Book of Hours: A Wordless Novel Told in 99 Wood Engravings

The Book of Hours, a wordless novel, draws us back through time and into the intimate routines of daily life in the hours before the onslaught of 9/11. Through images, artist George A. Walker expresses what is too horrific for words, and although the inhabitants of the Book of Hours can't imagine the tragedy about to befall them, the reader must dread the slow, uneven countdown that weaves between the pages. Through a careful, reverential representation of all the minor tasks that make up a day, the Book of Hours pays homage to the small rituals that grant our lives some stability and meaning in the midst of terrible and incomprehensible events. Walker's art contributes to the great wood engraving tradition established by the likes of Frans Masereel, Lynd Ward and Otto Nuckel, and demonstrates the endless need to expose and question social and political injustice through art and narrative.

`The delicacy and intelligence of George Walker's print-making seems to have come to us from a bygone age. Fortunately, we have George with us now.'---Neil Gaiman, author of The Sandman

In 2002, George A. Walker was elected to the Royal Canadian Academy of Art for his contribution to the cultural area of Book Arts. He lives in Toronto where he is an Associate Professor at OCAD University.