Welcome to Shelf Candy Saturday!!
This weekly feature
showcases beautiful book covers,
and provides information,
if available, on their very talented creators!
For more information
about Shelf Candy Saturday,
just click HERE.
Here's my choice for this week!!
Utopia
(Penguin Great Ideas Edition)
Trade Paperback, 160 pages
Penguin Books
November 1, 2009
Classics, Dystopian Fiction, Literary Fiction,
Politics, Philosophy
Why do I love this cover?
This is truly inspired design! This image is a gorgeous combination of styles, all assembled together in one harmonious whole, in spite of their differences.
The outer, rectangular frame is obviously Celtic, as is the circle which encloses the title and inner geometric design. The outline of this inner design is reminiscent of some of the ones used for small stained-glass windows in Gothic cathedrals. Inside this design, the title of this novel is done in a popular 1970s font, which I think might be known as Bauhaus. (Click HERE for several samples.) The title is done in lowercase letters, while the author's name, also in the same font, is all in capital letters.
The background enclosed by the rectangular frame is a decorative print of leaves, branches, and berries, which I think might have been a popular pattern originating either in the 19th or 18th century. Perhaps it was a popular Art Nouveau pattern; I'm not entirely sure. It does look very familiar, however.
This cover caught my eye as I was browsing the Internet looking for a beautiful book cover to feature this week. I came across a site with an article featuring such covers. However, I can honestly say that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder, as I did not like most of the covers in the article. The one above is a notable exception, as is the cover for Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy, and Bridge of Sighs, by Richard Russo, also included in the article, which you can find here: 86 Beautiful Book Covers. Be sure to scroll down until you find the cover of Utopia.
Once again, I am sorry to report that I could not find any information about the cover designer. That person is not credited on the book's publication data and credits page, as I discovered when I opened the Amazon reader.... So I have to content myself with simply presenting this cover here, for my own enjoyment and yours.
Of course, this book will eventually end up being part of my collection!
What do you think of
this week's cover?
Leave me a comment and
let me know!
Sweet cover!
ReplyDeleteHi, Missie!
DeleteI'm glad you like this cover! Thanks for dropping by and commenting!! : )
I really like this one Maria. I like the fact that your picks have been very eclectic.
ReplyDeleteThough some of the details are complex, There is of course a certain basic simplicity to i the overall effect. I find that such clean simplicity can be very appealing.
On a side note I really want to read this book someday but I have not gotten to it yet.
Hey, Brian!
DeleteYes, indeed, my cover picks are as eclectic as my reading tastes. As you can see, I don't just like blue covers! Lol. Of course, they ARE my favorites.
I love all the complexity of the details here, but, as you say, the overall effect is one of simplicity. I like to go back and forth between taking in the whole design, and then delving into the details, not just with this cover, but with covers that similarly have a large design incorporating smaller ones within it.
I, too, would like to read this novel. All I've known about Thomas More so far is that he refused to acknowledge King Henry VIII as the head of the Church of England, and was thus executed for treason. That was because More was a staunch Catholic, and he saw the Pope as the only legitimate religious leader. I looked him up on Wikipedia yesterday, and read that More also refused to attend the coronation of Anne Boleyn.
More's story is a fascinating one, and I'm sure there must be a biography of him somewhere. I'll look that up. Also, he probably wrote other books, although none became as famous as this novel.
I will make sure to buy this edition of "Utopia", when I decide to read it.
Thanks for the great comment!! : )