Mystic Grits by Darelyn DJ Mitsch
Mystic Grits, A Southern Girl’s Journey to Wisdom is a book written by Darelyn DJ Mitsch and published by Pyramis Press in 2009.
The Upright Italic and Ornaments styles of Odile are used throughout the book, and paired with the then freshly released Mrs Eaves XL Serif.
Odile is a text typeface, with bracketed top serifs and unbracketed bottom serifs in lowercase, a quality that counters the rigidness that most traditional slab serif typefaces possess. The design draws inspiration from an experimental typeface named Charter, originally designed by the American book and type designer William Addison Dwiggins.
Dwiggins contemplated Charter as the italic companion to Arcadia, Experimental No. 221. The Charter project progressed slowly, was put on pause during World War II and came to a halt in 1955. The typeface family remained incomplete and was never commercially released. Odile Upright Italic reveals visible similarities shared by Dwiggins’ Charter and defines the design approach for the family.
