Alain de Botton

Two books of essays published by Vintage. Their simple beauty speaks for itself. I love the way the cloud is framed in Art of Travel, with a man-made cloud-like ornament superimposed on the natural cloud. Designer names to come.

Mark Abrams: Vie Francaise

I've loved this cover for a long time. The title type looks fantastic against the tile wall. The story, incidentally,involves a middle-aged French house-husband who cheats on his high-powered wife, the CEO of a jacuzzi company.

Helen Yentus: The Implacable Order of Things

Fascinating cover to a fantastical tale of a poor Portuguese town where the devil walks among the townsfolk and the characters include a pair of twins joined at the pinky. Trying to figure out the meaning of the cover may be difficult without reading the book, but I did come across this passage from Publisher's Weekly that might help: "Peixoto aims to manifest a subtle connection between the townspeople, a kind of superconsciousness". Maybe that explains the string. In any case, this is gorgeous. I wonder who designed it...

Roseanne Serra/Ruben Toledo: Couture Classics

Roseanne Serra commissioned illustrator Ruben Toledo to create these unexpected fashiony takes on well-known classics. All are Penguin Classic Deluxe editions in paperback with French flaps, and there are nice special effects to enhance the cool illustrations - like a red foil thread that runs through the large A of Scarlet Letter.

Stock Photo of the Day

Happy Friday, people! (and thank you, Corbis, for making our day)

Keenan: Things Fall Apart

This trade paperback cover is printed on thick stock with a semi-gloss finish , with all the crack lines debossed. It's the story of "Nigerian tribal life before and after the coming of colonialism... Deceptively simple in its prose, Things Fall Apart packs a powerful punch as Achebe holds up the ruin of one proud man to stand for the destruction of an entire culture." (Penguin UK)

Adam Simpson: Sunnyside

The amazing UK cover, illustrated by Adam Simpson. The novel "opens on a winter day in 1916 during which Charlie Chaplin is spotted in more than eight hundred places simultaneously, an extraordinary delusion that forever binds the overlapping fortunes of three men: Leland Wheeler, son of the world’s last (and worst) Wild West star, as he finds unexpected love on the battlefields of France; Hugo Black, drafted to fight under the towering General Edmund Ironside in America’s doomed expedition against the Bolsheviks; and Chaplin himself, as he faces a tightening vise of complications—studio moguls, questions about his patriotism, his unchecked heart, and, most menacing of all, his mother." - from the Knopf description

Richard Bravery: Michael Chabon UK Covers

Great paperback series design for Harper Collins UK. Going by the Kavalier and Clay cover, there is a lot of gold foil going on, I'm assuming on all of these, which are printed on non-finish paper. The Wonder Boys cover is hilarious - the typewriter keys in the upper half spell out a review of the book. And the top reads "Every writer has an ideal reader. I thought, and it was just my good luck, that mine wanted to sleep with me." Please click on images to enlarge.

London Calling: The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters

I just came back from a great trip to London, where I spent three hours one day at Waterstone's, the UK equivalent of Barnes & Noble (they do have Borders, though). It was fascinating to see all the alternate covers to books we're familiar with here in the US, as well as see the fabulous work of Keenan and Gray318 that doesn't grace our stores. Those guys must be sleeping for half an hour a day. Top shows Jon Gray's Dream Eaters - the circle is actually gold foil. Second is the American paperback version (I think Shasti O'Leary Soudant designed it). Third is a new book in this series, and I'm not sure who designed it, although it appears Gray-like. And fourth is Shasti's US design. More UK designes coming up this week.

Ervin Serrano: The Strain

This book seems to be huge right now, and I really like the funky type treatment which solves several problems at once. Guillermo's name justifiably hits you first, but it's treated in a quirky way that immediately reminds me of Hellboy and Pan's Labyrinth. I believe that originally the slash was supposed to be die-cut. The type seems to be printed on foil or with Metal FX inks and is embossed. There are designs for the upcoming two books in the trilogy inside the back flap. The book tells of a "battle of epic proportions as a vampiric virus that has infected New York begins to spill out" into the world!!!!!

Roseanne Serra: Turkish Delight

The first two of six mystery novels about a transvestite Turkish nightclub owner/detective who dresses like Audrey Hepburn. Roseanne commissioned awesome illustrator Tomer Hanuka to bring the hero(ine) to life. Tomer had previously worked on the Marquis de Sade book for Penguin: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Philosophy-in-the-Boudoir/Marquis-de-Sade/e/9780143039013/?itm=2

Tal Goretsky: Shadow of the Wind

In honor of BCA's most prolific poster, I present to you Shadow of the Wind. This makes me want to jump right into the nearest book. Nice work, Tal, and happy birthday!

Where the Money Went

You can't go wrong with a laughing mermaid or a tv. Why have I never put the two together?

Not sure who designed this, but I'd love to know whether the mermaid/tv combo was a hard sell. Also, how does it relate to the book?

Kelly Blair: The Nightingales of Troy

A collection of short stories tracking four generations of women in Troy, NY. I love the simplicity of representing the women as diferent colors of the same clip-art. The book tracks the rise and decline of the town with some gritty characters, and perhaps that is what prompted the do-it-yourself look. Paperback coming in July from Norton, printed on Mohawk Via Felt paper. Thanks for the heads up, Albert!

Jen Wang: The Short Novels of John Steinbeck

A new Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition. This is a great solution to showing the history of Steinbeck by incorporating covers of his original first editions published in the 30s and 40s. Bottom image shows the first edition of The Pearl, published in 1947 by Viking.

James Victore: Esquire July 2009

James Victore gave an interesting talk at FIT last week about his career as an illustrator and designer, and one of the most impressive things about him was his power with the Sharpie. He said Sharpie should actually pay him for all the work he's done with their product. He showed slides of this new project, done for the July 2009 cover of Esquire Magazine. Model Bar Rafaeli, covergirl of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue and Leo Dicaprio's girfriend, posed naked for Victore and he handwrote the first sentences to a new Stephen King story on her body. In the slideshow, which showed the writing in several stages, Rafaeli was talking on her iPhone while Victore was writing on her. I love this cover. I actually thought it was going to be a book cover, but this is OK too. Oh, and BTW Victore didn't write on Rafaeli with a Sharpie. He went to Sefora and talked to the salespeople who at first pretended not to know what he was talking about, but when he said he needed some sort of eyeliner to write on a supermodel, they snapped to attention and turned into the most helpful experts.

Barbara de Wilde: Atlas of Unknowns

Great cover printed on uncoated paper. Looks really awesome in the window of a dark bookstore at night with a light shining on it - the dimpled paper looks cool. The wing on the right has a map of Queens, NY, while the left wing shows a map of Kerala, India. This is the story of two sisters from Kerala, one of whom emigrates to NY by passing off her sister's paintings as her own in order to get a scholarship. When her deceit is discovered, she disappears to Queens and her sister leaves Kerala to search for her. I'm not sure if the bottom pattern is supposed to evoke bindi, but it seems like the strand that is reaching for the author's name symbolizes "the hunger for independence and the longing for home; the need to preserve the past and the yearning to break away from it." (excerpt from the product description) Thanks, Ian, for the headz up.

Helen Yentus: Peace and The Pesthouse

Two gorgeous covers with amazing photos from Magnum and Gallerystock. Both matte, Peace is gritty. And the title in The Pesthouse is embossed. Feel it. Both books are pretty dark. Peace is a short novel about a group of soldiers marching through a wintry Italian hillside, weary of constant sniper danger and questioning their sargeant's recent murder of a woman on the road. The Pesthouse is a novel set in a future America, where civilization has deteriorated and people attempt to trek out east to catch ships going to Europe while avoiding bandits and slave traders.

Kulick Spectacular

Recently saw the top two in the bookstore. Couldn't help including some other Gregg Kulick favorites. And I just watched Twilight. Some cool things going on in the Gaiman covers...the fly has some weird mechanical solar-panel wings...and the spider has four human eyes, at least two hands, and appears to be juggling a skull and a flaming heart.

Keenan/Brian Barth: All Shall Be Well And All Shall Be Well...

Keenan designed the US paperback (top), Brian Barth designed the hardcover (center) and the UK paperback's designer is unknown (bottom). "Meet Burt Hecker: a mead-drinking, tunic-wearing medieval re-enactor from upstate New York. He prefers oat gruel to French fries because potatoes were unavailable in Europe before 1200 AD; and, at war with the modern world, he enjoys hosting large-scale re-enactments at the Victorian bed and breakfast he calls home." Also, his "... nose is a dead ringer for that of the rhinophyma victim in Ghirlandaio’s "Portrait of an Elderly Man with His Son," a miniature copy of which Burt carries in his pouch.

Michael Ian Kaye: Everything That Rises Must Converge

Illustration by Roxanna Bikadoroff. This book was featured on the season finale of Lost (spoiler alert if you haven't seen it.) Jacob reads from it as John Locke falls from a high window behind him and hits the ground. Amazon says it's a "...collection of nine short stories by Flannery O'connor, published posthumously in 1965. The flawed characters of each story are fully revealed in apocalyptic moments of conflict and violence that are presented with comic detachment." Thanks for the info, Cat. You can read more about the possible connection of this book to the series here:
http://thelaverytory.blogspot.com/2009/05/lost-and-everything-that-rises-must.html

Chris Brand: Rennie Airth

Chris Brand re-brands these mystery novels set in and between the great wars. I love the font, which was created by Chris, as well as the coloration of the images. And there are nifty spot-gloss scratches, dots and lines on top of everything.

Ben Wiseman/Rodrigo Corral Design: Pygmy

Awesome cover for Palahniuk's new novel about "an unlikely terrorist cell: foreign-exchange students who arrive at a midwestern city, bent on unleashing Operation Havoc." The image of the toy soldier brandishing his own disembodied arm as it clutches Mao's Red Book is hilarious. Originally, this cover was to have no title or author, just the illustration, like Palahniuk's Rant. Custom type and illustrations by Ben Wiseman. Check out his website: http://ben-wiseman.com/

Chin-Yee Lai, Yentus & Booher: The Wishmaker

A gorgeous hand-lettered cover. Printed on matte paper with foil ornaments and embossed, spot gloss type.
"The turbulence of contemporary Pakistani politics is refracted through the intimate prism of a fractious extended family" in this novel, which takes place between early 90s and post-9/11 Lahore. New from Riverhead.

Rodrigo Corral/Tracy Morford: Sag Harbor

Great photo and type. In 1985, A 15-year old African-American Manhattan prep-shool kid comes of age during his yearly summer vacation in Long Island's Sag Harbor. The photo was taken on-site by a great photographer who's been collaborating with RCD, Tracy Morford:

http://www.tracymorford.com

The finish is surprisingly gloss. And the title is embossed.

Gregg Kulick: Always Magic in the Air

This is one of Kulick's first jackets, from 2005. It's awesome fun. The book "enthusiastically chronicles the lives and careers of seven songwriting teams from the 50s to the 60s."

Darren Haggar: Irvine Welsh

New Welsh books being released starting May 26. These are both fantastic. I love the gigantic retro type and giant images, which are both obnoxious and funny. Crime is a novel about a British detective on vacation in Miami, a vacation that turns into a nightmare when he tries to save a friend's 10-year-old daughter, who's been targeted by an organized ring of pedophiles. I've heard that Welsh's books can be disgusting and difficult to swallow. And these covers somehow hint at that but also make them look delicious.

Pictures at an Exhibition

Similar to our last post, but also stunning. The frame is printed with some metallic effect. The novel concerns a Jewish gallery owner who is forced into hiding during WWII, and returns to Paris only to find his gallery empty - having been looted by Nazis.