Marcel's Letters: A Font and the Search for One Man's Fate Hardcover – June 6, 2017

This book creates a bridge between the past and the present in an amazingly unique way. It exposes a fascinating and heart wrenching chapter in World War II history that wasn’t just forgotten, but for many of us was never known! The story is unveiled through the clues in letters found in an antique shop because of one woman’s stubborn persistence to find out, against all odds – did Marcel live? But it all begins with a thoroughly modern task – creating a font. That’s right, a font. Most people don’t realize the hard work and artistic passion that goes into creating the choices we take for granted in documents and messages every day. Who knew there were conventions and awards for such things?There were many points in the story that moved me to tears, both of sadness and joy. (I won’t be a spoiler by saying what they were.) There is also a lot of humor and things fans of the Fargo franchise will enjoy – like going on a hike at a resort on a lake - in the middle of winter, in the snow, on purpose!As completely disconnected as letters from World War II may seem from our modern computerized world, this story brings them together! More importantly, it provides a remarkable tribute to a simple man who is just one out of hundreds of thousands who suffered without recognition. It memorializes his legacy, his life and his love for his family by capturing his handwriting in a beautiful font. It may soon become the default font for love letters – to express your love not only with words, but by using P22 Marcel Script!

Memoirs can deal with different subjects in the author's life. "Love", "family", "history", and, of course, that biggie, "the development of a new font". In Carolyn Porter's memoir, "Marcel's Letters", she deals with all those. I'm a font geek - as is Porter - but as it is her business, she's much closer to development than I would ever be. Porter's memoir is a delightful tracing of her search for the man-behind-the-handwriting she hoped to make into a new font.Carolyn Porter found some letters and a postcard in French for sale in an antique store about 10 years ago. She was attracted by the handwriting - and it is indeed a lovely, elegant hand - and began the process of making a font, based on the writing. But she also wondered what the card and letters said and to who and from who they were written. The swastika on them, along with the dates, indicated they were mailed from Berlin during WW2. They were mailed to a small town in France, a bit outside Paris. Porter, with some help, translated the material and then began to track down Marcel Heuze, a Frenchman who was sent to work for the Germans in a work factory in Berlin.In Porter's book she eventually finds the story of Marcel and his family. And, her font "Marcel", is a prize winner. The book is fun to read and I'd love to be able to use the beautiful font, but I think it's only available commercially.

I read  Marcel's Letters: A Font and the Search for One Man's Fate  in one day (and night!) - once I started it, I couldn't stop reading. Now, 3 days later, I can't stop thinking about it. Carolyn Porter pulls the reader in with multiple story lines - first the story of a childhood dream, creating a new computer font (Marcel) based on the handwriting in letters discovered in a Stillwater, MN antique shop - then the story described in the letters of a French family torn apart during WWII when the father was a conscripted laborer in Berlin and the family struggled to survive in France - next, the WWII history to explain their story - and last and most engaging the story of learning what happened to Marcel and to his family as the war ended, and how the letters ended up half a world away in a small town antique shop. I found all of it fascinating. Learning some of the terminology and technical aspects of developing a new font based on handwriting was great for me as a printing hobbyist. (BTW I purchased the new font to use in my printing work, and it is beautiful and complete - using it to the fullest will be a stretch for me, and require learning some new software tools - that's all good!) Learning about WWII and conscripted laborers was new to me. Best was the search for Marcel and his family - so many serendipity moments, seemingly random happenings that help move the search for Marcel along - it reads like fiction - but it's all true. What a story! What a book!

Marcel's Letters will not allow the reader to put the book down until the last word has been read! The author reaches out and grabs both your interest and your emotions in this story about finding letters written in French in an antique store, and being taken by the beautiful handwriting, buys just a few. Her interest originally is in the handwriting but as she works to find someone who can translate the beautifully formed words into English she has a fierce desire to find out more about the man who wrote them. The books chapters cover wide period of time as she tried to develop a font that incorporates the style of writing the man used in his letters, a search for the man's identity and the translation of the letters. This book reads like a good mystery about an unknown man's life, a story of survival and love during wartime and one woman's perseverance in her search to find answers. This is a book that is hard to put down as you, as the reader, needs to know the answers to the questions that keep presenting themselves. Spoiler alert: keep a box of tissues handy. Beautifully story and very heartwarming.

An amazing story exquisitely told, but almost totally destroyed by the dropping of numerous “f-bombs” throughout. Just as the Nazis destroyed priceless works of architecture by dropping bombs indiscriminately throughout Europe during WWII, so the author mars what would otherwise have been a beautifully flawless book about a French family during that same war. My wife’s ladies bookclub as well as myself would have recommended it to all of our friends and their families without hesitation but reading this felt like looking at a work by Van Gogh upon which someone had used a Sharpie to emphasize what they felt needed to stand out. Extremely disappointing…

Marcel's Letters brings the lesser-known victims of the Nazis to the forefront. Forced labor from conquered countries. I dont read mystery books but I imagine they would be similar to this book. Each clue opens a new quest to uncover the next clue until the end. The story skillfully weaves between the past and the present The reader is brought into both time spans as though the events were just occurring. It is so well written and truly captivating.

As a collector of WW2 Postal History, mainly collecting letters for their philatelic markings, this book has made me rethink my approach to my collections. I have several runs of letters from soldiers, POWs, and civilians and will now review their contents in a different light. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in history and love!

This book surprised me. When I bought it, I did so for a couple of reasons. WW2 had something to do with it, and it was on for a one-day special price. I didn't even realize it was a true story. I've never known anything about fonts, except that I like them and enjoy trying different ones. I had no idea there was an entire "nerdy font world" out there. As this book unfolded I was completely drawn into it and found myself thinking of Marcel at odd moments through the day. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Carolyn Porter for writing this most interesting and informative book and for doing so with such a caring touch.

Really enjoyed reading this true story. Brilliantly written. Now for it to be translated into french! We would love this story in France!

I knew nothing at all about fonts before this book and little about France in WWII other than the usual stories. The author has done an incredible job of weaving her story with that of Marcel and his family. I loved the patience and understanding her husband showed through the long process. He was a treasure! The book was inspirational - encouraging the reader to invest in their loved ones. And I hope I never again take lightly the work required to design a font!