A Pop-Up Culinary Herbal. Volume Two of the Plant Lore of the 21st Century Series by Sheehy, Shawn - 2013

Chicago, IL: Paperboy Press, 2013. Artist's book, one of 30 copies, all on commercial cover paper in various weights from various manufacturers, each copy signed and numbered by the artist, Shawn Sheehy, on the colophon. Page size: 6.5 x 4.5 x 1.25 inches; 30pp, including 12 double-page spread pop-up vegetables. Bound: drab boards with red paper spine, small collaged decoration of maize on front panel. The brightly colored papers serve as base for the double-page pop-ups, each with a small (2.5 x 2.5 inches) green printed folded note held closed with matching tab; common name, Latin name and variety printed on the outside, and brief description of the benefits and habits of the plant. These folio cards are mounted in a corner of each double-page spread, For example, the artichoke (Cynara Cardunculus), Green Globe (the featured cultivar) is cited as having high levels of antioxidants, and cynarine with nutritional values that aid digestion, improve liver and gallbladder function and reduce cholesterol. Printed letterpress in Italian electric by Sarah Vogel from photopolymer plates. The Table of Contents divides the plants into two groups: those from the old world and those from the new world. Mr. Sheehy's essay on plants and plant lore is one page as is the colophon. The plants pictured and described are: cabbage, cauliflower, rhubarb, beetroot, chard, asparagus, artichoke, maize, lima bean, pumpkin, tomato, and potato. The 12 plants pictured and described herein are a delight. Brightly colored and charmingly intrusive, they are inviting and garner attention. Once again, Shawn Sheehy has created a tour-de-force book structure. The vibrant plants jump out at the reader - almost shockingly so - then fold up to hide their beauty until the page is once again opened.