Concept and Design

The Bomber Edition represents our ultimate edition of Catch-22. It is limited to only 26 lettered and signed copies, and it boasts many unique and special features.

All three editions share the same creative concept, just interpreted in different ways. The concept stems from the absurdity of war, which Heller so aptly mocked in this cult classic. The goal was to emphasise that absurdity through illustrations and other design elements, thus enhancing the story. Therefore, there are twenty-two illustrations throughout the book, each depicting moments where Catch-22 situations were most prominent in the dialogue between the characters. All these illustrations feature at least one detail where the geometry and logic are broken, akin to the drawings of M.C. Escher, and even the typography used in title—Macula—defies geometry in a similar manner. These challenging illustrations were meticulously made by Damir Mazinjanin.

The introduction for this book was written by a Croatian historian Tvrtko Jakovina, giving an insight into circumstances which led to Korean war, which was what Catch-22 was really about. Not only does he aptly paint the picture of the events that led to the war and how it was perceived in the States, but he also draws parallels with situation in former Yugoslavia, thus providing a very unique and interesting perspective to the themes of the book.

The case for this edition was designed as an homage to the B-25 Mitchell bomber, which was prominently used in WW2. The canopy of the bomber is prominent on the front of the case, providing the view of the bombardier inside—the book.

The book is Bradel-bound in the finest brown goatskin leather, featuring our Catch-22 themed bombardier patch on the front cover. The patch is held by velcro and beneath it is a metal badge. Additional patch is provided, should you want to incorporate it on your own clothing. The spine of the book has another patch, this one inspired by the hidden metal badge. Once the book is opened, there are gorgeous marbled endpapers, which are made to resemble clouds in the sky. The book is completely printed letterpress, including all twenty-two illustrations, on 100% cotton paper.

The bookmark is two-sided, featuring a bomb on one side and a plum tomato on the other side. Both were quite prominent in the story and it’s meant to represent how for some a war can is a horrible thing, while for the other’s it’s just business as usual.

As previously mentioned, the whole run has 26 lettered and signed copies, with a few additional publisher’s copies for the key participants of the project that will never go to sale, making this a true rarity.

Photography: Dino Šertović.

Production and Materials

This edition of Catch-22 features quite a few unique details, all working in unison to make it a truly stunning edition.

The case is bound in finest goatskin leather and metallic paper, with aluminium panels on the front and on the back, engraved to look like those of a WW2 bomber plane (non-painted). Since the case is enlarged, the book can be safely nestled into its compartment on the right side, which is completely lined with sheep shearling, like the ones used to line bomber jackets.

The book is Bradel-bound in the finest goatskin leather and the bombardier patch featured on the front is made by the company Jacquard, which manufactures patches like these for the military, police and other government services in need of such service. Underneath the patch is a metal badge with a corresponding letter of the book. The spine of the book features another patch, inspired by the hidden badge, featuring only the number 22. Marbling is done on an opal-white paper with metallic sheen, featuring multiple layers and shades of white to reach the desired effect. The paper used throughout the book will be 100% cotton mould-made Hahnemühle Printmaking paper, customised to our specifications. The whole book will be printed letterpress on our own Heidelberg Cylinder, including the illustrations, which will be printed in two tones.

The bookmark is produced by careful blending of shapes of a bomb and a tomato in order to reach the desired optical illusion.

All of these details make this a truly unique edition of Catch-22.

Shipping

Since we put a lot of effort into creation of our books, we like to see them delivered safe and sound (and fast!) straight into your hands. That is why we ship with DHL Express, which means that your order will be trackable at all times and it’ll arrive straight into your hands. The official expected delivery time is 7-10 business days at the latest, but the average deliver time is usually around five business days. Also worth mentioning is that all our books are shipped insured for full amount.

Please be aware that although books are not subject to customs fees in many countries, they might be in yours. This may mean they’ll be held at customs for inspection, delaying the delivery time, and you may be charged a customs fee, or import tax, or something similar. Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do about customs clearance; customs rules of each country make the importer (the buyer—you!) responsible for these fees. Some of our customers have managed to reduce these fees by opting to do the import documentation themselves at the customs office instead of letting the courier (DHL) do it for them.