Obvious State Illustrated Classics is an evolving series of visually reimagined beloved works. The pocket-sized editions feature the selected works of celebrated authors such as T. S. Eliot, Edgar Allan Poe, Walt Whitman, Sara Teasdale, Henry David Thoreau, Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, John Keats and Pablo Neruda. Each edition is illustrated by Obvious State Co-founder, Evan Robertson. The minimalist books are a great gift for current classics lovers and those who want a beautiful introduction to foundational, enduring works. 

"How can artwork live on the page with poetic text in a way that enhances it without upstaging it or undermining its ability to communicate? That was my main priority, and it informed everything about the visual approach. The stark palette, the repetition of visual elements, and the balance of art and text all serve to drive the narrative forward. While there’s no “correct” way to visualize these works, I’ve chosen to focus on the broader themes rather than the literal narration of action. I wanted to create a seamless marriage of provocative visuals and punctuated language, both exploring the same idea in slightly different ways. The result, I hope, creates a uniquely illuminating and immersive experience for the reader, where the wisdom that the author and artist explore together are brought into sharper focus." - Evan Robertson

This fully illustrated book brings Poe’s exquisite words to life, exploring the subconscious presence of Lenore and the dual nature of the Raven as both a physical and metaphysical creature.

Fun Fact
Poe originally sold this poem for $9 to The American Review. Quite the bargain! 

What Makes it Awesome
The brilliant linguistic acrobatics required by the relentless meter and rhyme scheme.

Why Read It
Is the raven a demon, a prophet, or just a talking bird? We see it as a kind of Rorschach test for the narrator, and the poem as a psychological thriller with only one character!

Fun Fact
Leaves of Grass was a play on words: Leaves were the pages of a book in printer parlance, and grass was something of little value. Hence, Pages of Crap. Strongly disagree, Walt!

What makes it awesome
Song of Myself is about one person and about everything. It begins with the poet, then reaches outward, expanding to every living thing and beyond, in line after line of seemingly spontaneous and endless inspiration. It’s like watching a religion with no church, book, or dogma materialize, spun out of nothing but sublime language. Yeah, it’s that good

Why Read it
It’s like taking a walk with Walt at your side, his “left hand hooking you round the waist,” as he shows you revelation after revelation. Also there’s nudity. 

An illustrated collection of poems by Robert Frost in a unified narrative.

Which poems? 
Nothing Gold Can Stay
Mowing
The Road Not Taken
The Oven Bird
The Need of Being Versed in Country Things
After Apple-Picking
Birches
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
A Boundless Moment

Fun Fact
Frost dropped out of college...twice! Dartmouth and Harvard.

What Makes It Awesome
Frost is a wonderfully subtle writer. His language is intentionally as stripped down and simple as possible, and it's easy to underestimate him. He's complex, ironic, and that makes his work well suited to expanding on visually. 

Why Read It
Viewing the natural world through Frost, you find profound spiritual truths hiding under every upturned rock. He is America’s Wordsworth but with a devilish streak for making trouble. Like nature, many of his poems hide a darker truth beneath a beautiful facade

Three of Keats' most beloved poems, visually reimagined. This fully illustrated book creates a single visual narrative from three poems: Bright Star, Ode to a Nightingale and Ode on a Grecian Urn. Through these three masterpieces, Beauty is Truth explores the poet's longing for the eternal, the ideals that transcend the frailty of the human condition, and affirms the greatest human gift: the capacity for connection to each other. 

Fun Fact
Critics of his time said that Keats belonged to the “Cockney School” of poetry, and considered his work to be unrefined and low class. So if Keats makes you think of stiff-lipped snobbery, think again. He was the Amy Winehouse of his time.

What Makes it Awesome
When you think of a starving poet, Keats is the bloke in your head. He was such a rock star, maligned by the establishment and defiantly dedicated to his craft at the expense of his own well-being. He burned bright and died young, and left us with some of the most extraordinary poetry of all time in six brief years of writing.

Why Read It
If you’ve ever tried to write a poem, you know how hard it is to put an emotions into words. Keats has an instinctive mastery of language, and that alone is worth the read.

“Strive to be the person philosophy has tried to make you." The Meditations has long been revered as a cornerstone of Stoic philosophy. However, its dense and unorganized prose can be daunting for contemporary readers. This modern, abridged edition brings Aurelius' wisdom into sharp focus by carefully selecting and reorganizing the passages into twelve chapters, each focusing on a central Stoic principle. The resulting narrative feels more considered and personal, and the thoughtful illustrations enhance the experience, bringing aesthetic beauty to abstract ideas.

 From Emerson's essays on its wisdom, to the Romantic poets' reveries on its power and awe, this illustrated collection brings together enduring insights on that which connects us to the earth and to each other.  

The bold illustrations are a visual ode to nature and inspired by excerpts from Emerson, Thoreau, Wordsworth, Frost, Shelley, Rossetti, Cather, Yeats, Machado, Keats, Verlaine, Whitman, Teasdale, Hughes and more.