Mordecai Richler & Others

I just read Mordecai Richler's The Street, a collection of short stories about a Montreal Jewish neighbourhood in the 1940s. Fun, if occasionally slight: Richler said in his introduction that short stories were not his forte. For him at his best, try Barney's Version or The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz (Kravitz also appears in The Street).

But we're not here to review the books, but their covers. I like them. I also like the same images on the covers of completely different books. In each case, the twice-used images are appropriate to both books. Witness:



The other book here is John Banville's brilliant The Untouchable, about a Soviet spy in Cold War London. My copy is signed: when I was getting it autographed, I recall Banville said something very witty, to which I replied. "Nrgh. I love your books. Ha ha."

The photo is by Michael Wildsmith, who has a small online portfolio here . In this image, the sole fingure could easily be a side-locked Orthodox Jew striding down a wet Canadian street, or a shady and treacherous member of the English establishment doing a runner through the fog.



The other book here is one of Derek Raymond's nihilistic and enjoyable thrillers, the first in his 'Factory' series. The photo is by Stephan H. Sheffield, about whom I can find no more information.