The End of the Alphabet

I almost wish this book hadn't come out just before Valentine's Day. This day, though full of good intentions, falls flat in my opinion – weighted down by all the tired clichés and heartless commercialism. The End of the Alphabet deserves more than that. Much more. Yes, it is a love story – not of young lovers, mind you, but of a seasoned,  middle-aged couple, happy and comfortable in the life they have created for each other. But everything changes for Ambrose Zephyr and his wife Zappora ('Zipper') Ashkenazi, when a doctor informs Ambrose near his fiftieth birthday that he has a month to live. What to do?

Thus begins a slightly frenzied adventure of travel to far away places with the assistance of the alphabet – coffee in Amsterdam, a night train to Berlin, the cathedral of Chartes...all the destinations that Ambrose has longed to see and explore. But is this really how someone should be spending the last month of one's life, with the the love of their life? Will Ambrose and Zipper finish the alphabet in time? You'll have to read this beautiful story to find out, won't you?

A little bit about the author, CS Richardson. This is his first novel – in his other job he is a very talented and respected book designer in Canada, and has won quite a few design awards over the years. I'm very familiar with his work, because well, I've made it a habit to notice the names of the book designers whenever I am intrigued by a cover design. Mr. Richardson is not the first book designer to make the leap to published author – Chip Kidd ventured inside the pages a few years back with his book The Cheese Monkeys, which though cleverly designed by the author did not live up to the hype. Cliché storyline and two dimensional characters worthy of a highshcool attempt, in my opinion. So what of CS Richardson? Thankfully his talents in design have translated perfectly for this novel. Here is a man who understands that words have colour, texture and weight, and need to be treated with reverential care. Mr. Richardson's writing is very minimal and clean, yet he manages to say so much with so little (the book, novella really, is only 139 pages). One cannot help but think of that somewhat tired phrase heard over and over in design school: Less is More. In this small book, with so few carefully chosen words, CS Richardson manages to tell us so much about Ambrose and his wife Zipper, and the world they have made for themselves. It's not only a delicate love story, though, since Richardson is a designer – he cannot help but pay homage to art and design, books and writing throughout this magical tale. This is a gift to be read slowly and deeply.

For those interested, here's a interview with the author at Torontoist. I do so love CS Richardson's perspective on books:

A book is as pure an invention for the transference of information as possible and has been that way for 500 years...anyone, anywhere, at any level of societal progress, can use it. No wires, no power, no satellites, no re-boots required. Just a pair of hands and sometimes a pocket in your pants.

And an even better interview here on the CFRB web site.

Mr.Richardson will be reading from his book The End of the Alphabet at Harbourfront on Wednesday, March 14th, 7:30pm, in Toronto.

Finally, a little bit of personal trivia about the author. I actually met CS Richardson quite a few years ago, not long after I graduated from design school. Using my creative smarts, I managed to get an interview with Mr. Richardson at Random House Canada, hoping to get some freelance work as a book designer. That was my dream, you see, to work in book design. At that point in my life I still didn't have the courage to admit that illustration was really the path for me. Graphic design was so much more respected, you see, and more than likely more stable (how wrong I was about that one!) Mr. Richardson was very attractive and charming and seemed positve about my work and at the end of the interview he told me to call him at the end of the month to see what he could give me. With my sad little portfolio in hand, I danced home, certain that my new career was about to begin. And so...at the end of the month I phoned, I emailed, and...nothing. I tried for about two weeks before giving up. Boy was I furious. Mr. Richardson was just being nice to me. I obviously did not have what it took to work for Random House, or any publishing company, for that matter. So when I read that he had written a book, my first thought was something along the lines of well, we'll just see if Mr. Fancypants can write, won't we? Well. This man can write. And he also knows talent when he sees it. And thank goodness he didn't see any in me, because cartoons and illustration is really what I should have been doing all along. So thanks, Mr. Richardson, though I really could have taken the cold hard truth. Really.

Comments

[R J Keefe]

Now that's a Valentine!

[iliana]

This one is going on my TBR list for sure!

[Carmi]

I've added it to my must-read list. Just the title alone would grab my eye, but your assessment seals it.

I've always found it funny how the spurious connections we make with total strangers can subtly alter the course of our lives. It's almost like a planet's gentle gravitational nudge on a passing satellite.

Must mull this...

[Kim]

You found a new book for my 'to read' list! (The list gets longer and longer and longer and longer and longer and... longer and... Oh well, you get my drift.) Seems like aquite interesting book indeed!

[Michele Rowe]

I just finished this book and I loved it. Apart from its wonderful story, I love the cleverness of it. I also love the book's "pocket" size. Odd? Maybe.

I want to recommend this book very highly!

[Thomas]

Every time I picked up this tale, I was filled with bliss long after putting it down. The author writes between the lines, leaving the reader to experience the full bloom of an old romance. This book reminds me of so many old friends, and may inspire you to find love in your life again.