Capolan: Travels of a Vagabond Country Artbox [Paperback]

Nick Bantock (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1997

When the Capolanian government wanted commemorative stamps and postcards created in honor of their 650th anniversary, they turned, quite naturally, to artist and writer Nick Bantock. Who better to capture the mythical nation's enigmatic spirit? The result is a sumptuous treasure box of history, legend, and fantasy. Inside, the curious will find the very postcards and stamps Mr. Bantock created for this commission, along with a book -- not much larger than a passport -- in which he introduces the history, philosophy, customs, and traditions of this mysterious nomadic tribe.

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Nick Bantock is the author of numerous illustrated novels, including Griffin & Sabine , Sabine's Notebook , The Golden Mean , The Gryphon , and Alexandria , which together spent 100 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list. Born in England, he now lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (April 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811815455
• ISBN-13: 978-0811815451
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.9 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,457,434 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting concept, but where's the story?, August 6, 1998

By 

J. Craiglow (Monroe, North Carolina, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Capolan: Travels of a Vagabond Country Artbox (Paperback)

Nick Bantock has come up with a very innovative idea -- make a commemorative souvenir for the anniversary of a nation that has chosen not to exist. I have to admit, I really like the concept, but I was hoping for more of a story than a little 40-page booklet (which, in reality, is not much more than a pamphlet) explaining the heritage of these people. There's such a rich story waiting to come out, and all Bantock does is scratch the surface. I would have loved to find out more, but there's nothing else but stamps and postcards from which I could glean information. I've got almost all of Bantock's other material, and I have to say that, while it's probably one of the most visually satisfying works, it's one of the least satisfying as far as storyline goes. It's a good addition for an avid Bantock collector, but if you're looking to begin a love affair with his work, start with The Venetian's Wife or the Griffin and Sabine Trilogy.

37 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Buy it for the pictures, April 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Capolan: Travels of a Vagabond Country Artbox (Paperback)

Nick Bantock does not refer to himself as much a writer as a creative artist. This is reflected in the Capolan set.

The art is excellent and pure Bantock: colorful, expressive, off-center, collage-ish. The book is not good, though. The book tries to be pure Bantock - that is, meditiative, somewhat sad but fulfilled, and quietly anti-commercialist. However, it tries too hard. Artists agree that art should make the unfamiliar familiar, or the familiar unfamiliar. I believe Griffin and Sabine made Bantock's unfamiliar concepts familiar because of the familiar root - correspondence - combined with the rich, concrete detail rooted in basic human emotions. Capolan fails, though. Although the concept of a nomad nation is known to westerners, it is not familiar, and it is not made familiar since there are few rich, familiar details. Unless you are a Bantock devotee or an art lover, skip this one over.

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful and unusual treat for the art lover/Bantock fan, July 30, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Capolan: Travels of a Vagabond Country Artbox (Paperback)

This unusual "artbox" was a joy to discover. It's filled with stamps, artcards, and contains a little (literally) book about an imaginary country, "Capolan". It was really like nothing I'd seen before, and was really visually spectacular. I really liked the odd nature of the book-- written in such a serious tone, yet so obviously about things not of this world, I was at a loss what to believe...a country that (as we learn at the book's end) that has voluntarily agreed not to exist? Fascinating. I bought this as a gift to myself-- but it would also be a perfect gift for an art lover or one of the many Bantock junkies out there