iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Good morning. It's Friday! I hope you're able to find some spooky gothic drama to spice up your October days and distract you from the true ever-growing horror around us. Keep trying. Be loud. Watch the leaves fall. #foundbooks

The Clock at Ravenswood — by Jon Teta | She was a pawn in a deadly charade that would destroy the man she loved | Pyramid Gothic | X-1975 | 60¢ | [illustration of a woman in a large white dress and white heels running down a set of worn stone steps, away from a large red-roofed stone building with clock tower. Behind her stands a man in a hat and large overcoat, looking over his shoulder at her. In front of the woman is a small barren leafless tree and behind her is a purple stormy sky. | illustration by Lou Marchetti | mass market paperback front cover | someone has used a black marker to draw an 'X' across the center of this cover]

Uncle Silas — by J. S. Le Fanu | With a New Introduction by Frederick Shroyer | A Victorian Gothic Novel of Mystery | [colored ink-line illustration of a long-haired woman in a very long dark-green dress standing in the woods by a pool of water, fed by a trickling waterfall, surrounded by massive old trees | illustration by Charles W. Stewart | paperback front cover]

[illustration of a hulking beast dragging its arms through the mist at the base of a massive cliff, near a barren gnarled tree standing in front of the full moon, surrounded by a swarm of bats | illustrator unknown | front cover detail from Seven Masterpieces of Gothic Horror — edited by Robert Donald Spector]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

October mornings are for walking in the woods!

[Photo of myself from above, wearing a black Spooky Pumpkin hat and tshirt, walking through the woods on an October morning.]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Good morning! It's Friday. This 1st book was one of my favorites as a child, largely because of the amazing illustrations. I've always been drawn to intricately detailed ink drawings with dark and/or spooky-creepy subject matter. Keep trying. Be loud. Enjoy darkness. #foundbooks

My Mama Says There Aren't Any Zombies, Ghosts, Vampires, Creatures, Demons, Monsters, Fiends, Goblins or Things — by Judith Viorst, Drawings by Kay Chorao | Aladdin Books [illustration of a young boy in gray tshirt with purple stars and red/purple checked pants leaning against a large yellow creature with upward pointing fans and a crooked tree for a nose, while another creature, gray, wearing a purple outfit with black polkadots talks to the boy with raised finger | illustration by Kay Chorao | black border around a red background with yellow text, set gradually smaller from top to bottom | square paperback front cover]

Witches Four — by Marc Brown [illustration of four green-skinned witches in pointy hats, one gesturing with her arm, one covering her mouth with her hands, one holding a broom, bordered by orange border with multi-colored polka-dots | illustration by Marc Brown | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

My Friend the Monster — by Clyde Robert Bulla | Harper Trophy | $3.50 US | $4.95 CDN | Tom Newsom | "N" [illustration of a boy with a bowl haircut, dressed like Little Lord Fauntleroy in matching blue top and pants with white lace collar and cuffs and white knee-high socks, crouching down on the ground, opening the door of a small wooden cage, to release a little green-skinned monster dressed like Angus Young, in brown suit, beige wide-collared shirt, and brown scally hat, with pink horns, rosy cheeks, fangs, and long white claws; blue and violet flowers grow behind them, in front of a tall stone wall | illustration by Tom Newsom | beat-up paperback front cover]

[black and white ink drawing of a boy wearing a sweater, embellished pants, and animal slippers, sitting on the long snout of a large sharp-toothed monster wearing a hat. The monster and boy look with kindness at one another, while the boy touches the brim of the monsters hat | illustration by Kay Chorao | title page illustration detail from My Mama Says There Aren't Any Zombies, Ghosts, Vampires, Creatures, Demons, Monsters, Fiends, Goblins or Things — by Judith Viorst]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

It's October! I hope you all enjoy this month as much as I usually do.

[Hand holding up a metal orange travel mug with a black jack-o-lantern face, in an autumn graveyard]

SPOOKY PUMPKIN: T-shirts, hoodies, and other goodies for a frightening October | Available at SpookyPumpk.in (link in bio)

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Companies will choose to refuse to consider a lot of remarkable talent for the stupidest of reasons.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Good morning. It's Friday! It looks like we're going to get some pretty stormy weather here in the Northeast this weekend. Perfect time to curl up with some stormy paperbacks. Be loud. Keep trying. Batten down the hatches. #foundbooks

A Doctor for Barbara — by Margaret Howe | The challenges of love and sacrifice face Barbara Benson in the dramatic world of a modern big-city hospital | AVON | 35¢ | T-537 [illustration of a standing dark-haired woman in a reddish dress with her hand resting affectionately on the shoulder of a grumpy seated male doctor in a white coat with stethoscope. Behind them are a microscrope, clipboard, charts and various other medical equipment. | Illustrator unknown | mass-market paperback front cover]

Intrigue in Paris (Original title: Storm over Paris) — by Sterling Noel | "Reads like a Spillane chiller" —The Colorado Free Press | "Mayhem and murder... international intrigue and luxurious ddecadence mixed with romance." —Library Journal | AVON | 35¢ | T-477 [red cover with mostly-white title type and yellow byline with photograph of woman's head and shoulders, head angled to her right, but looking at the camera, with a strong light from her left, highlighting her wavy blonde hair and casting her face in shadow | photographer unknown | mass-market paperback front cover]

Love or Kill Them All — A fast suspense novel of violence, doublecrossing and sensuality, by Nicky Weaver | ADULT READING | the new private-eye | Cozy up with Kozy Books | An Original Kozy Book | A Kozy Detective K book | K188 | 60¢ [illustration of a dark-haired woman in thigh-high stockings, ripped red skirt and blouse, holding an ice pick while looking behind her at the blonde man with rosy cheeks in dark suit, tearing off her blouse, revealing her black bra. The man stands behind a bar, shelves of liquor bottles behind him, while the woman is in front of the bar, her barstool having fallen over | illustrator unknown | mass-market paperback front cover]

Pretty, young efficient, [B]arbara Benson mana[ged to keep] her business and person[al life on a]n even keel. The gift sh[op she opened in the lobby of Hilton General Hospital...] [blue/black duotone detail of woman's head from front cover illustration. White type over blue background and blue & black type over a peach-colored background | illustrator unknown | back cover detail of A Doctor for Barbara — by Margaret Howe]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Good morning. It's Friday! These covers are all beautiful, each in their own way, and I am awed by the size of the publisher's name on the back of Modern Short Stories (the type is about the same size as the title on the front). Be loud. Keep trying. Tell me a story, but keep it short. #foundbooks

New American Review 8 | A Signet Book • Y4148 • $1.25 [white type on black background with an image of the head of the Statue of Liberty filled with a collage of various photographs | cover design by Fred Otnes | art director Jim Plumeri | mass market paperback front cover]

Eye of the Heart: Short Stories from Latin America — Edited by Barbara Howes | Borges, Asturias, Amado, Cortazar, Paz, Donoso, Garcia Marques, Fuentes, Llosa, and Thirty-Three Others. "A showcase for the best Latin American writers of this century. They are all here . . ." Publishers Weekly | Avon Books • 0-380-00163-2 • (Canada $7.95) • U.S. $5.95 | Racinelli (?) [Black text in a white band above a painting of a dark-haired woman wearing a gold cross on a gold chain, looking out | illustration by Nacinelli (?) | mass market paperback front cover]

Modern Short Stories — Edited with an introduction & notes by Jim Hunter | Dylan Thomas • The Peaches | Geoffrey Dutton • The Wedge-Tailed Eagle | Katherine Mansfield • Her First Ball | Alan Paton • Ha'penny | Ted Hughes • The Rain Horse | James Thurber • The Seret Life of Walter Mitty | James Hanley • The Road | Joyce Cary • Growing Up | T. F. Powys • Lie Thee Down, Oddity! | Patrick O'Brian • Samphire | D. H. Lawrence • Tickets, Please | Ernest Hemingway • Indian Camp | F. Scott Fitzgerald • The Ice Palace | William Faulkner • Go Down, Moses | Walter de la Mare • The Wharf [Black type on white background, with a horizontal red-orange band across the center | paperback front cover]

Faber [Black type over red-orange band | back cover detail from Modern Short Stories — Edited by Jim Hunter]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

I’m sorry, WTF does it matter in this situation that he’s Jewish?

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Raggedy Ann & Andy were created by Indianapolis author-illustrator Johnny Gruelle. His books were published by Indianapolis publisher Bobbs-Merrill, known for works by L. Frank Baum, and LeRoi Jones, as well as the Joy of Cooking. Be loud. Keep trying. Make something. #foundbooks #hoosiersky

Raggedy Ann and Betsy Bonnet String — by Johnny Gruelle | Justin C. Gruelle | "B" [illustration of Raggedy Ann and Andy walking down a dirt path at night with an elderly white-haired woman in a red dress and white apron, with a bonnet tied to her head, and an elderly man with white hair and beard, wearing overalls and colorful striped top-hat, with glasses at the end of his nose. An elf-like creature peeks out from behind a gnarled tree-trunk | illustrated by Justin C. Gruelle | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

Raggedy Ann and Andy and the Nice Fat Policeman — by Johnny Gruelle [illustration of a round-bellied, round-cheeked police officer in uniform white pants, blue brass-buttoned coat with star badge, and police hat, arms around the shoulders of Raggedy Ann and Andy, atop a grassy hill at night | illustration by Worth Gruelle | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

Raggedy Ann's Wishing Pebble — by Johnny Gruelle [illustration of Raggedy Ann — sitting with Andy in a patch of grass and colorful flowers surrounded by shadowy trees — holding a round orange pebble that seems to glow | illustration by Worth Gruelle | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

Nice Fat Policeman by Johnny Gruelle [illustration of the face of a round-cheeked police officer in police hat and star-shaped badge, between the faces of Raggedy Andy and Ann | illustration by Worth Gruelle | detail of title page of Raggedy Ann and Andy and the Nice Fat Policeman — by Johnny Gruelle]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Why are you trying to make this sound like a completely normal political occurrence and not something profoundly ridiculous for a US president to say?

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Good morning! It's (Bandcamp) Friday! It's also the first day of school. For your listening consideration this month: Far from Here, the 2004 debut album by @summerpierre.bsky.social. Available for digital download, streaming, and on CD. Go to @bandcamp.com and give it a listen for free.

Summer Pierre — Far from Here [album cover]

Nathan Pyritz — Rough Cuts on the Way to Poetry, Vol. 1 & 2 | Eddy Dyer — Explosion Alone | Summer Pierre — Far from Here | Nathan Pyritz — Twenty Twenty Six (Twelve Months of Cover Songs | TPS005 | 2026) [album covers]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Far from Here is the 2004 debut album by singer-songwriter / cartoonist / illustrator Summer Pierre — a fully-realized collection of songs exploring introspection, adventure, nostalgia, struggle, and attitude. Available for digital download, streaming, and on CD. Go to Bandcamp and listen for free.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Good morning! It's Friday. Consider smiling today, because, why not? Things may be objectively terrible at the moment, but… why not? Keep trying. Be loud. Grin so hard people around you look away. #foundbooks

Patty Duke and Mystery Mansion — [by Doris Schroeder, illustrated by Wilbur A. Howe | photo of a smiling Patty Duke with a very 1960s hairdo in front of an abstract blue, green, and yellow background | photographer unknown | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

Dr. Kildare: Assigned to Trouble — [by Robert C. Ackworth, illustrated by Robert L. Jenney] | Al Anderson [illustration of a smiling doctor holding a stethoscope and seeming to pose for the camera, while behind him another doctor (the same doctor?) stands in a cocky pose, smiling and showing a clipboard to an orderly with a blonde buzzcut; to the side, by herself, a nurse in a white cap holds a tray with a glass and pitcher of water | cover illustration by Al Anderson | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

Walt Disney's Annette: Sierra Summer — [by Doris Shroeder, illustrated by Adam Szwejkowski] | Authorized Edition | © Walt Disney Productions | Al Anderson [illustration of a smiling Annette Funicello in a red blouse and sparkling pearl earrings, over a red background | cover illustration by Al Anderson | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

[blue and black illustration of a man, lying in a hospital bed, wrapped in so many bandages he resembles a mummy, looking up at a doctor with a stethoscope, holding a clipboard | Illustration by Robert L. Jenney | endpaper detail from Dr. Kildare: Assigned to Trouble — by Robert C. Ackworth]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Good morning! It's a beautiful rainy Friday. A perfect day to throw on a raincoat and walk through a wood, down a quiet or busy road, or through an unexplored corner of your hood. What mysteries, struggles, or ambitions lie in the places and lives around you? Keep trying, be loud. #foundbooks

The Return of the Native — by Thomas Hardy | A Washington Square Press Book | W • 223 | 45¢ [illustrator unknown | high-contrast illustration of a woman in a black dress, with long black hair blowing in the wind, while behind her stands the silhouette of a man beside a bare tree with curly gnarled branches | mass market paperback front cover]

Nectar in a Sieve — by Kamala Markandaya | by the author of THE TWO VIRGINS | The widely acclaimed bestseller about a woman's struggle to find happiness in a changing India. "Very moving." —Harper's Magazine | Over 3/4 Million Copies in Print! | Signet•451•W7482•$1.50 [illustrator unknown | high contrast illustration of a woman with black hair, wrapped in a red garment, while behind her the silhouette of a farmer guides a white ox, and a white spire rises up surrounded by trees | mass market paperback front cover with blue price sticker on spine]

The Gab Boys — by Cameron Duodu | Fontana Modern Novels [photographer unknown | photo of two men in jeans and striped shirts, one with hand on hip, the other, smoking, with arms crossed, scowl at a smiling woman in a copper colored dress | mass market paperback front cover]

[illustrator unknown | illustration of a colorful bare tree with curly gnarled branches | back cover detail from The Return of the Native — by Thomas Hardy]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

Good morning! It’s Friday. Here’s hoping you find some color to break through the crushing weight of evil and indifference that has been so encouraged, supported, and celebrated in recent years. #foundbooks

Bunny Blue — [by Catherine Stahlmann] | A Rand McNally Junior Elf Book | 39¢ | 8023 | Key / 750 / 542894 / 24-089 / 4/100 [illustration of a bright blue bunny with enormous whiskers, pink tail, and enormous pink bow around its neck | illustration by Ruth Thompson van Tellingen | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

Katy No-Pocket — Story by Emmy Payne * Pictures by H.A. Rey | Scholastic 0-590-02040-4 [illustration of a smiling kangaroo and baby roo looking up at a man in brown slacks, plaid shirt, and blue apron and cap, holding a pipe and a toolbox | paperback front cover]

I Had Trouble in getting to Solla Sollew — By Dr. Seuss | A Dr. Seuss Paperback Classic [illustration of a yellow camel pulling a one-wheeled cart, on which sits an orange cat, down a steep hill of bulbous lumps, passing by a skinny curved pink tree | illustration by Theodor Seuss Geisel | paperback front cover]

[illustration of a child-like clown, wearing a pointed red cap, a red and white jumpsuit, and bright yellow shoes, seated, leaning back, with his left leg crossed over his right knee, beside a small giraffe | illustration by Ruth Thompson van Tellingen | title page detail from Bunny Blue — by Catherine Stahlmann]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

I only own a few, but one of my goals is to collect as many of these in hardcover as possible.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators, John Bellairs’s books (particularly those with Edward Gorey covers), and most of all, the Dark is Rising series. I was fortunate as an adult to meet Susan Cooper and to design the cover to one of her books.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Such a great record! Today is @bandcamp.com Friday.

Eddy Dyer — explosion alone | Remastered 25th Anniversary Edition of a Quiet Masterpiece [album cover | smoke photo by Kevin Mertens]

Nathan Pyritz — Rough Cuts on the Way to Poetry, Vol. 1 / Vol. 2 | Eddy Dyer — Explosion Alone | Summer Pierre — Far From Here | Nathan Pyritz — Twenty Twenty Six [Album covers]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Such a great record! Get it from links in bio...

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Good morning! It's Friday. This week I was fortunate to be able to spend time with some Canadians and Hoosiers. Today my family is heading out on our first college tour. Tomorrow we are going to swing by and say hi to Ms Dickinson. Keep trying. Be loud. Spend time with the best people. #foundbooks

Cap and Gown: Some College Verse [— by Joseph La Roy Harrison | debossed illustration of graduating college students dancing hand in hand in a line over a background of flowers | illustrator unknown | unjacketed hardcover front cover]

Our Troubled Youth — by Frederick Mayer | The whole shocking story of what's wrong with American kids, by a famous and sympathetic authority on youth problems: A book every parent, teacher, community leader must read! | A Bantam Book | A2088 * * 35¢ [B&W photo of 3 street toughs: a young woman standing in front of 2 young men | photographer unknown | tattered mass market paperback front cover, spine reinforced with peeling white tape]

The Scarlet Letter — by Nathaniel Hawthorne | A Modern Library Book [illustration of a pillory on a raised platform surrounded by silhouettes of 8 puritan men and women wearing hats and bonnets | illustrator unknown | hardcover jacket front cover]

[Across the U.S.A. newspaper headlines scream stories of teen-age ki]llings, burglaries, rapes, prostitution. From city slums to prosperous [sub]urban communities, our children are committing crimes, acts of violence [an]d sexual [pro]miscuity. WHY? [back cover detail from mass market paperback of Our Troubled Youth — by Frederick Mayer]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

I don’t think we’re allowed to work that way anymore.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

First thing I always check is food (usually corn) blocking the spray holes in the arm (happens constantly in my modern dishwasher). Otherwise something physically blocking it. Sounds like you’re probably beyond the simple fixes by now, though.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

Good morning. It's Friday! I took the day off today to get an early start on the weekend and to record some music. When I was younger, summers meant reading a lot of sci-fi paperbacks. I miss that. #foundbooks Keep trying. Be loud. Enjoy the summertime.

Space Case — by Edward Marshall | pictures by James Marshall | Picture Puffins | Reading Rainbow™ Book [illustration of 3 people wearing costumes (American Indian, Monster?, Cowboy Ghost) sitting on a bench outside at night with a yellow and pink flying saucer hovering above and behind them | illustration by James Edward Marshall | tattered paperback front cover]

Neutron Stat — by Larry Niven | From the Solar System to the Galactic Core, eight rousing tales of adventure in Known Space! | A Del Rey Book | SF | Ballantine/28378/$1.95 [purple cover with yellow-green text and accents - reddish illustration of some kind of long narrow spacecraft, floating near an orange sun, surrounded by distant stars | illustration by Rick Sternbach | mass market paperback front cover]

Prison of Night: Dumarest of Terra #17 — by E.C. Tubb | DAW Books | SF | No. 271 | $1.50 | UW1346 [illustration of a man in a blue tunic and black boots, holding a fantastic rifle, standing in front of a throned figure in a red cloak, hands resting on a pair of stone spheres, surrounded by floating blue bubbles | illustration by Don Maitz | mass market paperback front cover]

[illustration of a man in a blue tunic in front of a red-cloaked figure surrounded by floating blue bubbles in front of a night sky | illustration by Don Maitz | front cover detail from Prison of Night: Dumarest of Terra #17 — by E.C. Tubb mass market paperback]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Good morning! It's Friday. The skies in Boston have gone from orange back to blue. I love the strong type, very simply set, on this first cover. I also appreciate the textured cover stock used on both of these German paperbacks. Be loud. Keep trying. And sometimes, just keep it simple. #foundbooks

$Illuminationen ["Illuminations"] — by Walter Benjamin | Ausgewählte Schriften ["Selected Writings"] | suhrkamp | taschenbuch ["paperback"] \ [black type on brown | paperback front cover]$ $Quand on raconte des histoires horribles, il arrive des histoires horribles ["When You Tell Horrible Stories, Horrible Stories Happen"] — by Dominique Souton | Neuf de l'école des loisirs ["Nine from the school of leisure"] \ [rough illustration of a person with blonde hair wearing blue pants and top, brown boots and green scarf | illustration by Alan Mets | paperback front cover]$ Das Lächeln am Fuße der Leiter ["The Smile at the Foot of the Ladder"] — by Henry Miller, illustrated by Joan Miró | ro ro ro [abstract illustration of crescent moon and stars | illustration by Joan Miró | paperback front cover]

Das Lächeln am Fuße der Leiter ["The Smile at the Foot of the Ladder"] — by Henry Miller, illustrated by Joan Miró | ro ro ro [abstract illustration of crescent moon and stars | illustration by Joan Miró | paperback front cover]

[Das] Lächeln am Fusse der Leiter ["The Smile at the Foot of the Ladder"] Henry Miller Joan Miró [hand-lettered in black over painted red-orange oval shape | illustration by Joan Miró | title page detail]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

This has nothing whatsoever to do with DEI, though it does exactly what the GOP has been inaccurately accusing DEI efforts of doing. But it is more or less the polar opposite of DEI and prioritizing of “legacy” hires like this over qualified candidates is one of the reasons DEI is so necessary.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Good morning! It's Friday. Make the most of your weekend. Be loud. Keep trying. Go on as many adventures as you can manage. #foundbooks

The First Golden Geography: A Beginner's Introduction to Our World [— by Janet Werner Watson] | a Little Golden Book | 29¢ | 534 | "91" [illustration by William Sayles | illustration of a globe over a montage of colorful landscapes | Little Golden Book front cover]

A Journey to the Center of the Earth — by Jules Verne | [T 618] | 60¢ [illustrator unknown | illustration of 3 men walking through the dark, one carrying a lantern. Below them is a cross-section of a hollow globe, containing two smaller hollow globes, with a glowing sun at the center. Each cross-sectioned globe contains fantastic imagery such as a dinosaur, giant insects and mushrooms, and crashing waves | mass market paperback front cover showing some damage, with a blue sticker on the spine]

Mysterious Sea Stories — edited by William Pattrick [illustration by William Pennington | illustration of large ship in ominous green waters, next to looming rocky cliff or iceberg | plastic-protected hardcover jacket front cover]

[interior illustration detail from The First Golden Geography: A Beginner's Introduction to Our World — by Janet Werner Watson | illustration by William Sayles | illustration of a yellow helicopter piloted by 3 happy children]

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Reposted by Nathan Pyritz

J. Anderson Coats (she/her) @jandersoncoats.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Wales, 1109. Three years ago, Elen spun a desperate lie to save herself. Now her life depends on living that lie every single moment. www.jandersoncoats.com/spindle-and-... Written for a teen audience but a great choice for adults who want a historical novel with lots of history.

jandersoncoats.com

Spindle and Dagger — J. Anderson Coats

Young adult historical fiction book set in medieval Wales that is a gritty, well-researched retelling of the abduction of Nest by Owain ap Cadwgan.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

That was one of my favorites

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Good morning! It's Friday. It's hot. If, like me, you crumple and wither in the heat, stay indoors and learn something useful or discover something abstract. Keep trying. Be loud. Be cool. #foundbooks

10000 {Word Level Super Vocabulary Building} — by Ueda Ichizō (author) | {Outgoing English} | CD Book {With 3 CDs} | The Secret of Supereffective Vocabulary Building | {Time Economist} • CNN | {You can enjoy it and it's also effective for | EIKEN Grade 1 • Interpreter/Guide Exams • TOEIC • United Nations English | Proficiency Test} | {Beret Publishing} [jacket design by 赤谷直宣(Naonobu Akaya) | paperback front cover | English translation is approximate at best]

Introductory Economics [Fourth Edition] — by Joseph E. Stiglitz/Carl E. Walsh | {Stiglitz's Introduction to Economics | 4th Edition | Joseph E. Stiglitz / Carl E. Walsh [written] | Shiro Yabushita / Taro Akiyama / Yasuhiro Arikawa / Hiroshi Oaku / Chikara Kodachi / Ryo Miyata / Kazuharu Seino [translation] | Toyo Keizai Inc. [book design by 鈴木堯 (Takashi Suzuki) and 佐々木由美 (Yumi Sasaki), タウハウス (Tauhaus) | paperback front cover | English translation is approximate at best]

English for International Banking and Finance — by Jim Corbett | Cambridge University Press [paperback front cover]

[black circle within a gray circle within a black square | title page detail from 10000 {Word Level Super Vocabulary Building} — by Ueda Ichizō (author)]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

Good morning! It's a lovely rainy Friday. I love these black-line illustrations and the very limited color palette. I also kinda love the very consistent use of Futura type on the old Scholastic paperbacks. Be loud. Keep trying. Stay dry and find things you like in the world. #foundbooks

Project: Genius — by William D. Hayes | 35¢ | TX 476 [illustration by William Dimmity Hayes | paperback front cover | illustration of a boy standing at a large wooden table, tinkering with some kind of mechanical device]

Key to the Treasure — by Peggy Parish | illustrated by Paul Frame [unjacketed hardcover front cover with ragged spine | illustration of 2 boys and a girl; girl and one boy sitting on floor with paper and pencil; 2nd boy has one foot on a entry hall bench, looking at himself in the mirror while playing a game of American Indian cultural appropriation, wearing a feathered headdress and clapping his hand over his mouth]

Honestly, Katie John! — by Mary Calhoun | 50¢ | TX 751 | 3/6 | BOYS ARE RE... | [illustrated by Paul Frame | paperback front cover | illustration of an angry young girl in a red sweater drawing a stick figure on a piece of paper and writing "BOYS ARE RE..."]

[black line illustration of girl kicking and waving her arms at two boys; one boy is raising his hands in front of his face defensively while the other is clutching his presumably just-kicked shin | illustration by Paul Frame | back cover detail from Honestly, Katie John! — by Mary Calhoun]

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(18/18) Many of my earliest design experiments were done with my dad’s leftover Letraset and photocopied Victorian-era clipart from a Clarence Hornung book of early advertising art he had checked out of the Indianapolis Public Library to use in Vade Mecum.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(17/18) I have a memory of seeing the master copy of his business card pinned to a bulletin board by his desk at home. The type was done in Letraset and the illustration of the rower he drew himself.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(16/18) I believe at one point he was in talks with Olympic diver Greg Louganis to appear in some kind of ad for his business in exchange for a free rowing shell, but the deal never came together.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(15/18) Later, my father, a boat fanatic who lived his entire life in the land-locked state of Indiana, started a business selling rowing shells. I assume he sold a few, but the business never really took off.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(14/18) He used the same camera to take my preschool’s class photo one year. He told me he once got an assignment to go photograph an appearance by the band Cheap Trick at a local record shop. I assume he used one of his more modern 1970s Olympus cameras for that one.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(13/18) Unlike the posed old-fashioned faux-sepia photography attractions you can still find at fairs today, he used an authentic antique accordion camera that required the photographer to duck under a dark cloth to focus and take the picture.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(12/18) He would set up a tent made of heavy canvas — hand-painted with landscapes for backgrounds, on a frame of PVC pipes — and photograph people dressed up in civil war garb and other period costumes.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(11/18) When I was very young, he worked a bit as a photographer. The silhouette of the photographer on his business card is him. He started his photography business on July 4, 1976, next to the Indianapolis War Memorial during the Bicentennial celebration.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(10/18) In addition to helping many patients, he traveled the world, training people and meeting colleagues, as well as building community with fellow cancer patients and professionals through the internet. And along the way, he started a couple of businesses.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(9/18) After he was diagnosed with cancer himself, he became a blogger, and was exploring writing another book.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(8/18) It took him a while to find nursing — only starting school for it in his thirties — but he was dedicated to it for the rest of his life. His career ended up focused on working with oncology patients.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(7/18) My father, Dennis W. Pyritz (1947–2019) was a nurse for most of his career. In 1983, while in Nursing school, he wrote, designed, and self-published a small book — Vade Mecum — about values and self-understanding, as part of an honors project. A bit more on that later.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(6/18) My friends and I would spread these out — blank side up — on my basement floor and draw enormous space battles.

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(5/18) My grandfather Stan used to give us unused printed sheets of partial billboard advertisements. Unfolded, they were probably 4 x 8 feet — large sheets of heavy paper printed on one side with a giant halftoned photo of a hamburger or something similar (probably printed at no more than 15 dpi).

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Nathan Pyritz @npyritz.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

(4/18) Theodore’s brother Charles, who also worked for General Outdoor, died in 1935 of a broken neck in a car accident, having collided with the guy-wire of a telephone pole while apparently out checking on some of the company’s billboards in the area.

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