This morning I was pleasantly surprised to see a recent interview go live at the Collectable Book Vault in their Minds of the Press series which turned out quite nice. Not many venture this far off the normal paths to the near tip of the beautiful peninsula of Michigan so it was great to welcome them into the studios and talk about the history of Deep Wood Press.

James’ Biography:

James Bernard Gross’s work has appeared in Small Press editions since 1976. His pieces published in 9 American states, Ireland, Great Britain, and Canada. His poems in Bill William’s & Flossie’s Special — a book published by Intrepid Press in 1980 by famed ‘Editor of The Beats’, Allen DeLoach, were singled out — by critic Diane Kruchkow in the review magazine Contact II article: “Against the American Grain: Bill William’s & Flossie’s Special”, who wrote:

“And Jim Gross’ lines, “The years filled out / like beer bellies” were worth working towards the back of the book for”.

He was nominated for the Coordinating Council of Literary Magazine’s Young Writer of the Year Award, by Intrepid Editor- Allen DeLoach, (an editor’s only nomination). Copies are in Special Collections and Rare Books, Princeton University, Firestone Library, and Oxford Bodleian Library, Great Britain.

He had dialogue in early 1980’s with poet and publisher Cid Corman in Kyoto, Japan. Part of the correspondence is preserved in the Lilly Library, Cid Corman Archive, Corman MS III, Indiana University. He knew and corresponded with Mentor, Robert Creeley, who consistently encouraged publication of his work, which meant much.

He lives on his dune a mile from Lake Michigan. Has a Master of Science in Education from Purdue University. Reads Japanese, fumbles with Spanish to hear Lorca, Vallejo, and Guillén. Plays Martin steel-string and nylon string guitar, vintage 1905 piano, and sings. Admires the Troubadours of Provencal. Digs the Jazz of Thelonius Sphere Monk, Coltrane, Lester Young, Jerry Mulligan, and Bill Evans.

His Broadside: Watered Down, was published in Hard Pressed #6, by Ellen’s Old Alchemical Press on an 1887 Chandler & Price. It is housed in the Harris Broadside Collection, Brown University. Most recent publication in Gargoyle Magazine 61, 2015, Gargoyle 64, 2016, and Gargoyle 75, 2022.

His Selected Poems: Fingerings for words was published by Chester Creek Press in 2016 and has placement in 20 of the Great Libraries Special Collections worldwide including: Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library Yale Collection of American Literature, The GETTY Research Institute, The British Library- Fine Print Books, the Bibliotheque Interuniversitaire de la Sorbonne in ‘Manuscrits Rares’, and Trinity College, Dublin, in Early Printed Books and Special Collections. Princeton University holds signed Copy #1 of this numbered, Limited Edition, in Special Collections for Graphic Arts, Firestone Library.

Jim’s special copy