The Pickle Index

Two full-color, foil-stamped books within an ornate slipcase, featuring an innovative hands-on interaction — a celebration of the persistent vitality of the print form.

A hapless circus troupe tours the countryside of a downtrodden nation, trying to earn a living the best way they know — even though their best isn't very good at all: a morose contortionist, a strongman who'd rather be miming, a lion tamer paired with an elderly dog, etc. Toward the end of a typically glum performance, Zloty Kornblatt, the troupe's ringmaster, accidentally blunders into a mockery of the nation's glorious leader. He doesn't even know why the sparse crowd is laughing, but they are — and so he continues with the inadvertent satire, ending the show on a rare triumphant note.
The confused ringmaster is quickly captured, thrown into prison, and sentenced to death. The troupe must design an intricate prison-break built around their unique (and possibly useless) skills. Hijinks ensue, recounted with deadpan humor and flickering hope by Flora Bialy, Zloty's understudy and our shy narrator.

“" The Pickle Index is full of life and everything else -- it's rowdy and sweaty and heartbreaking, and by heartbreaking I mean funny, and by funny I mean laugh-until-you're-exhausted-and-leaking-and-hungry. I've tasted the tedfruits and the breadbread, the Basement Gherks and the Kelp Rompers and the wall of ham. Meet me in Outer Spagg -- I'm never coming back." -- Miranda July "This novel takes absurdity to new heights." -- Booklist PRAISE FOR THE SILENT HISTORY "Exceptionally rich and frequently moving." -- Guardian (UK) "A rare breath of excitement in a confused industry." -- Forbes "A landmark project." -- Los Angeles Times”

"The Pickle Index is full of life and everything else -- it's rowdy and sweaty and heartbreaking, and by heartbreaking I mean funny, and by funny I mean laugh-until-you're-exhausted-and-leaking-and-hungry. I've tasted the tedfruits and the breadbread, the Basement Gherks and the Kelp Rompers and the wall of ham. Meet me in Outer Spagg -- I'm never coming back." --Miranda July "The Pickle Index is a delight -- the narration is laugh-out-loud funny. ... A fun, strange romp through (last one, promise) an absurdly cured world." --NPR "A beautifully illustrated, hardcover set of two volumes ... Proves that challenging, interactive, multi-platform storytelling can be compelling, immersive, and fun." --Wired "One of the rarest and most exciting things that can happen in publishing: an original story, created with and for the multiple formats it lives in. ... The Pickle Index shows us a path forward." --The Bookseller "A Roald Dahl-via-Kafka-esque fable for the digital age." --Slate "The Pickle Index is fun in the way Roald Dahl is fun -- vinegary and sharp -- and deliciously so for those with the right kind of palate. ... A wildly entertaining romp." --Vulpus Libres "Filled with laugh-out-loud lines and reminiscent of the heartbreakingly hilarious dystopias of George Saunders." --Bookpage "You know when you find a book that feels original and fresh and weird in just the right way? The Pickle Index is such a book. Eli Horowitz has created a carnival world a little like that amazing place Katherine Dunn took us in Geek Love. But this book has more laughs. It's a crazy caper!" --Arthur Bradford "The Pickle Index ushers in a new era of interactive books." --Eye on Design "This novel takes absurdity to new heights." --Booklist PRAISE FOR THE SILENT HISTORY "Exceptionally rich and frequently moving." -- Guardian (UK) "A rare breath of excitement in a confused industry." -- Forbes "A landmark project." -- Los Angeles Times

Eli Horowitz is the coauthor of The Silent History, a digital novel; The Clock Without a Face, a treasure-hunt mystery; and Everything You Know Is Pong, an illustrated cultural history of table tennis. Previously, he was the managing editor and then publisher of McSweeney's; his design work has been honored by I.D., Print, and the American Institute of Graphic Arts. He lives in Northern California.

Knife throwers. Ominous fortresses. Angry mimes. Snack festivals. Morose contortionists. Guillotines. Smiling journalists. Lonely young women. Lingering hope. Incompetence. Desperation. Funny disguises.Plus two hardcover books in a gold-encrusted slipcase, twenty full-color illustrations, and an unprecedented feat of interactive book design.A hapless circus troupe tours the countryside of a downtrodden nation, trying to earn a living the best way they know -- even though their best isn't very good at all: a morose contortionist, a strongman who'd rather be miming, a lion tamer paired with an elderly dog, etc. Toward the end of a typically glum performance, Zloty Kornblatt, the troupe's ringmaster, accidentally blunders into a mockery of the nation's glorious leader. He doesn't even know why the sparse crowd is laughing, but they are -- and so he continues with the inadvertent satire, ending the show on a rare triumphant note.The confused ringmaster is quickly captured, thrown into prison, and sentenced to death. The troupe must design an intricate prison-break built around their unique (and possibly useless) skills. Hijinks ensue, recounted with deadpan humor and flickering hope by Flora Bialy, Zloty's understudy and our shy narrator.

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