How to Do Things with Forms: The Oulipo and Its Inventions

A fresh approach to the highly influential Oulipo group, redefining its key concepts and assessing its achievements.

The Oulipo is a literary think tank that brings together writers and mathematicians. This book assesses the work of the group, explores where it came from, and envisages its future. Redefining the Oulipo’s key concept of the constraint in a clear and rigorous way, Chris Andrews weighs the roles of craft and imitation in the group’s practice.