Concept and Design

The Mission Edition of Catch-22 is limited to 200 numbered and signed copies

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 is designed to look like a weapon’s crate from the WW2 era. Even the colour of the plush lining inside is matched with the colour of unpainted wood and hay, which were often found on the inside of such crates.

The front “cover” features a tally marks design, since tally marks were often used by the military personnel to count things, be it a number of missions flown or the number of enemy aircrafts shot down. The spine is bound in olive green goatskin leather, featuring the title of the book. Once you open the book, you are met with stunning marbled endpapers made to look like military camouflage. The book will be 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 200 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 has its own set of unique features.

In order to achieve the weapon’s crate look for the case, it is bound in thickly painted book cloth, giving it a sturdy look and feel. The inside of the case is lined with luxurious plush material, giving it that velvet-like feel. The front of the case and the spine of the case are both blocked in white foil.

This edition has a somewhat unique binding. While the spine of the book is bound in the finest olive green goatskin leather, the boards are made of plywood, which was then laser engraved with the tally marks design. The spine is blocked in white foil. The marbling is done on an olive green paper, combining multiple colours to reach the desired camouflage 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.

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.