{"product_id":"michaux-henri-by-surprise","title":"Michaux, Henri: By Surprise","description":"\u003cp\u003eHanuman Editions, paperback\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePublication Date: June 22, 2026\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePublisher Marketing:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eBy Surprise\u003c\/em\u003e, Henri Michaux recounts in vivid detail the dislocations or \u003cem\u003edéplacements\u003c\/em\u003e of a psychedelic sojourn, where the vicissitudes of the mind are wrested in a kaleidoscopic “paraphysics”. Across bursts of observation as dizzying as the trip itself, Michaux probes the affectations of the real and the exaltations of the as-yet unknown. With a preface by Allen Ginsberg on Michaux as humble “genius,” a keeper of visions and dreams, \u003cem\u003eBy Surprise\u003c\/em\u003e is steeped in the thrillingly protean.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLeaving behind a corpus of nearly 10,000 drawings and over 30 volumes of poetry, the Belgian-born French avant-garde figure Henri Michaux (1899-1984) was described by John Ashbery as “hardly a painter, hardly even a writer, but a conscience—the most sensitive substance yet discovered for registering the fluctuating anguish of day-to-day, minute-to-minute living.” With close ties to surrealist and existentialist circles, Michaux modelled his own distinct artistry through a commitment to the revelatory power of a chosen medium, whether literary or artistic. Notable works in English translation include his \u003cem\u003ePlume\u003c\/em\u003e cycle, a dialogue with a Chaplinesque personification of the errant pen, as well as the travel memoir \u003cem\u003eA Barbarian in Asia\u003c\/em\u003e, the illustrated volume \u003cem\u003eStroke by Stroke\u003c\/em\u003e, and the compilation, \u003cem\u003eDarkness Moves.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Open Books: A Poem Emporium","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45228775276567,"sku":"9798990416581","price":16.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0004\/6497\/7956\/files\/1780672288-900.png?v=1781814093","url":"https:\/\/open-books-a-poem-emporium.myshopify.com\/products\/michaux-henri-by-surprise","provider":"Open Books: A Poem Emporium","version":"1.0","type":"link"}