Welcome to Shelf Candy Saturday!
*Late Edition*
This is my weekly feature
showcasing beautiful covers!
It also provides information,
if available, on their
very talented creators!
if available, on their
very talented creators!
Here's my choice for this week!
The Amaranth enchantment
Julie Berry
Hardcover, 320 pages
Bloomsbury USA Children's
March 15, 2009
Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Romance,
Young Adult Fiction
Julie Berry
Hardcover, 320 pages
Bloomsbury USA Children's
March 15, 2009
Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Romance,
Young Adult Fiction
Beautiful images can be created not only with paintbrushes and canvas, but with the camera and computer, as well. This is certainly one of them! I LOVE this composition! The lighting is perfect, the colors GORGEOUS, the dress BEAUTIFUL, and that flower, so strategically placed, is STUNNING.
The background colors perfectly complement the ones in the dress, and actually blend in with them. Basically, the image contains tones of green and red, so perfectly and beautifully balanced, the viewer can scarcely tell where one begins and the other ends.
The dress is beautifully designed, as well. I LOVE all the detailed embroidery on it, as well as its medieval-looking design.
The model also has a wonderfully enigmatic expression which reminds me of the Mona Lisa, and she looks very sweet, although I do see a certain steel in her eyes, as she steadily gazes out at the viewer.
The title has a nice combination of two fonts, and emphasizes the word "amaranth", which I think is very effective. I also like the contrast between this word and the rest of the title, which uses a classical font.
In short, I do think that this cover is a true masterpiece of book design, and I can't understand why this book is not yet in my collection, as I also LOVE the plot!
Who is responsible for this brilliant cover? Well, her name is Donna Mark, and she's the Art Director at Bloomsbury Publishing. I have only been able to find one link for her -- an interview posted on the blog, A Backwards Story. This interview is from June 1, 2012, and you can access it HERE. Now I'm wondering who the awesome photographer was..... there's no information on that person in the Amazon preview....
And here's yet ANOTHER name to add to my list of favorite cover artists and designers!!
What do you think of
this week's cover?
Please leave a comment
and let me know!
this week's cover?
Please leave a comment
and let me know!
This is a such an eye catching cover.
ReplyDeleteThe read and the green work so well together. I think that if done in some ways, these bright versions of red and green could clash with each other. However, that is not the effect here.
I also like the out of focus look of the forest in the background.
Hi, Brian!
DeleteOh, it DEFINITELY is!! Glad you love it, too!! <3 :)
Yes, the red and green do work very well together! And I think you're right that they don't clash here. That's probably because they are very subtly blended into each other.
I also agree that the out-of-focus background works very well here, too!
Thanks for the insightful comment!! <3 :)
I can see why you are drawn to this cover, Marie. This coming week's 50/50 topic is cover trends a person likes most and least. I'm having a hard time narrowing it down. This one brings up one of the things I don't especially care for and that's covers of people looking directly out at me from covers. It's not that I find those covers unattractive. They just make me uncomfortable. I'm weird that way.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, back to your cover, I like the contrast in colors of her dress and the flower. It really draws the eye.
Thank you for sharing!
Hi, Wendy!
DeleteYeah, I'm DEFINITELY drawn to it! I LOVE that dress! And the flower is GORGEOUS! (Plus, I wish I were that young and skinny, lol.) I see you agree with Brian about the color contrast, and yes, it is indeed very effective. I just LOVE EVERYTHING about this cover!!
How interesting that you don't like covers with models that are looking directly at you. I guess I don't mind this, as long as the look in their eyes is not threatening or contemptuous. Lol.
Now that you've brought this up, you know what MY pet cover peeve is? I HATE it when a cover model is facing away from me, and I see the back of their head! Lol. I also HATE it when the designer "decapitates" the model, so that you can't see their face at all, or, "cuts it off" so that all you see is their mouth and chin. Yet another pet peeve: when I can only see half of the model's face.
Everybody's got different tastes where book covers are concerned, lol.
You're very welcome for the sharing!! Thanks for leaving such an insightful comment, as I had never really thought of these things before, in regards to covers!
Hope the upcoming week will be GREAT!! HUGS TO YOU AND MOUSE!! <3 <3 <3 :) :) :)