Edward Gorey: cover star of book design

The author and illustrator is much revered for his own weird and wonderful books, yet his 200-plus jacket designs are virtually ignored. Steven Heller celebrates his contribution to a unique era of publishingDeliciously and subversively cryptic, Edward St John Gorey’s books, plays, postcards, toys, stage sets and costumes – indeed an entire lifetime of utterly sublime, mockingly apprehensive artistry and authorship – are celebrated and critically acclaimed by everyone from cultural pundits to goth cultists. The rare front-page New York Times obituary, on 17 April 2000, is testament to Gorey’s eclectic narrative range. “In creating a large body of small work, he made an indelible imprint on noir fiction and on the psyche of his admirers,” Mel Gussow wrote.Yet, understandably, less attention is devoted today to the 200-plus illustrated paperback covers and hardcover jackets that Chicago-born, Harvard-educated Gorey (known to his friends as Ted) created while working as a staff artist, art director, editor and freelance illustrator at various American publishing houses for a large portion of his career. In two brief sentences, his obituary tossed aside this impressive output: “After graduation he remained in Boston, illustrating book jackets. Then he went to New York and worked in the art department at Doubleday, staying late in the office to create his own books.” Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-07-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Settlement Near on E-Book Pricing

Talks to resolve U.S. and European price-fixing probes into ebooks are heating up, with three international publishers inclined to settle the matter, according to people familiar with the matter. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2012-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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E-book revolution: We're reading more than ever

A study by the Pew Internet Project finds that consumers who use e-readers are buying more books. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Independents 'fight back' with London book market

A London book market founded by independent booksellers is to launch in Hackney, selling new and... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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E-book price probe 'approaching resolution'

The European and US investigation into ebook pricing may be approaching resolution, say US press... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-04-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book review: 'Sailor' by Tom Epperson

A mob wife fleeing her past — and a dirty U.S. marshal — gets a little help from a mysterious stranger in Epperson's modern noir tale of revenge and greed.If I were a damsel in distress fleeing a past and people who wanted me dead, like Gina Cicala in the modern noir thriller "Sailor" by Tom... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tate launches e-commerce site for books, gifts

London’s Tate Group has launched a new e-commerce site selling books and other items... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury US buys Fairchild Books

Bloomsbury's US subsidiary, Bloomsbury Publishing Inc, has completed the purchase of academic... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-04-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers sign hot books ahead of LBF

Publishers have made a flurry of "major" acquisitions and additions to their schedules... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-04-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Los Angeles Review of Books' To Launch New, Enhanced Web Site

To coincide with its one-year anniversary on April 18, the Los Angeles Review of Books is re-launching its website in a multimedia platform that will include video, drop-down menus, and new feature articles. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-04-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Olympics to bring £16m books boost

The book market could receive an Olympic boost of around £16m if bookshops decide to take... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-04-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book review: 'The Beginner's Goodbye' by Anne Tyler

Anne Tyler's latest novel, 'The Beginner's Goodbye,' is a classic mix of the author's themes, most especially oddball characters and the turbulent nature of families and marriages.When you pick up a novel by Anne Tyler, you can expect certain things. It will be set in Baltimore. It will follow... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-04-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book review: 'Lives of the Novelists' by John Sutherland

These delightful biographies of 294 authors begin with John Bunyan in the 17th century and ends with Rana Dasgupta, born in 1971.My assignment: Read almost 300 literary biographies in more than 800 pages, all of English-language authors, beginning in the 17th century and ending in the present... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book review: 'Threats' by Amelia Gray

In this spooky, atmospheric debut novel, readers enter a sterile, off-kilter world of horror — sort of — that is more David Lynch than Stephen King.Threats Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book review: 'Damn Yankees' and the passions they stir

'Twenty-Four Major League Writers on the World's Most Loved (and Hated) Team' makes it personal.A couple of years ago, for Father's Day, my family bought me the interactive video game MLB 2K9 for the Wii. The great thing about the game, and also its enduring frustration, is its verisimilitude —... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book review: 'An Improbable Life' by Jim Abbott and Tim Brown

A coming-of-age story by former Angels pitcher Abbott is at its best when describing his influence as a role model off the field.Imperfect Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media Decoder Blog: Former Goldman Executive Is Said to Complete Book Deal

Greg Smith, the former Goldman executive who wrote a widely read Op-Ed in The New York Times about the changing culture at the Wall Street firm, has reported made a deal with Grand Central Publishing, part of Hachette. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2012-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How 200,000 Books Were Given to U.S. Troops

Moving 200,000 books isn’t an easy task, but through the goodwill and team work of several organizations, that’s exactly what happened in an unprecedented donation of James Patterson’s own books to the United States Armed Forces. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Missing 20th Century: How Copyright Protection Makes Books Vanish

Because of the strange distortions of copyright protection, there are twice as many newly published books available on Amazon from 1850 as there are from 1950 Continue reading at The Atlantic

[ The Atlantic | 2012-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Duddle wins children's book prize

Jonny Duddle, the concept artist for Aardman film The Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists, is named overall winner of the prestigious Waterstones Children's Book Prize. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2012-03-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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