So then I found the book in the stacks, and was delighted to see the cover (you really need to click on it for the full effect)...

I have no idea who did the artwork, but this was the last edition of this novel to see print. It is literal interpretation of a scene in the book.
A Standard of Behaviour is by no means a great book, but it's very enjoyable in the way of lot of books from its time and place (1950s England) turn out to be: amusing, observant, with an atmosphere of post-War shabbiness and somewhat dated "daring" subject matter: a thoroughly pleasant way to pass the time, and ultimately a little forgettable. You would have been unlikely to guess, based on this first outing, that Trevor would go on to be a novelist and, most especially, short story writer of fearsome talent.
6 comments:
Wow! I love the little group on the far left - the guy with the cane and the two gals. Great cover, because I'm kind of dying to know what they're talking about.
Ha, I meant the two guys and the gal. I was taken with the cane man and the pale girl and didn't take a good look at their companion.
Wow. That description doesn't sound like Trevor at all, though I'm guessing the cover copy and art are a lot more outrageous than the narrative itself, even from a young Trevor. That library is remarkably openminded. Any book with that cover art would be banned in most of the libraries around me.
thought you might like: http://ffffound.com/image/3a9b6d200c09a8de27b2dd7fa83c0206933274ea
BTW, that previous post was fucking funny...
Downtown Guy: I know what you mean--it's easy to get distracted by this cover. I want to know about the girl in the Indian get-up, as she doesn't feature in the book and is entirely the work of the mysterious artist who did the cover.
Pete: Yes, it's a bit of an uncharacteristic book, which I suppose is why he keeps it quiet these days. And you're right about the copy/art--though all of that happens in the book, it's told in an oddly deadpan, de-eroticised way.
Ian: Cheers! That van Vogt cover is great--and I love the 'you might like these too' images, too.
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