The Book

I have finally decided on a book to study this semester, and let me tell you, I am very excited about it.  When it finally got it in the mail, I couldn't keep my hands off it.

Are you ready to see it?

Drum roll, please....

"Kristelig Forglemmigej" is my book of choice.  This Danish prayer/poem book caught my eye while I was browsing eBay.  

"Kristelig" mean Christian, and "Forglemmigej" means "Forget-me-not," hence the forget-me-not flowers on the cover of the book.

There is no author.  This is just a collection of poems and scripture for every day of the year.  There are also blank pages inside the book for what I am assuming is to write your own devotions.  In this particular book, there are names, dates and short details of what happened to the person.

This is what makes this book special.

The book has writing from a few different people, but I believe it is the same family--The Johnson's.  My favorite entry is on page 131.  This page is a good example of the different handwriting. The entry says "Carl Johnson, May the 2nd, 1884."  The rest is done at a later date, which is evident of the use of a blue fountain pen.  The entry says when Carl died, how old he was, where his funeral was and where he is buried.

The book was published by the Augsburg Publishing House, located in Minneapolis, but the book was printed in Germany.  

The Augsburg Publishing House is now the Augsburg Fortress, combining the names of two Lutheran publishing houses. 

The Augsburg Publishing House was founded in 1891 at Augsburg Seminary.  At the time, both the house and the seminary were a part of United Norwegian Lutheran Church of America, until the publishing house moved and became the publishing arm of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.  In 1960, the Lutheran denominations formed the American Lutheran Church.

Overall, I am excited to explore this little book and find out more about it.

Works Cited

About Us. Augsburg Fortress, n.d. Web. 27 Jan. 2014.

The Power of Print

I live, quite literally, for the written word.

I am a junior print journalism major at Marshall University in Huntington, W.Va., where I am the news editor for the daily student newspaper The Parthenon.

While my true passion is writing, I appreciate the value of a well-designed page.  The story cannot make an efficient impact if it is not presented well.

The world of newspapers is on the same unknown journey as books through an ever-changing, technical terrain.  Will it all go digital?  If it's digital, is it still the printed word?

My decision to be a print journalism major, and not an online major or broadcast major, was an easy one.  When the choice between a hardback, 1,000 page book versus a Kindle version of the same book presents itself to me, I choose the hardback, 1,000 page book.  I want to hold it.  I want to hold the newspaper.  I need that.

For the next few months, I will be analyzing a book of my choice (which I haven't chosen yet).  I'm going to research the paper, the typography, the binding and everything else.  I'm currently on the hunt for my soul-book (the book equivalent to a soulmate).

Stay with me and let's discover why the book is beautiful.  Let's all rediscover why the printed word is so important.