Perry, David. Bordertown. Text & Drawings by Barry Gifford. Photographs by David Perry.

Chronicle, 1998. 1st edition, 1st printing in hardcover with custom made 4-mil polyester jacket. Like new with just a trace of a removed price label on cover.  Gifford and Perry explored the towns on the Mexican border with the United States, including Agua Prieta, Mexico, across the border from Douglas, Arizona.  They found crime, poverty, drugs, and prostitution. The photographs and stories of the putas (prostitutes) are illuminating concerning the lifestyles of these working women. Summary:

Bordertown (1998) is an edgy, multimedia collaboration that documents a month-long road trip along the U.S.–Mexico border, from Tijuana to Brownsville. The book blends the "noir" literary sensibilities of Barry Gifford (author of Wild at Heart) with the gritty, atmospheric photography of David Perry.

Core Narrative and Structure

The book is designed as a "stylistic scrapbook," capturing the chaotic and desperate energy of the borderlands. It rejects a traditional linear history in favor of a visceral "experience" of the region.

• Mixed Media: The narrative is built from a collage of Gifford’s fictional vignettes, personal journal entries, news clippings, and "found" artifacts collected during their travels.

• The "No-Man's Land": The text delves into the dark underbelly of border life, detailing stories of "hungry ghosts"—characters caught in cycles of poverty, prostitution, drug trafficking, and migration.

• Social Commentary: Through anecdotal evidence, the authors explore the collision of race and class, portraying the border not just as a physical line, but as a psychological state between "fear and despair."

Artistic and Photographic Style

David Perry’s 78 duotone photographs provide a brooding, cinematic backdrop to Gifford's prose.

• Gritty Realism: Perry captures the unvarnished reality of border brothels, isolated markets, and cheap hotels. His work is often described as "dreamlike" yet terrifying, focusing on the textures of decay and the resilience of the dispossessed.

• Aggressive Design: Created by designer Martin Venezky, the book's layout mimics the architecture of the towns themselves—elements butt up against one another in an "abrupt and aggressive" fashion, using silver-debossed leatherette and unique graphic talismans.

Key Information

• Published: 1998 by Chronicle Books.

• Format: 144-page hardcover, notable for its high-concept design and lack of traditional page numbers (unpaginated).

• Significance: The book is a quintessential example of "Border Noir," transforming a sociological study into a haunting, avant-garde art piece.

Summary: Bordertown is a dark, revelatory portrait of life on the edge. It is a collaborative "fever dream" that humanizes the outsiders and "fearless phantoms" inhabiting the fringe of two nations.