Forty years of horror. And more

Joe Cassar: Anton Grasso40 sena ta’ waħx... u aktarHorizons Publications 2018

All Anton Grasso’s books are unusual. This volume, a sort of anthology containing prose and poetic writings by Grasso, appreciations by people who know the author, photos, selected or taken by Annette Apap, and superbly edited by the seasoned journalist Joe Cassar for Horizons, is the most unusual of them all.

You don’t have to open the book to come face to face with its atypical presentation. The cover is notable enough to strike you as another remarkable book, albeit with its own peculiarities. In fact, it is a book with the cover itself as an incipit.

The title, Anton Grasso – 40 Sena ta’ Waħx u aktar, the close-up portrait photo (a penetrating, almost inquisitive and covertly narcissistic look), and the design (sombre yet not ponderous), all contribute to catch your attention.

The different yet unifying aspects of this volume, breathe and speak on their own terms, portraying Grasso, the author and the man.

The first part contains also a short yet in-depth portrait of the author by his friend Joe Cassar, and an obligato intrusion by the author, comprises recollections and reviews of the man by Doris...