I just opened an envelope containing three “advance reading copies” of Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong. These are handsomely bound promotional paperbacks of the uncorrected galley proofs of Pops whose front cover and spine are essentially identical to the dust jacket of the finished book. I can now see for the first time what Pops will look like when it comes out on December 2.
Needless to say, I’m biased, but I think it’s the most beautifully designed of all my books–and now it’s real. I can hold it in my hand, turn the pages, and marvel at what Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and I have wrought.
I’m so proud I could burst.
Terry Teachout on the arts in New York City
