Monday, 21 March 2011

Imminent Fancy Classics

Have a sneaky look at some of the Penguin Deluxe Classics coming from the US later this year.

First, Roald Dahl. Comics artist Ivan Brunetti tackles Willy Wonka...


..while Jordan Crane has a go at the Giant Peach. (I talked about Crane's work here and here, too.)


Then we have this unexpectedly upstanding-Edwardian-gentleman take on the denizens of H. P. Lovecraft's world, by Travis Louie.


And finally, three covers by Jillian Tamaki, illustrations turned into needle-and-thread pictures for three of what are being called 'Penguin Threads' (which are presumably this year's version of the Penguin Ink books).




Speaking of which, I never posted all of the final Penguin Ink covers, so here the ones I missed:

Cover by Lina Stigsson

Cover by Jen Munford

Cover by Grez

Cover by Daniel Albrigo

Cover by M. M. Gonzalo

Cover by Rob Admiraal

Cover by Robert Ryan
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8 comments:

  1. Alan Trotter22 March 2011 at 04:36

    God I want the Brunetti Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

    I don't think I like the Lovecraft - or I do like the illustration, but I feel like book covers should always be in service of the book, and on the side of the author, and it seems to poke fun at a writer who, if nothing else, could never be accused of not taking himself seriously enough.
    Not that he doesn't deserve it, just that on the jacket doesn't seem the right place to do it somehow?

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  2. Thomas Hogglestock22 March 2011 at 07:46

    I like some of these, but I find the ink ones to be really lame. The art for On the Black Hill and Justine is particularly bad and the images don't say anything relevant about the wonderful books they cover.

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  3. Vintage Reading22 March 2011 at 14:11

    Can't decide if I like the Austen or not. Clever but the colours seem 'off' maybe deliberately so?

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  4. matthew.22 March 2011 at 15:00

    I really don't like those Ink covers. I waited months to buy The Broom of the System at my local store cause I was waiting for them to sell their Ink version and re-order the regular

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  5. JRSM22 March 2011 at 17:29

    Alan: That's a very good point--for a deluxe celebration of Lovecraft's work, it's probably inappropriate. I'm not sure I'd buy it, but I do like the picture.

    Thomas & Matthew: The Inks are a bit hit and miss--the one it works best on is 'The Bone People' which, with its Maori stylings, has a reason for the tattoo approach. Though I actually do like the Broom cover, too!

    Vintage: I suspect it might be better seen 'in the flesh'--apparently the cover will be textured to seem more fabric-like, which I imagine will alter the way the colours look under light.

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  6. Sara Kramer26 March 2011 at 10:37

    Is anyone else getting tired of these endless repackaging of books? Doesn't it smack of the type of consumer manipulation of children's toy manufacturers: "collect the whole set"—keep on buying and buying in a materialistic frenzy? I recognize that it's in the service of books, and good publishers, etc.

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  7. Anonymous30 March 2011 at 16:46

    That cover for Justine is absolutely DREADFUL! Did the artist read the book? The answer must be "No."

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  8. That Hank5 April 2011 at 16:43

    I like the Ink designs quite a bit, especially Justine and the Tortilla Curtain. Then again, I'm also moderately tattooed, so I obviously am drawn to that style.

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