Introducing Jubilate Agno
Our second publication is now available: Jubilate Agno by Christopher Smart!
This new edition of Jubilate Agno, the sprawling, mind-bending poem by Christopher Smart, includes a “foreword” by Smart's contemporary and friend, Samuel Johnson, and a textual note that explains the structure of Smart's poem as it is laid out in this book.
The poem itself has been carefully transcribed and presented in a clear and readable format, allowing readers to fully appreciate the strangeness and complexity of Smart's writing. Also included are images of several of the original pages, written in Smart's hand.
Whether you are a longtime fan of Jubilate Agno (which is Latin for "Rejoice In The Lamb") or a newcomer to Smart's work, this edition is an essential addition to any poetry lover's library.
Includes the famous lines of poetry in praise of the author’s cat Jeoffry.
Why a new edition of this old poem?
A more accurate version of the text - Most of the current editions of the poem published in the 20th century made a choice to rearrange the poem in a way quite different from how Smart wrote it. Our edition presents it in a facing-page layout that allows for reading it in the way Smart wrote the poem, or in the format that some scholars think he may have intended as a final form. The note on the text by Ray Davis explains this in more detail.
An affordable, good-looking edition - The covers of existing editions are ugly, or boring, or both. There exists one gorgeous edition of the poem, but there were only 110 copies printed, priced at $430 for one of the hundred or $1,583 for one of the ten. (If you’re buying one, get one for us too…)
We’re going to be publishing portions of Jubilate Agno as posts on this blog, so subscribe to get them in your inbox.
Who was Christopher Smart?
If you’re interested in learning more about the curious Dr. Smart, you can start with his bio on the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, go deeper with his bio on the Poetry Foundation website, and follow the rabbit trails out from his Wikipedia page.
You can read what his friend and contemporary, Samuel Johnson, thought of him here.
About the cover
The cover art is by the fantastic and fantastical illustrator Will Kelly. You can see the phases of his process on his website.
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