Books for the New Year

I borrowed some big piles of books from the library just before the holidays as I assumed I will have so much spare time and fantasized about laying down on the beach with a good book. Ah! Nice dreaming... As much as we didn't celebrate in a grand way and we are slow people by our nature - the holidays were much busier than I planned it to be and so the books turned out to be Books for the New Year.
Well, it doesn't really matter does it?

The Sense of an Ending / Julian Barnes - I'm just about to finish it and it is as great as I have expected. I have a thing for books about smart young adults mystery "adventures" in collage (The Secret History by Donna Tartt is another great example), maybe because I myself didn't had such experiences. This book is a pure delight.

The Suitcase / Sergei Dovlatov - Sergei Dovlatov is one of Alex favorite authors and so I was so happy to discover this translation (written originally in Russian). I couldn't resist reading the first couple of pages and loved its brilliant, wry tone.

No One Belongs Here More Than You / Miranda July is a recommandations from Danica. I was always intrigued by Miranda July. I wished I have enjoyed her much more than I do. It's a funny feeling - I feel she Deserves my likeness but I just couldn't bring myself to actually enjoy her first movie. Danica put this feeling really nicely in words in her review for July's second film and mentioned this book so I thought maybe her words will talk to me better than her visuals. I read two stories already and really liked it.
By the way, in case you've missed it - here's a short video of July suggesting how to remain productive and creative while keeping distractions in bay. Great!

The Joys of Excess / Samuel Pepys is a new publication of Pepys by Penguin Classics. Peppy's celebrates gatherings, feasts and the indulgence of great eating and drinking what makes this book a A great book for the holidays!

Me, You / Erri de Luca - my first read of Erri de Luca. Can't wait.

Into the War / Italo Calvino - Italo Calvino is one of my favorite writers so this autobiographical new publication is a great discovery for me.


What are you reading now? Please do share! I'm always looking for new readings!

August Reading List

Elise of Pennyweight just shared her reading list on her lovely blog, and I thought it is a great idea to share books recommendations and encourage each other to read more.
Fancy joining the spontaneous Book Club?

Here is my reading list for August. I'm already half way through Ghostwritten - it is the first novel by one of my favorite authors - David Mitchell, and I enjoy it to bits. I really don't want it to end but at the same time I can't wait to read the rest of the books on my list.
What about you? Have you read any of the above? What's on your reading list for August?

August reading list: Ghostwritten by David Mitchell // Great House by Nicole Krauss (thank you Hila for the recommendation!) // White Teeth by Zadie Smith \\ An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin (thank you Elise for the recommendation!)

Have a great weekend lovelies!! xx


P.S. Check out Elise's reading list for more great books recommendations!

Wanted: New [Visual] Books

   
   

Seriously needed: a couple of new books for inspiration and creative motivation.

On my wish-list:
:: Meira Kalman's And the Pursuit of Happiness.
I love everything Meira writes and illustrate since discovering her delightful work for the 2005 illustrated edition of The Elements of Style (if you're not familiar with it and you're writing, anything from notes to prose, hurry up and get your copy!).
The book is the collection of Meira's posts as part of her yearlong investigation of the American democracy. The post were published during 2009 on The New York Times.

::  Drawn In: a peek into the inspiring sketchbooks of 44 fine artists, illustrators, graphic designers, and cartoonists.

:: Pulled: A Catalog of Screen Printing.
I would also love a copy of Print Workshop. I like the book's tag line: Techniques for low budget and high ambition. Totally down my alley!

:: Last but not least is Olga Bennett's Environments book.
The book is a collection of photographs documenting studio spaces of twelve creative people: artists, designers, illustrators, and graphic designer, mainly in Melbourne.

Would love to hear from you: do you have one of the above? Do you like and recommend it? Any other new visual books recommendations?

Visual Aid

Visual Aid: Stuff You've Forgotten, Things You Never Thought You Knew, and Lessons You Didn't Quite Get Around to Learning is a serious treat for your eyes and brain.
You'll find everything and anything in this little imagery book, from paper aeroplanes to Heimlich manoeuvre, The Earth's geological timeline, Italian wine regions and cuts of beef.
Never again you'll find yourself pondering over basic questions like "Where's my liver???"

After having this book for 3 months I can certainly declare - I'm smarter! And no one will ever win over me in questions like What is faster - an ostrich or a moth? or what beats a full house in poker. I have them all - the answers to the most important questions in life. And I can also prove them with colorful and irresistible illustrations and diagrams!

The super cool images from Visual Aid are also available as posters in the Visual Aid webshop, so if there is anything you find yourself forgetting over and over again (like tying a tie or making balloon animals) you can now hang the answer, in a large, high quality print, on your wall.





Visual Aid 1 and 2 © By Draught Associates, Published by Black Dog Publishing

White’s Fine Edition Books

2 facts:
1) I love classics. It happens that once in about 3 or 4 contemporary literature readings, I feel an urge to go back to classics and than it is just like I'm enjoying a beautiful, aged, great wine. You know the feeling? Like something that is beyond quality. Something that even before you try out, you know - It is Perfect.
2) I judge books by their covers. Yes, I can't help it. I won't read a book with a cover I don't like. And I enjoy my readings even more when their cover got an extra appeal.

For these reasons, finding out about White's Fine Edition series is quite a celebration. Looking at these is heart thumping.

In the last 2 years a lot of publishers have been bringing new editions of old classics with an emphasis on the cover's design. The best example is Penguin's hardcover classics series with its cloth-bound covers designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith.

Now White's Books, ex-Penguin designer David Pearson's new venture, had published eight gorgeous fine editions of the best-loved classics.

Unlike the Penguin series where all of its titles were designed by the same designer, the White's series covers were designed by different acclaimed artists and designers such as Petra Borner (a fashion designers that has worked for Louis Vuitton), Stanley Donwood (a wood and lino-cut artist that is best known for designing Radiohead’s album covers), and Joe McLaren (an illustrator for The Times and Monocle). Still, the series got a special character with it that makes it an actual series rather than a collection of books.

I would love to add them all to my library. Not only I love all the books White's had chosen to publish, These are fantastic design pieces and stunning keepsakes.
The fine edition is available through Amazon, mostly for under US$20 a book, which makes it an affordable luxury and a wonderful gift.

While I'm writing this, I'm thinking, in a time when Amazon is developing a new Kindle every year with prices that are now dropping to under US$150 and iPad is the new object of desire, do you find this and the likes of printed classics series a trick or a treat?

Do you think it makes a good buy or is it something nice to look at on the pages of a magazine or blog posts?

To make it simple, I'm curious - would you consider buying one of these or any other book as a gift for your loved ones or yourself?

Yurio Seki

I wanted to post about Yurio Seki long time ago. Took me some time to photograph the book and finally, here it is.

Yurio Seki is a Japanese Graphic Designer who is well known for her original brand, Salvia.
Her colorful design represents heart-warming and humane design, and she is one of the most popular graphics designers in Japan.

This book features Yurio's complete “Salvia” designs as well as extensive design works such as textile, magazines, books, CD covers etc., and is such an eye candy.
Unfortunately, most of the book is written in Japanese so I couldn't understand much but still, I can't have enough of it. I love so much the way she revives old Japanese crafting techniques in a modern and beautiful way and the subtleness of her designs. So delicate and lovely.

Heavenly Vaults...

... Are sometimes artworks of a spectacular pattern.





Seems more like an optical illusion, these rooflines of churches from all over the world facsimile a marvelous geometric kaleidoscope pattern.
From the book Heavenly Vaults: From Romanesque to Gothic in European Architecture by David Stephenson.

Via Apartment Therapy

Reading break

I have so much I want to share with you, couple of great new artists, 2 new mood boards I'm working on, absolutely fantastic little shops that you must see, but... I can't, I'm sorry!

It will have to wait until I'll finish this...

This book was a recommendation Pia made long ago but it took me some time to find it and than start reading but now I'm totally captivated by the rich story, the beautiful descriptions of the Victorian era and the strong feminine characters.

Does it happen to you that you feel like doing nothing at all other than reading your book?
What are you reading at the moment?





More details on Kate Morton's The Forgotten Garden on Amazon