The Analog Sea Bulletin
Catalog, Autumn 2020, Jonathan Simons, 36 pgs, Analog Sea, analogsea.com, free
Analog Sea is a self-described offline publisher that advocates “for the human right to disconnect.” Their website is a single page that houses their mailing address, and their wares are only available through local bookstores across Europe and North America. This periodic bulletin (it’s free, if you write to them) is simultaneously a self-contained zine, a catalog of what the press has on offer, and a glimpse into what readers might expect from their flagship publication, The Analog Sea Review.
With so many interests vying for attention, the Bulletin’s entries flow into one another with surprising grace. An interview with the owners of a partner book shop in Edinburgh ends with editor Jonathan Simons picking up The Beauty of Everyday Things by Soetsu Yanagi. Adapted text from Yanagi’s book appears next. This is followed by an excerpt from an interview with filmmaker Wim Wenders, who reminisces fondly of his earliest attempts at reading (in bed with a flashlight), which then leads into a slice of How Should One Read a Book? by Virginia Woolf.
Catalogs are rarely this enjoyable besides Food & Drink and the Sears Christmas Wish Book. As with those, you’ll convince yourself you want everything Analog Sea is offering.