Since the beginning, McPherson’s books have been visually striking, often including original artwork. “I believe in the beauty of the artifact,” he says. “I’m very much interested in making a total experience: the typography, the design of the page, the flow of the book, the bookjacket, the materials that go into the binding. I’m interested in making something that the reader will feel whoever made this cared about. Not to make it precious, but to make it right, to honor the words it protects, to make it as quote-unquote permanent as one can in this world.”