This wonderful book meme/blog hop
is hosted by
Stephanie @
The purpose of this feature is to display
a beautiful book cover,
with information, if available,
about the cover illustrator,
photographer, and/or designer.
For all the participation rules,
just click
HERE.
Here's my pick for this week!
Hardcover, 341 pages
HarperTeen
May 10, 2011
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Why do I love this cover?
Surprisingly, I have not picked a blue cover for this week's feature... What is this world coming to, right? Well, regardless of the fact that pink is definitely not my favorite color, I can't help but love this gorgeous cover! (Besides, I do like hot pink.) The gradual lightening of the dark, almost red, at the top, becoming hot pink, then a paler pink.. The darker shade is picked up again in the girl's dress. I think the effect is breathtaking!
The whole idea of being in Paris is attractive in itself. I know it's a stereotype, but Paris is, indeed, a very romantic city, and not just because of its connection to love. It also embodies the ideal artist's life -- painting until all hours of the night, hotly discussing the latest art trends, as well as politics, religion, and anything else, in trendy cafes, and just getting drunk on life (the excellent wines help, too, I'm sure). Paris is the home of the French Impressionists, as well as three of my favorite artists: Vincent van Gogh, Edgar Degas, and Paul Cezanne.
In addition to all this, I love the scene depicted on the book's cover. Kate, the female protagonist, is gazing out on the Parisian skyline, with the Eiffel Tower off in the distance. It's a rather melancholy scene, too, in spite of the glorious color. I feel that it's early one Sunday morning, and the whole of Paris is still asleep, recuperating from the wild Saturday night revels. Kate has gone up to the roof of her grandparents' apartment, to ponder the rather painful circumstances life has dealt her and her sister, Georgia...
The cover is embellished with a stylized, leafy scrollwork design that frames Kate, threading down to her shoulders and arms, then moving down onto her dress, as well. I love covers that incorporate abstract or stylized designs into a more realistic scene. For some reason, this makes the cover look more alive, I think. Perhaps it's the contrast between two totally different types of art. The fusion of the two is certainly lovely!
This beautiful cover was created
through yet another
wonderful combination of
artistic talents!
The stylized design is what makes
this image really stand out!
It's the work of the awesome
This is a detail from the UK version
of the cover.
(I wish I owned this one, too...)
You can view Johanna's work
for various clients
HERE.
She also has a gallery of fine arts pieces,
which you can visit
HERE.
This is a video of Johanna
creating a wall piece.
The figure of the girl
is a photograph by
whose work is archived
at Corbis Images.
The background
was photographed by
whose work is archived
at Getty Images.
So what do you think
of this cover?
What beautiful cover(s)
are you featuring this week?
YAY! I'm so happy you created a post! You might not know this but I love your SCS posts. Although I feel like groaning because I just finished creating my own post on this exact same cover for next week, well actually I also featured the UK cover of Until I Die, the sequel, since the cover for that one is my favorite. I guess great minds think alike ;). Anyway,I'm in love with Johanna's work! I think she's amazing. And she does so many different things, it's awesome! I definitely love the UK covers more because the text is more elegant and the colors for the UK cover for Die For Me are more vibrant.
ReplyDeleteI love your idea of what the scene on the cover entails. It makes it even more real and beautiful. As always, I love your post.
Oh and I'm now following your blog because I keep forgetting the full name of your blog, which is weird because it's beautiful, so I can't check out your posts. I thought you made your post and forgot to link it so I wanted to check but couldn't :D
I guess you probably thought I wasn't posting anything today, because I published late, right? Yeah....I was too tired last night to do it, so I decided to take care of that today. And I got up SUPER late, too! Lol. But I simply can't let a Saturday go by without an SCS post! I LOVE this meme!!! So, here it is!!
DeleteOh, and you were going to feature this same cover? Gee...sorry 'bout that... but hey, go ahead and do it anyway! Especially since you're including the sequel's cover! I'd sure love to know your feelings about this cover! And yes, great minds DO think alike! Lol.
I agree that Johanna is AWESOME. She does lovely work!! And I also agree with you about the UK covers, at least, most of the time. In the case of the cover for "Daughter of Smoke and Bone", for instance, I would have to disagree. I prefer the US cover for that book!
Glad you liked my impressions of the scene on the cover. Thanks for the compliment!
Oh, thank you SO much for the follow!!! And another thank you for complimenting my blog's name! I wanted it to be something truly magical...
Thanks again for such a lovely comment!!! : )
I've actually already written another post for next week. I haven't deleted the post for these covers though so I'll keep it handy for when I don't have time to create a post. And really,I wasn't trying to make you feel bad about it and your post was great. :)And yes, I do love the UK covers for this series more than the US covers, but most of the time when it comes to covers, I like the US ones more. And I definitely agree about the cover for Daughter of Smoke and Bone. I love the US cover.
DeleteI also love these fanmade covers of Daughter of Smoke and Bone Katie made:
http://www.sophistikatied.com/2011/10/fan-art-friday-87.html
http://www.sophistikatied.com/2011/10/fan-art-friday-88.html
I'd love to feature her on SCS as well, but it's too bad that she hasn't done an original cover of a book yet.
Oh, I know you weren't trying to make me feel bad. No worries! You're too nice to do that! It's kinda hard to keep track of who's doing which cover, so it's inevitable that, sooner or later, SCS participants might very well pick the same cover.
DeleteGlad you agree about the cover for "Daughter of Smoke and Bone"! The US one is WAY better!
I'm going to check out these fanmade covers you've mentioned.
Thanks for the very nice comment!! : )
Moi, Paris! It is so funny that both of us have chosen books from Paris. The cover for Die For Me is belle! The picture shot with the rooftops of Paris as a backdrop is original and the overlay of art is absolutely beautiful. Thank you for including the video. It is awesome to see an artist at work at super speed so we can see the finished product.
ReplyDeleteYour description of Paris makes me want to go right now! ** Maria and Stephanie blogging live from Paris**
Yes, what a coincidence, right? Lol. Well, as Kimberley said in the comment above, "great minds think alike". : )
DeleteI, too, think that the picture with the rooftops is very original. And that overlay by Johanna...it's just absolutely MAGICAL.
You're very welcome for the video! I did think it was a bit comical, what with the artist working at super speed, but it was still interesting.
"Maria and Stephanie blogging live from Paris." I LOVE IT!!!!! Wish we could go RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE!!! We'd have LOADS of fun!!!!
Thanks for the SUPER GREAT comment!!!! : )
That is indeed a beautiful cover and is especially nice with the Eiffel Tower in the background :)
ReplyDeleteMegan @ Storybook Love Affair
Oh, I LOVE this cover!! And I agree -- having the Eiffel Tower in the background makes it even better!
DeleteThanks for the nice comment!! : )
i've admired this cover for awhile now. i love the colors and the graphics mixed with the photo. great pick!
ReplyDeleteI've always been a fan of this cover! Like you said the coloring is gorgeous and I just cannot get enough of the scrollwork designs! I also watched the video, she is amazing!
ReplyDelete