tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50670710174144687752024-02-19T05:07:28.919-05:00Pretty Dead TreesReimagining Cover DesignsPretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-38218945621759966992010-07-21T08:45:00.003-04:002010-07-21T08:47:36.168-04:00Goodbye Blogger<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Chances are that if you're reading the comments will be Chinese spam messages. So...</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I'm moving Pretty Dead Trees to Tumblr!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Please update your bookmarks to: </span><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.tumblr.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">http://prettydeadtrees.tumblr.com</span>/</a></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-76237850706401083892009-06-05T10:16:00.003-04:002009-06-05T10:37:23.762-04:00The Garden: Great Movie Poster<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.apple.com/trailers/independent/thegarden/" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrfC2AiB0iOcxEtT93p8t0wV5VgjknZql4LI7BbcG0zg3_TF5YkMdWyYyJ7fthNboppYrhb1cOilMIK1xD3yOxC3cWAIe9kRT_NNzgWrrHAd7ewE17tzVgPTsp1FGgQhTI9VYlml80f_g/s400/garden.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5343848187057648322" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><b>I happened to see this poster at my local movie house and it blew me away. </b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><b>THE GARDEN is about the largest inner-city, community garden in the US, right in South Central LA, and how the political forces of the city government have tried to take this haven away from it's people.</b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><b>Although the online version doesn't do it justice, it does reflect how you might see it as a passerby. This off-center, off-kilter dark block is actually an aerial picture of the garden. The designer washed out and outlined the surrounding neighborhood in white and very light grey. It is almost as difficult to see this background in person as it is online.</b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><b>I think what I like about this poster it the "Ah-Ha" moment you get when you finally realize what it is. You need to get close up and engage the design to totally get what's going on. It's a simple design with a lot going on. Heck, it got me to stop and look...</b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><b><br /></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://www.apple.com/trailers/independent/thegarden/"><b>Click Here to View the Trailer</b></a></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b><i>Movie Description:</i></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>T</b></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>HE GARDEN is an engaging and powerful look at the famous political and social battle over the largest community garden in the US (located in South Central Los Angeles). A follow-up to Kennedy’s award-winning documentary OT: OUR TOWN, the film shows how the politics of power and greed (backroom deals, land developing, green politics, money) tragically intersect with working class families who rely on this communal garden for their livelihood. Equal parts THE WIRE and HARLAN COUNTY USA, THE GARDEN exposes the fault lines in American society and raises crucial and challenging questions about liberty, equality, and justice for the poorest and most vulnerable among us. Kenneth Turan of the LA Times said: “It’s tempting to call “The Garden” a story of innocence and experience, of evil corrupting paradise, but that would be doing a disservice to the fascinating complexities of a classic Los Angeles conflict and an excellent documentary that does them full justice.”</b></span></span></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-41345516830919052312009-05-11T12:00:00.004-04:002009-05-11T12:00:01.338-04:00CHECK IT OUT: Wellmedicated.com<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">My friend Thom brought to my attention </span></span></b><a href="http://wellmedicated.com/"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">WellMedicated.com</span></span></b></a><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, a design site with some great lists. </span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Click on the pictures below to check some out:</span></span></b></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://wellmedicated.com/inspiration/50-amazing-gig-posters-sure-to-inspire/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 500px;" src="http://wellmedicated.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/calexico.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">50 Amazing Gig Posters Sure to Inspire</div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://wellmedicated.com/inspiration/50-incredible-film-posters-from-poland/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 277px; height: 400px;" src="http://wellmedicated.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/fatalattraction.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">50 Incredible Film Posters from Poland</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://wellmedicated.com/lists/25-imaginative-illustrations-inspired-by-film/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 500px;" src="http://wellmedicated.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/harry-potter-the-philosophers-stone.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">25 Imaginative Illustrations Inspired by Film</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">There are many, many more posts of interest over there so be sure to check them out!</span></b></span></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-38335011090804006882009-05-07T12:00:00.000-04:002009-05-07T12:00:00.955-04:00Book 4, Background Info: Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travels_with_Charley"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/cc/TravelswithCharlieVehicle.jpg/800px-TravelswithCharlieVehicle.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In 1960 and at the age of 58, John Steinbeck decided to make one last trip around the United States. With his French poodle Charley and a pickup truck converted into a camper, he traveled across this country, roughly around the boarder of the continental US.</span></span></b></div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travels_with_Charley" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 500px; height: 386px;" src="http://pace.edu/emplibrary/display-plv-map.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Trying to find and talk to the "New American" he purposely tried to avoid major highways and cities, opting to travel the old, quiet back-roads that once linked this country together. </span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">What's interesting about this work is that it is not so much a "road book" but rather a report of the death of early America. Steinbeck needed to see for himself whether or not the hard working, simple country he knew and had brought to light in novels like </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Of_Mice_and_Men"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Of Mice and Men</span></i></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Grapes_of_Wrath"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Grapes of Wrath</span></i></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> still existed. While he still came across pockets of this simple life, he was begrudgingly taught that the world that he once new was dying with his generation.</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">With the proliferation of nuclear arms, the Vietnam War, violence stemming from the civil rights movement, etc., history has taught us that this age of American innocence truly faded away just a few short years after this book was published.</span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Click pictures above to check out more information on </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Travels with Charley</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></b></div></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-88770534501361713162009-05-04T09:13:00.004-04:002009-05-04T15:05:02.736-04:00Slightly New Format on Design Covers<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Upon further reflection, I've realized the folly of my ways. How dare I just include the front cover of a book when there's AT LEAST two other printable areas?!</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">From now on I'm going to change it up a little bit. Upon selecting a book I will state whether that book was hardcover or paperback. If the book was hardcover, I will design an entire dust jacket (front, spine, back and two inner flaps). If the book was paperback, I will design a standard cover (front, spine and back).</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Be sure to check back this week for some background info on <i>Travels with Charley </i>as well as a new cover design that has caught my eye.</span></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-51243802808442986162009-04-28T09:12:00.003-04:002009-04-28T09:26:45.790-04:00Book 4, Original Art: Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0142000701&music=&buyable=1&assoc_id=&spring="><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXrSFHKQrbJaxoCnvVfoQYxfyToNhCvY7DHk4Ix8ZUe4mYKEoLlgG0blSnN2MSUTSIn14deiaQqxqYBbMzs2XKCit8_I_iOAUvJZYXx_qtIQrBz8YcYMVfqEqSaLkqckC_WKCz0jNCQNo/s400/charley.jpg" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px;"><b><br /></b></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-weight: bold; line-height: 18px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">TRAVELS WITH CHARLIE by </span></span><a href="http://www.steinbeck.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">John Steinbeck</span></span></a></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 18px; font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span><div style="text-align: center; "></div></span><div><div style="text-align: center; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Published by </span></span><a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/bantamdell/index.html" style="color: rgb(68, 85, 102); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Bantam Books</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, Copyright 1963; Original Cover Design by ???</span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span><div><div style="text-align: justify; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 51); line-height: normal; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In September 1960, John Steinbeck and his poodle, Charley, embarked on a journey across America. A picaresque tale, this chronicle of their trip meanders along scenic backroads and speeds along anonymous superhighways, moving from small towns to growing cities to glorious wilderness oases. </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Travels with Charley</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> is animated by Steinbeck's attention to the specific details of the natural world and his sense of how the lives of people are intimately connected to the rhythms of nature - to weather, geography, the cycles of the seasons. His keen ear for the transactions among people is evident, too, as he records the interests and obsessions that preoccupy the Americans he encounters along the way.</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center; "><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Support an Independent Book Store!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0142000701&music=&buyable=1&assoc_id=&spring="><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">CLICK HERE</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> to Purchase this Book!</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div></div></span>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-9341058151389710452009-03-03T20:44:00.011-05:002009-03-03T21:29:13.587-05:00Book 3, Reimagined Art: VOX by Nicholson Baker<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">HOLY CRAP! It's been 6 months and Matt finally has something to put up!</span></span><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Anywho...</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">So, to refresh your memory this book is </span><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/2008/06/book-3-original-art-vox-by-nicholson.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">one long phone conversation leading to phone sex</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">. For this cover I wanted the foundation to be a fairly sexy head shot of a woman talking on the phone. However, I wasn't able to drum up a willing female volunteer for a photograph... </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Okay that sounded a little dirty. But I digress.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I ended going in the ironic direction. I found a perfect vintage, black and white photo of a 50's housewife on the web. </span></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 282px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIFkyvFZVDlXiMo9jJq3iSa2-1HYJPIesj3caXPDLnlqeEESoixMaC8j3wTg34n6pRrrTo_po3siKU3RevPU3dqicyW8uo8QwkjGMtD6N75rMcw4JuTD7hXWFFvzEtlknRkuKhEMzw_-0/s320/vintage_pic.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309145552751385202" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I used the magic of Matt-i-color (the cheap Rhode Island version of Technicolor) and brightened up the picture a bit.</span></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-_nXVtvGoVHD_rXWWdvAwrK03msendyblOi_9nS4wOUi-FdbOWC2NOdxhmI4RCavosre1oNoW1KN6SlwRHNNjfRYSl4Yp_d8QRp2bLW1kYRbJ2sNi4kQ-24Ba2zY-OzSoQXaU2ksZhlI/s320/vintage_pic_color.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309146082762508770" /></a><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I then imported the whole sha-bang into Illustrator and, using Adobe trickery and a darker picture, brought the title magically out of the photo. Voila! The finished cover:</span></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/QBpXG71eWoHcLn62xhJ2BA?authkey=Gv1sRgCPD9ptW_gZi_dw&feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM4OiY6URkLhpNCoTIozXdw4FsG9s2GYJh42vhWhWWOxrJmq5KH0WlB4556Gs98ZvvVR7pZDO6UQplLtkGLRwTWVGuuXF9tLsej-G6La9anEtFpkI5_QdH0gX4QR22hAHD99FZaKYRp6M/s800/vox_cover_web.jpg" /></a><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/QBpXG71eWoHcLn62xhJ2BA?authkey=Gv1sRgCPD9ptW_gZi_dw&feat=embedwebsite"><br /></a></div><div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The floor is now open for comments, questions, suggestions, and critiques.</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:13px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:13px;">And keep an eye out on the site soon. I'll be posting various projects I've done in class... the 21st century version of a spelling test on the fridge!</span></div></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-27155244285133741432008-09-30T14:25:00.003-04:002008-09-30T14:44:56.117-04:00Amazing Album Covers: Okkervil River & William Schaff<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">I'd been hearing a lot about this band called </span></span></span><a href="http://www.okkervilriver.com/index.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">Okkervil River</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">. So I picked up their new CD, The Stand Ins, and I have to say I like them quite a bit. They have this very melodic and eclectic sound reminiscent of a lot of bands I've been listening to lately. Go to </span></span></span><a href="http://www.okkervilriver.com/index.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">their site</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "> to check out their tunes.</span></span></span><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; ">One thing I didn't catch right away, though, was a very special detail about their album covers.</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/samsa1973/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51Pi%2BdNIKYL._SS500_.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/samsa1973/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51869DYH7ZL._SS500_.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; font-weight: bold; ">They're not done on a computer. They're not drawn or painted. That's right all my crafty friends out there... THEY'RE EMBROIDERED! How fucking cool it that?!</span><br /></div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">To top it all off (and to demonstrate how small Rhode Island is), the artist, </span></span></span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/samsa1973/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">William Schaff,</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> is a local Providence musician who plays with the </span></span></span><a href="http://www.whatcheerbrigade.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">What Cheer? Brigade</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">What a small world...</span></span></span><br /></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-66191983396747981142008-09-05T11:55:00.007-04:002008-09-06T08:25:02.623-04:00International Covers and Process: The Gone-Away World<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I'm currently reading </span></span><a href="http://www.goneawayworld.co.uk/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">THE GONE-AWAY WORLD</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> by Nick Harkaway which, might I say, is one hell of a page turner. Here's the description:</span></span></span></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">T</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">here couldn’t be a fire along the Jorgmund Pipe. It was the last thing the world needed. But there it was, burning bright on national television. The Pipe was what kept the Livable Zone safe from the bandits, monsters, and nightmares the Go-Away War had left in its wake. The fire was a very big problem. Enter Gonzo Lubitsch and his friends, the Haulage & HazMat Emergency Civil Freebooting Company, a team of master troubleshooters who roll into action when things get particularly hot. They helped build the Pipe. Now they have to preserve it—and save humanity yet again. Equal parts raucous adventure, comic odyssey, geek nirvana, and ultra-cool epic, The Gone-Away World is a story of—among other things—love, pirates, mimes, greed, and ninjas. But it is also the story of a world, not unlike our own, in desperate need of heroes—however unlikely they may seem.</span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I'm reading the standard version which has this dust jacket:</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0307268861&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/27750000/27753519.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Pops out at you right?! What's really cool and is not reflected in the photo is that all of the pink areas are actually felted with velvet material. So on top of being bright it's fuzzy too!</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">However, their is another cover floating around that I believe is the UK version, seen here:</span><br /></span></span><br /></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/27379375@N08/sets/72157605411336500/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3081/2551495694_7205699795.jpg?v=0" border="0" alt="" /></a></div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The book has it's own </span></span><a href="http://www.goneawayworld.co.uk/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">website</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> (which in it's own right is pretty fantastic) and they offer up a link to </span></span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/27379375@N08/sets/72157605411336500/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">show the process</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> of designing the UK cover! Well worth the visit.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Anyway, I highly suggest picking this up. It's been one of the better books I've read in a long, long time.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">NOTE: Info on the designers from the author himself!</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">"The Knopf jacket is by Jason Booher. The Heinemann one is by Glenn O'Neill. There's also a painfully sexy limited boxed edition in black and red. I'm fairly sure that one's Glenn, too."</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">For more background info from Nick Harkaway's mouth to your eyes, check out the comments for this post.</span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Support an Independent Book Store! </span></span></span></span><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0307268861&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></a></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: normal; "><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0307268861&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">CLICK HERE</span></span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> to Purchase this Book!</span></span></span></span></span></div></span></span></span>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-68200519447425388802008-08-08T09:16:00.003-04:002008-08-08T09:27:24.342-04:00Book 3, Background Info: VOX by Nicholson Baker<div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">VOX is a novella which, in fact, is one long conversation. There are no chapter breaks. There are no separate sections. Just one long phone conversation. And what is this conversation about, you may ask? Ladies and gentlemen...</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> e</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">verything you ever wanted to know about </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phone_sex"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">phone sex</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phone_sex"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.adme.ru/files/paedia/print/part_19/192785/preview_320_260.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-77017522419384123822008-08-04T10:44:00.002-04:002008-08-04T10:50:49.318-04:00Amazing Covers: George Orwell & Shepard Fairey<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Check out these very fucking cool new covers of Orwell's </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">1984</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Animal Farm</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> as designed by<a href="http://obeygiant.com/"> Shepard Fairey</a></span></span>:<br /></span></span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://thepenguinblog.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/04/11/1984_afrmt_3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px;" src="http://thepenguinblog.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/04/11/1984_afrmt_3.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://thepenguinblog.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/04/11/animalfarm_afrmt_2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px;" src="http://thepenguinblog.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/04/11/animalfarm_afrmt_2.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-42474424019279710062008-07-16T11:21:00.005-04:002008-07-16T11:56:35.976-04:00Book 2, Reimagined Art: Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">So, as you may have seen in the last </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Another Roadside Attraction</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> post, I had a lot of elements I could have worked with for this cover. I eventually came to the conclusion that I needed to keep it very simple and create a design that would jump out at you from across the bookstore. So, the two elements I chose to focus on were... hot dogs and Jesus. Didn't expect that now did you?</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A little back story:</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> The book is about a hippy couple, John Paul and Amanda, who open up a hot dog stand along the highway in Washington State named "Captain Kendrick's Memorial Hot Dog Wildlife Preserve". At the same time, through a series of misadventures, their friend Plucky Purcell gets wrapped up in a militant Catholic secret society and comes into possession of the corpse of Jesus Christ... which he steals and brings back to the roadside attraction.</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">So, in honor of Captain Kendrick's, I started off with a basic picture of a hot dog which I myself took and then ate (the hot dog, not the picture).</span></span></span></div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SH4RrL_t_AI/AAAAAAAAAHA/837KcTQGs2M/s400/ara_cover_hotdog.jpg" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Then I imported this picture with an older painting of Jesus on the cross into Adobe Illustrator. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><br /><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SH4XtqrQUBI/AAAAAAAAAHc/KJdnUZL-xEI/s400/jesus-cross-1280.jpg" /></a><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I traced both photos with VERY bright colors, cleaned them up a bit and removed elements. To top it all off and to make the site a little more sacrilegious, Jesus is now nailed to a giant hot dog</span>.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div></div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SH4Rq8_-EkI/AAAAAAAAAG4/xOxV73hrWPM/s400/ara_cover_detail.jpg" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Throw in a radial gradient background and some wispy, neon-like type and we have a very bright, very offensive cover:</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px;" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SH4W_slo2JI/AAAAAAAAAHU/fEWu6gom_uE/ara_cover.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Keep in mind, this is my very first cover exclusively using Adobe Illustrator (so be kind). The floor is now open for comments, questions, suggestions, and critiques.</span></span></span></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-18877736610049526532008-07-15T10:18:00.003-04:002008-07-15T11:16:04.380-04:00CHECK IT OUT: Tales of Rocky Point Park<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/logo.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">In the vein of classic comics like House of Mystery, Tales from the Crypt, and other early horror comics comes the newest (and, in my case, most local) offering: </span></span></span><a href="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">TALES OF ROCKY POINT PARK</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">! <span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">If you're not from Rhode Island or have not seen the wonderful film </span><a href="http://www.rockypointmovie.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">You Must Be This Tall</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, let me let W</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">ikipedia</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> tell you about Rocky Point:</span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px;" src="http://www.warwickri.gov/graphics/rpbanner.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">The Rocky Point Amusement Park was a highly popular landmark on the Narragansett Bay side of Warwick, Rhode Island. It operated from the late 1840s until its close in 1995. The park filed for bankruptcy a year later in 1996.</span></span></span><br /></div></span><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Brief enough for you?! Anywho, the short and skinny is that Rocky Point was an old amusement park that gave generations of Rhode Islanders years of enjoyment and fond memories.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/issue2.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Now, comic artist </span></span><a href="http://www.rockypointmovie.com/staff/jay/jay.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Jason Mayoh</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> brings us the dark underbelly of this joyous place. Each issue starts with actual illustrated history of the park, particularly each individual ride or attraction. After that, things get creepy.</span></span></span></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/colorpic.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:13px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Mayoh takes the creepier elements of the actual histories and expounds on them with horrifying results. Issue #1 deals with the House of Horrors and it's awful life-like viking statue. Issue #2 talks about the Skyliner, a tram starting in the heart of the park and leading to a fairly creepy forest on top of a large hill. Oh, and did I mention UNDEAD MONKEYS!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:13px;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/issue2-1.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The comic book nerd in me loves the whole </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">concept of the book but the graphic designer loves the supplementary material. At the end of each issue, Mayoh creates various pieces of "evidence" in the forms of letters and newspaper articles to back up his tales of terror. They're so well done, at first I thought they were real articles!</span></span></span></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Anyway, whether your a fan of Rocky Point or love horror stories, PICK THESE COMICS UP! You will not be disappointed. Issues #1 and #2 are available for purchase at their </span></span></span><a href="http://www.talesofrockypointpark.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">website</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> or local comic shops like </span></span></span><a href="http://thetimecapsule.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The Time Capsule</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> and </span></span></span><a href="http://www.wildtimecomics.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Wildtime Comics</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">.</span></span></span></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-65264224388958205682008-06-24T09:22:00.002-04:002008-06-24T09:37:42.481-04:00Fun Design! Totally Offensive!<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">A little musical play and lyrics book brought to my attention by my good friend, Jason McGill:</span></span></span></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/m5/f1/csm5781-v6.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/m5/f1/csm5781-v6.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Does the fun orange moon background and the beautiful illustration of the woman take a backseat to how offensive this seems? Can you even get into the military if you have a stutter?</span></span></span><br /></div></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Jason suggested that I redesign this. But I have a better idea. I'd like to see how YOU would redesign this. Create a design changing the cover of "K-K-K-Katy" and email it to </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><a href="mailto:%20prettydeadtrees@gmail.com"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">prettydeadtrees@gmail.com</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">. You won't win anything but you'll get your work posted on <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Pretty Dead Trees</span> in the near future! </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">I Look forward to seeing what you got!</span></span></span></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-22573335477885670442008-06-20T12:02:00.005-04:002008-06-20T12:18:15.524-04:00Book 2, Update: Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">So you may have noticed that I've posted </span></span></span></span></span><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/search/label/3"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">book 3</span></span></span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> before the reimagining of book 2, </span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Another Roadside Attraction</span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">. No, you didn't miss it. I just haven't done it yet!</span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">In my defense, I've hit one of those good problems with this book: too many great ideas. I've been thinking about what I'd like to focus on but keeping it simple. Keep in mind that these were the things discussed in the novel (in no particular order):</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- a roadside hot dog stand with 30' X 9' sign -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- a flea circus -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- Jesus -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- a white man who has taken on an African Tribal lifestyle (see animal skins, filed teeth, etc.) -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- a woman who goes into trances and has visions -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- an anthropomorphic baboon -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- mushrooms -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- a black-ops, militant section of the Vatican -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- butterflies -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- a rock n' roll circus -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- a child named Thor with electric blue eyes -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- endangered garter snakes -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- the 60's counter culture -</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">- etc. -</span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I think I've finally figured out what direction I'm going to go in and will be working on the cover this weekend. Be sure to check back next week for the update!</span></span></span></div><div><br /></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-39055908021583604462008-06-17T09:48:00.003-04:002008-06-17T10:03:31.669-04:00Book 3, Original Art: VOX by Nicholson Baker<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0679742115&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/ciu/c1/d2/b5531363ada048b2e9c2f010.L.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">VOX by </span></span><a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl?authorid=1229"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">Nicholson Baker</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">Published by </span></span><a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/vintage/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">Vintage Contemporaries</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">, Copyright 1993; Original Cover Design by Eric Leonard</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">"Jim and Abby meet over the phone when they both dial one of those 976 party lines that are advertised in adult magazines. After some exploratory small talk, they retire to the electronic "back room" for a more intimate chat. Baker has written a novel that remaps the territory of sex--solitary and telephonic, lyrical and profane, comfortable and dangerous. Written in the form of a phone conversation between two strangers, Vox is an erotic classic that places the author in the first rank of America's major writers."</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">Support an Independent Book Store! </span></span></span><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0679742115&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">CLICK HERE</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "> to Purchase this Book!</span></span></span></span><br /></div></span></span>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-18714533850968379652008-06-03T09:15:00.004-04:002008-06-03T12:24:48.061-04:00The Nightingales of Troy: Great Book Cover<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Being that I work for </span></span><a href="http://www.booksq.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Books on the Square</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, a independent bookstore in Providence, RI, I get the opportunity to preview and review books before they come out. A current collection of stories I'm reading (that's being released in July 2008) is </span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The Nightingales of Troy</span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> by </span></span></span></span></span><a href="http://people.cornell.edu/pages/af89/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Alice Fulton</span></span></span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">. While I'll be reviewing the book at a later time and place, I'd love to share the cover with you:</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.kimberlyglyder.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://people.cornell.edu/pages/af89/images/book-tnot_400x601.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">This beautiful cover was created by </span></span></span><a href="http://www.kimberlyglyder.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Kimberly Glyder</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, a designer out of Philadelphia.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">This collection of short stories follows four generations of women (from great grandmother to great granddaughter) and the intriguing stories that connect them all. This cover perfectly reflects each story with the old clip art images on weathered pieces of paper each connected by a subtle dotted line. I also must commend Ms. Glyder on her use of fonts and decorative pieces (especially the adornment emanating from the bird).</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I'm really enjoying this book so far. Be sure to check it out when it's released next month.</span></span></span></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Support an Independent Book Store!</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; "><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=039304887X&buyable=1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">CLICK HERE</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> to Purchase this Book!</span></span><br /></div></span>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-87867982171534122162008-05-28T12:00:00.003-04:002008-06-03T09:46:42.988-04:00My Winnipeg: Great Movie Poster<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I absolutely loved Guy Maddin's film </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abLMg0PV_MM&feature=related">The Saddest Music in the World</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">. Now he's coming out with a new movie called <a href="http://www.ifcfilms.com/viewFilm.htm?filmId=617">My Winnipeg</a> which is described as "a hilariously wacky and profoundly touching goodbye letter to his childhood hometown. " </span></span></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.ifcfilms.com/viewFilm.htm?filmId=617"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.cinematical.com/media/2008/04/my-winnipeg-poster.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">I LOVE this poster! I find the muted colors, scratched film and worn corners very appealing. It's like the most screwed up photo in your family album. The unique elements jump out at you. I like the jumper's tropical looking shirt and the look of utter indifference on the older lady's face. I also find it hilarious that Winnipeg is being compared to suicide.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Check out</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> the trailer:</span></span></span></span></span></div><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/aY9BtROpNQ4&hl=en"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/aY9BtROpNQ4&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-42441155733550697032008-05-23T12:00:00.001-04:002008-05-23T12:00:02.590-04:00Book 2, Background Info: Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The reason I originally picked up Another Roadside Attraction was the fact that it had to do with… wait for it… roadside attractions! In the novel, a circus/naturalist/mystical/hippie couple open up a hotdog stand in Washington state called “Captain Kendrick's Memorial Hot Dog Wildlife Preserve”. The draw to this site is the 30-foot tall hot dog sign on the roof, an endangered garter snake habitat, flea circus, and a certain corpse of a Christian persuasion.</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br />I think I’ve a certain affinity for these slowly disappearing roadside oddities. I could be due to the fact that I’ve grown up with one in my backyard ever since I was little.</span></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.bluebug.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.providenceonline.com/images/artandculture/BigBlueBug.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The Big Blue Bug is Rhode Island’s strangest and most visible landmark. Directly looking out over I-95, its </span><a href="http://www.bluebug.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">New England Pest Control’s</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> highly inventive piece of advertising. I don’t think there’s a single person in Rhode Island who doesn’t know the name New England Pest Control because of that giant blue landmark. If you’re ever driving through Providence, RI you can’t miss it.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br />Some other sites you might also be interested in:</span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2023"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.takemytrip.com/desert/448_IMG_1430_2.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2023"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The Thing?</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, Dragoon Arizona<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">What is </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The Thing?</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> Drive out to the middle of nowhere and find out!</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2071"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px;" src="http://www.roadsideamerica.com/attract/images/ga/GAASHpeanut99.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2071"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The World’s Largest Peanut</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, Ashburn, GA<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Along I-75, it’s the county’s tribute to the peanut.</span><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.clarkstradingpost.com/"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.dkimages.com/discover/previews/909/50483617.JPG" border="0" alt="" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.clarkstradingpost.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Clark’s Trading Post</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, N. Woodstock, NH<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">My Favorite place in the entire world! Check out the performing bear shows and get chased by the crazed hillbilly “Wolfman” on a scenic train ride… I’m not making this up.<br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">To learn more about roadside attractions near you, be sure to check out </span><a href="http://www.roadsideamerica.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Roadside America</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, the definitive website for those weird little places around the country.</span><br /></div></span></span></span><br /></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-633750840641038292008-05-19T12:00:00.011-04:002008-05-19T16:44:09.219-04:00Book 1, Revamped Art: Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Thanks to the great comments from my friends in </span></span><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/2008/05/book-1-reimagined-art-pedro-pramo-by.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">the last </span></span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/2008/05/book-1-reimagined-art-pedro-pramo-by.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Pedro Paramo</span></span></a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/2008/05/book-1-reimagined-art-pedro-pramo-by.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> pos</span></span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><a href="http://prettydeadtrees.blogspot.com/2008/05/book-1-reimagined-art-pedro-pramo-by.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">t</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, I am instituting a new element to PRETTY DEAD TREES: </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">the Revamp</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">! I'll take your suggestions and give it one last go.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">It was suggested that the big black title block in the upper lefthand corner took away from the image. After studying it, I had to agree. So I ran with the old photo motif and decided to incorporate an old looking (possibly blood spattered ) label.</span> And here's what came out of that:</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SDCiAJNjIxI/AAAAAAAAAEw/-qCMp_GC4B0/pedro_paramo_revamp2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px;" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SDCiAJNjIxI/AAAAAAAAAEw/-qCMp_GC4B0/pedro_paramo_revamp2.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I think it looks much better. But what do you t</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">hink?</span></span></span></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-41722566826595175372008-05-16T12:00:00.002-04:002008-06-03T09:47:28.255-04:00House of Mystery #1: Great Comic Cover<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.dccomics.com/comics/?cm=9388"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://images.wizarduniverse.com/WizardUniverse/cotw/House.Mys.1.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">DC Comics, </span></span></span><a href="ttp://www.dccomics.com/vertigo/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Vertigo</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> line (who might I say always has some kick ass covers from the likes of </span></span></span><a href="http://www.jamesjean.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">James Jean</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, </span></span></span><a href="http://www.brianwood.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Brian Wood</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, </span></span></span><a href="http://www.devilpig.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Dave Johnson</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, etc.) has just released a new comic called </span></span></span><a href="http://www.dccomics.com/comics/?cm=9388"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">House of Mystery</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> with covers by </span></span></span><a href="http://www.sampaints.com/portfolio.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Sam Weber</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">.<br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">From Vertigo: "House of Mystery</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> focuses on five characters trapped in a supernatural bar, trying to solve the mystery of how and why they're imprisoned there. Each one has a terrible past they'd like to forget, and with no books, newspapers or TV allowed in the House, they face an eternity of boredom. But stories become the new currency, and fortunately, the House attracts only the finest storytellers." </span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The cool concept with this comic is that the regular writers (</span></span><a href="http://www.matthewsturges.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Matthew Sturges</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> and </span></span><a href="http://www.billwillingham.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Bill Willingham</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">) and artists (</span></span><a href="http://lambiek.net/artists/r/rossi_luca.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Luca Rossi</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> and </span></span><a href="http://www.seangordonmurphy.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Sean Murphy</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">) work on the "5 people stuck in the house" story while a guest artist comes in every issue and create the guests' tales.</span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">What makes this cover interesting is the unified split image. The ghostly visage of a woman's head pouring out of a dark house definitely hits the mystery nail on the head. But the blood drops surrounded by flies making her eyes creates a sinister air (and perfectly ties in the extremely f***ed up story inside). I also love the vintage font used for the title. I don't know why the T in the middle of Mystery is more ornate than the rest... but I love how it looks.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Check out the covers for #2 & #3:</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.dccomics.com/media/product/9/5/9587_400x600.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.dccomics.com/media/product/9/5/9587_400x600.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.dccomics.com/media/product/9/8/9804_400x600.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "></span></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.dccomics.com/media/product/9/8/9804_400x600.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px;" src="http://www.dccomics.com/media/product/9/8/9804_400x600.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /></div></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">With great covers and an equally great story concept, I'm definitely making this a monthly purchase.</span></span></span></span></div><div><div><br /></div></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-86299315381419450832008-05-14T12:00:00.005-04:002008-05-14T13:09:14.874-04:00Book 2, Original Art: Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0553349481&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SCsb2JNjIwI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/Ccmcc9fisBU/s400/anotherroadside.jpg" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold; font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">ANOTHER ROADSIDE ATTRACTION by </span><a href="http://www.rain.org/%7Eda5e/tom_robbins.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">Tom Robbins</span></a></span><br /></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><div style="text-align: center;"></div></span><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Published by <a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/bantamdell/index.html">Bantam Books</a>, Copyright 1991; Original Cover Design by <a href="http://www.pstoo.org/streaming/birthday.html">Les LePere</a></span></span></div><br /><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">"What if the Second Coming didn't quite come off as advertised? What if 'the Corpse' on display in that funky roadside zoo is really who they say it is--what does that portent for the future of western civilization? And what if a young clairvoyant named Amanda reestablishes the flea circus as popular entertainment and fertility worship as the principal religious form of our high-tech age? </span></span><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Another Roadside Attraction</span></span></em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> answers those questions and a lot more. It tells us, for example, what the sixties were truly all about, not by reporting on the psychedelic decade but by recreating it, from the inside out. In the process, this stunningly original seriocomic thriller eating a literary hotdog and eroding the borders of the mind."</span></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Support an Independent Book Store!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0553349481&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring=">CLICK HERE</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> to Purchase this Book!</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div> </div></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-3381570315886847392008-05-09T12:14:00.001-04:002008-05-09T13:26:05.420-04:00Book 1, Reimagined Art: Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo<div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">As a work of magical realism,</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> Pedro Paramo</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> places the "main character" Juan Preciado in a literal ghost town. He is the only living being within the village of Comala and yet he is able to interact with deceased townsfolk. We the readers learn about the seedy history of this small village and the evil deeds of Juan's absentee father, Pedro Paramo, through the stories of the dead.</span></span><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;font-size:13px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Thinking of </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">imagery</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> for this novella, my mind had gone to Mexico's </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Day_of_the_Dead"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Day of the Dead</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> celebration and their skeleton motifs (in decoration and dress). The thing I like about this holiday, in relation to the book, is the belief that it is the one day where the dead can visit the living more easily. </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">After a little poking around the web, I came across this wonderful piece <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">from artist </span></span><a href="http://www.laurielipton.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">Laurie Lipton</span></span></a></span> called "Family Reunion" </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">:</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.laurielipton.com/"><img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SCR2pkQge7I/AAAAAAAAACk/SqHrzZjcoOE/s400/lipton_familyreunion.jpg" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Used by Permission in thanks to Laurie Lipton</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Great, huh? What's more perfect for this novella than the dead at a funeral?</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I aged the image a little bit, giving it a sepia tone with pops and scratches, mimicking an old photograph.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/mkandarian/PrettyDeadTrees/photo?authkey=d35gC_qpvvA#5198410322077055890"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SCR2pUQge5I/AAAAAAAAACU/H0mUe4d5HUs/s800/paramo_detail1.jpg" /></a><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/mkandarian/PrettyDeadTrees/photo?authkey=d35gC_qpvvA#5198410322077055890"><br /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">What made this piece absolutely perfect for my needs was the "hidden" character. If you look real closely at the </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">top of the group, you can see one living person among the dead! I lightened this man ever so slightly to make him subtly stick out from the group.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/mkandarian/PrettyDeadTrees/photo?authkey=d35gC_qpvvA#5198410322077055906"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "></span></a><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/mkandarian/PrettyDeadTrees/photo?authkey=d35gC_qpvvA#5198410322077055906"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SCR2pUQge6I/AAAAAAAAACc/J5-8SR6uTaM/s800/paramo_detail2.jpg" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Putting together all of these elements and borrowing a layout choice from the original cover, I came out with this </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">final version:</span></span></span></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/mkandarian/PrettyDeadTrees/photo?authkey=d35gC_qpvvA#5198410322077055874"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/mkandarian/SCR2pUQge4I/AAAAAAAAACM/YcchDFwNGCc/s800/paramo_whole.jpg" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">My first reimagined cover: </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Pedro Paramo</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> by Juan Rulfo, translated by Margaret Sayers Peden. Again, I would like to graciously thank </span></span><a href="http://www.laurielipton.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Laurie Lipton</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> for the use of her artwork.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The floor is now open for comments, questions, suggestions, and critiques.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-91939382373035452822008-05-07T14:01:00.001-04:002009-04-28T10:09:28.144-04:00Book 1, Original Art: Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0802133908&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy4hDGWpdZV37qUGBKZpOuIxcN_C6Obco86QjzNmn_tL5n5g-O7OP-AJ6h730tMFUNCUoDOrGYbJIGnX9qlPfiHNt7hnM8AVLflpREHrMsE4YVuLFZF0kBcJ6j2SRZP82nO2VWnamw-YQ/s400/PEDROPARAMO.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:18px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">PEDRO PARAMO by </span></span><a href="http://www.clubcultura.com/clubliteratura/clubescritores/juanrulfo/index.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">Juan Rulfo</span></span></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">Translated by </span></span><a href="http://www.adelantesi.com/Archive/Old/peden-eng.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">Margaret Sayers Peden</span></span></a></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Published by </span><a href="http://www.groveatlantic.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Grove Press</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, Copyright 1994<br />Original Cover Design by ???</span><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">"Beseeched by his dying mother to locate his father, Pedro Paramo, whom they fled from years ago, Juan Preciado sets out for Comala. Comala is a town alive with whispers and shadows - a place seemingly populated only by memory and hallucinations. Built on the tyranny of the Paramo family, its barren and broken-down streets echo the voices of tormented spirits sharing the secrets of the past. First published to both critical and popular acclaim in 1955, Pedro Paramo represented a distinct break with earlier, largely "realist" novels from Latin America. Rulfo's entrancing mixture of vivid sensory images, violent passions, and inexplicable sorcery - a style that has come to be known as "magical realism" - has exerted a profound influence on subsequent Latin American writers."</span></span><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Support an Independent Book Store! </span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0802133908&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span></a></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://www.booksite.com/texis/scripts/oop/click_ord/showdetail.html?sid=3344&isbn=0802133908&music=&buyable=0&assoc_id=&spring="><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">CLICK HERE</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> to Purchase this Book!</span></span></span></span></div></div></div>Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5067071017414468775.post-29121221224454088682008-05-06T13:10:00.000-04:002008-05-07T13:32:51.652-04:00You CAN Judge a Book By Its Cover.As a self-taught designer, my schooling is based on the things I see around me: magazines, advertisements, posters, t-shirts, bumper stickers, billboards, television, film, postcards, album covers, theater, and… book covers.<br /><br />An avid reader, bookshelves have always surrounded me. Books have always been an important part of my life and I wholeheartedly agree (to summarize years and years of literary propaganda) <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Reading is Good</span>.<br /><br />I’m currently enrolled in Rhode Island School of Design’s Print Design Process + Production program where I will begin to learn how to take my own design ideas and properly incorporate them into professional looking products. Right now they look like printed-off-the-computer-that-I-got-for-free-with-my-computer products. In other words, a little crappy.<br /><br />My dream is that I will one day design book covers professionally. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Pretty Dead Trees</span> is my foray into this field. By regularly creating new designs and showcasing them for creative criticism, I hope to improve upon my skills.<br /><br /><br />This is how the project will work:<br /><br />1) I pick a book to read based off a ridiculous method of page counting and coin flipping.<br />2) I post a link or picture of that particular edition’s cover and summary of said book.<br />3) When I finish the book, I create my own cover design and post it here for your comments, questions, praises and ridicule.<br />4) Interspersed among these designs, I’ll be dropping some interesting links and commentary about various design (and cultural) things you might find interesting.<br /><br />So there you are, <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Pretty Dead Trees</span> in a rather large nutshell. Hopefully, this blog will be an interesting record of my progression as a designer and it might even be interesting… hey, anything can happen!<br /><br />Stay tuned!Pretty Dead Treeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01210495368319400909noreply@blogger.com0