Scope and Contents This book is subtitled "La Figuration dans l'alphabet latin du huitieme siecle a nos jours." Raymond Queneau contributed a preface. This is a new and augmented edition with the dust jacket cover by Andre Francois. The anthology, with text by Massin, is divided into three main sections. The first section is a discussion of the letter itself, the letter as symbol and the history of letters. The next section contains figurative verse and calligrams, shaped poetry and prose throughout history. The final section of the book examines the use of letters in fine art and how the letter form has grown in importance throughout the history of art. The diverse illustrations are international in scope and range from early Christian prayer books and Gothic alphabets to contemporary works.On the title page, the caption that this is a new and expanded edition appears; the first edition was published in 1970. The dust jackets differ between the two second editions. -- Source of annotation: Marvin or...