Romance novel readers don’t have it easy. Already teased for reading the steamy tomes in the first place, they further have to deal with the humiliation of truly ghastly covers – tasteless and tawdry, garish and gaudy, these are lurid and cheesy enough to make someone wish for plain brown wrappers. But we say no more! We say embrace your love of reading, and your love of love! And in solidarity, we tried our hand at making some romance covers of our own – very family-friendly, of course. Enjoy the fruits of our labors.
Archive for the ‘art’ Category
Police sketches of literary characters
Friday, February 10th, 2012
Galleycat alerted me to The Composites – a Tumblr – dedicated to police sketches of literary characters. It’s definitely my site of the day. Sam Spade from The Maltese Falcon, Keith Talent from London Fields, Edward Rochester (above) from Jane Eyre, Pinkie Brown from Brighton Rock, Emma from Madame Bovary….
Charting the Unknown: Collectable Maps and Cartography
Friday, February 10th, 2012
Collectible maps are wonderful. Changed borders, different and unusually named geographic regions, and more. These elaborate and fascinating rare maps span the world and many are embellished with beautiful artwork. You will see sea monsters, whaling scenes, sailing ships, emblems and learn what a cartouche is.
This selection goes from Sri Lanka in 1513, when large sections of the globe remained unexplored, to war-torn China in 1944.
Scrooge named top Dickens’ character in poll
Monday, February 6th, 2012
Ebenezer Scrooge has been named the most popular Charles Dickens’ character in a poll by Penguin Books to mark the 200th anniversary of author’s birth. The Guardian has the rest of the story. What happened to Magwitch and Uriah Heep?
For Arthur Rackham’s take on Scrooge and A Christmas Carol, visit our Flickr set dedicated to this illustrator and his illustrations for the Dickens classic.
A history of carrots in illustrated manuscripts
Monday, February 6th, 2012
The New Yorker’s Book Bench blog referred to me to the World Carrot Museum site where there is a wonderful article on carrot illustrations in manuscripts.
Apparently, carrots were being written about as early as AD 512. The illustrations in this article are well worth seeing.
I have never blogged about carrots in literature before.
Rare Japanese Photobooks
Friday, February 3rd, 2012
Japanese photography is now one of the most vibrant genres in the rare book world. The photobooks of Nobuyoshi Araki, Daido Moriyama and others provide thought-provoking visions of Japan and beyond.
Shocking and often surreal, these are powerful books.
The Paris Review: Bastion of Fine Fiction & Poetry
Wednesday, February 1st, 2012
Are you familiar with The Paris Review?
Just shy of its 60th birthday and still going strong, The Paris Review has gone beyond being a literary journal. It’s an a institution that has celebrated creative writing from Hemingway, Kerouac, Vonnegut, Wodehouse and many more.
The legends of modern literature can be found in these historic back issues.
Blade Runner Sketchbook resurfaces online
Monday, January 30th, 2012
The Blade Runner Sketchbook is one of the ultimate pieces of memorabilia for fans of the 1982 science fiction movie. The book details the look and feel of the film’s production artwork from simple props like Deckard’s gun to police cars and clothes. Some of the designs come from director Ridley Scott himself but also Syd Mead.
Blade Runner starred Harrison Ford although the real star is Rutger Hauer, and it’s a movie that stands the test of time and that probably owes much to its look. I remember thinking the first time that I watched it that the streets were shockingly packed and the rain never stops. The movie is based on Philip K Dick’s novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Edited by David Scrogg, the Sketchbook has been out-of-print for many years but there are five copies on AbeBooks for prices between $300 and $500.
But somebody has put the book online.
Open publication – Free publishing
Howard Pyle’s Art: Pirates to Robin Hood
Tuesday, January 24th, 2012American author and illustrator Howard Pyle had a huge influence on modern popular culture. He died in 1911 and you can see his influence in movies, television and books today. He transformed Robin Hood from a villain to a hero. He defined the look of pirates and positioned them as fearless adventurers.
His first full length work was a highly successful interpretation of the Robin Hood stories called The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood.
He wove various tales of Robin Hood into a single cohesive narrative, but he was happy to alter the original stories, so any child could pick one of his books and be gripped. Pyle used pirates in many adventure stories. He invented the flamboyant romantic garb that has become standard issue for any tale about piracy these days.
By 1900 Pyle founded his own art school – the Howard Pyle School of Illustration Art. He instructed many great artists including the great N.C. Wyeth, and it became known as the Brandywine School style of illustration. Read more.
Books by and about Kodak
Friday, January 20th, 2012
Eastman Kodak, one of the giants of photography, has filed for bankruptcy protection, reports the BBC. Sad but not surprising news as they have hardly been a player in the digital age although I do have a very good little Kodak video camera for filming the children playing the fool.
Kodak has been around for 133 years and that means there is a wide selection of books about Kodak itself, books featuring Kodak’s cameras, adverts and catalogs, instruction books and even books written by founder George Eastman. Here are some Kodak books (and an antique camera!) from the collectible end of the spectrum.
The most interesting one is Through Jamaica with a Kodak by Alfred Leader. Published in 1907, this travel book sheds light on the era when photography was becoming available to ordinary people. The cover, which is eye-catching, is an early example of a photo being incorporated into a book’s cover artwork.
There are a couple of interesting books dealing with the company’s legacy – The Story of Kodak by Douglas Collins and History of the Kodak by Mina Fisher Hammer.
Tickets please for this Soviet era children’s poem in a steam engine
Thursday, January 19th, 2012
I am biased but AbeBooks is a treasure trove. Yesterday, I came across this amazing item. You would only find it by searching for “avant garde steam locomotive” hence my eagerness to showcase this undated leporello from Russia’s Soviet era. A leporello is a single sheet of paper that has been folded several times. Some people also refer to the zig-zag style fold as an “accordion pleat.” This one comes in amazing condition and just look at the red star on the front of the steam engine – no doubt where this poetry originates.
Vladimir Mayakovsky (1893-1930) was a Russian poet of immense significance and ‘Kem byt’ is his most famous children’s poem. The title translates as Whom Shall I Become? and it encourages children to create their own identities and suggests various professions.
Mayakovsky was writing at height of the Russian Revolution and gained fame as a revolutionary poet even though his interests were far broader than mere politics.
He was jailed under the Czarist regime for subversion and began writing poetry during his imprisonment. He wrote poems that supported the Bolsheviks during the uprising and penned an elegy for Vladimir Lenin, but eventually he fell out of favor for being too avant garde. His life ended in a desperately sad fashion when he killed himself with a pistol. After his death, Stalin praised his work and positioned him as a hero of the revolution.
The price for this ultra scarce piece of poetry – $2,990
Rare Veterinary Books
Tuesday, January 17th, 2012
The oldest title in this selection of historic veterinary books was printed in 1756. In those days, man’s best friend was the horse and equine health was a vital area of medical science.
Once used by farriers, farmers and veterinarians, these books are now treasured by collectors. From hoof to tail, trotter to toe, these are the early animal care books the experts turned to. Enjoy.
Why does John James Audubon’s Birds of America break records?
Friday, January 13th, 2012
It’s a good question. Why does this book, or rather books as Birds of America is a four-volume set, sell for such massive prices? John James Audubon’s Birds of America already holds the record selling price for a printed book when a copy went for $$11.5 million in December 2010.
On 20 January, another first edition copy comes up for auction at Christie’s and there is much speculation that the old record will fall. Things like recessions go out the window when Birds of America first editions come up for sale.
Birds of America is most significant for its sheer beauty. It’s a landmark book because of its illustrations. Audubon’s 435 hand-colored engravings are life-size. The first edition four-volume set was printed in the double-elephant format, which means they are huge books – almost 40 inches high.
Aside from being famous in the rare book world, Birds of America has also great ornithological importance. Some of the birds Audubon painted are extinct and he also discovered new species. The book was published in parts between 1827 and 1838, and Audubon funded the first editions himself. He toured to promote his artwork and sold prints – on a pay-as-you-go subscriber basis – to the rich and famous of the era.
The set being auctioned at the forthcoming auction is in excellent condition and has been in the same family – the Duke of Portland’s – for generations. Experts say around 200 copies were produced and Christie’s has reported that only 120 complete sets are known to exist. Sadly, many copies have been broken up. There are rare books that are scarcer but most Birds of America first edition copies are owned by institutions, who will never part with them. It’s major news when a first edition comes up for sale. We’ll be watching with great interest.
(Pictures courtesy of Christie’s)
The Bookstore Comes Alive at Night
Monday, January 9th, 2012When it’s dark, and the last customer has left… the proprietor’s gone home, the lights are out and the door is locked…the books can shed the silly pretense of being inanimate objects, shake off the constraints of the day-to-day shelf, and get on with the joyous, celebratory business of being a book.
Love it. Beautiful.
via Bolen Books
Blog of Vintage Space Flight Books
Thursday, January 5th, 2012I have a thing for beautiful old space books (or at least the associated art), and it seems I’m not alone – biology librarian John Sisson has a blog called Dreams of Space, featuring vintage space-themed children’s books, ephemera and books. It looks like he’s been updating it since 2009, and he has amassed a truly lovely collection of images like the ones below:
It’s very cool and worth checking out – he’s really created a nice collection.
via BoingBoing.
