Secret Still

I read a lot. Like to the point where the people around me know not to take me into a bookstore, because I will spend too much without blinking an eye, and then there’s the inevitable cold truth stage where I feel sick for having spent that much. Then I’m reading and everything is ok…until I finish all those books. I am the reading equivalent of the fat guy with indigestion and diabetes. All that is just to say that I’m as qualified as the next guy to say “this is a good looking book.” Well, in the case of Studio8 Design’s Wonders of the Solar System, I can say that “this is a good looking book.” Well organized, perfect design, great information architecture, and full of cool information. If you don’t think that our solar system is cool, then you came to the wrong place. The wrong place being this solar system. I was gonna make a “go back to the Horsehead Nebula” joke, but you know what? I’m not gonna bother. Space is fucking rad, including the Horsehead Nebula. This book just proves that it can be even better when presented with some beautiful design to back it up. Studio8 Design, that is a good looking book, and I’ll be sure to buy it if I can ever convince my friends to let go into a bookstore again.

Studio8 Design

Got an e-mail this morning from long-standing Secret Still favorite Christopher David Ryan. It seems that he’s having a little sale on all his books and prints at his store My Little Underground; just trying to clear out some of the old stock, you know how it is. What does this mean to you? $5 books and $25-$35 prints, that’s what. Time to sell a little more blood, and bring some beauty into your life. I know you’re still dizzy from the last time, but we’re trying to make a better world here. Sure, you could just get a job to pay for things, but then you wouldn’t have any time to really enjoy all your new books and prints. Plus, you get a free cookie when you give blood. Cookies and art, it doesn’t get much better than that. Now roll up your sleeve.

Christopher David Ryan

Illustrator Katie Kirk has some killer vector graphics in her stash. But I’m gonna skip most of those for now to point you to a kids book that she made titled Eli, no! The book follows the mischievous antics of a dog named Eli who is far too familiar with the word “No”. He’s a good dog, but sometimes he’s bad. Katie has all the pages of the book up on her Flickr site, and they are fantastic. Each page is covered in simple, geometric illustrations that look like pared down Charley Harper. And don’t worry, there’s a happy ending for Eli. As someone who loves children’s books, I give this one my seal of approval. That is a big deal, internet.

Katie’s Flickr

You should also check her portfolio site.

John Martz aka Robot Johnny has posted a project to his Flickr site wherein he drew every single person from his mother’s 1968 yearbook. Martz is already well know for his illustrative talent, but this project is just a huge exercise in discipline and skill. I would’ve gotten about 3 pages in and everyone would’ve started looking exactly the same, and then at five pages I would’ve quit to go skate. Distilling people down to such basic features is nowhere near as easy as you might think, but Martz has it down pat. I wonder where his mother went to highschool that there were so many blondes.

Check out the Flickr set and then buy the book.

All of you Neil Gaiman fans out there, and those who haven’t yet tried him out, can no smile a little wider. His publishers have released a free, online copy of his best-selling novel American Gods for the entire planet to download. It’s sort of a test to see if free copies online will translate into more people buying physical copies. So, read it, and if you like it, go buy it. It’s that simple. I’ve already worn through two copies so I appreciate the online version as something I can’t drop in the bathtub; not without electrocuting myself anyway. I can think of worse ways to die.

American Gods - Online version

Neil Gaiman

In my daily design sojourn I came across this flickr photoset featuring images from the Giant Golden Book of Biology with illustrations by Charley Harper, which combines my love of kid’s books with great illustration. I’ve never met a Harper image I didn’t love, and these are no exception. If you’re ever at a lack of ideas for gifts to buy me, any Charley Harper illustrated book is a winner. I never get tired of looking at them.

Giant Golden Book of Biology

I came up with almost nothing today while trolling for art-booty, but I did hit upon on gem: Shaun Tan. Tan’s work is everything that I like about illustrated children’s books. There’s innovative text, imagery that borders on visual hyperbole, simple stories with big meanings, and a good rhythm to the whole book. I’ve mentioned before that my favorite books are children’s books, not because I shun contemplation, but because I don’t like messages being dressed up. I like books that want to entertain you and share a little joy. Even the sadder children’s books just want to hold your hand. Irvine Welsh is great, but his books would break my hand rather than holding it. The fact that Tan writes and illustrates his books makes him a powerhouse as far as I’m concerned. Looking at some of his other paintings and murals I see that I’m proven right.

Shaun Tan

Fuckin’-A. One of my favorite authors and certainly one of this century’s only great comedic writers, Terry Pratchett, issued a statement this morning that he has a rare form of early onset Alzheimer’s. He’s says he’s still got a couple more novels in him, but he has to start planning ahead and whatnot. In my most accomplished verbiage: this blows. Read his letter.

Note: that picture of the The Discworld is actually a cake. A CAKE!

Terry Pratchett has Alzheimer’s

217 volumes of a wooden library of “books” made in the early 1800’s are on display in Alnarp, Sweden. Each “book” is about a specific species of tree, but about is not quite the right word. In fact the covers of each book are made from the wood of each specific tree and the spines from the bark including the lichen and fungus that grow on that bark. The inside contains dried leaves, dried flowers, fruits, seedlings, a piece of root, cut branches, and seeds. The inside of the spine contains a written description of the tree and its uses. There’s more information as well as some amazing photos on this site from Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

The Wooden Library in Alnarp

I’m pretty sure that the best part about having a kid, better than all the love and milestones and blah blah blah, will be getting to buy and read kids books. I love kids books. Almost as much as I love cake. Kids mean more cake, too. Basically kids are the answer to happiness for me but not in a loving them way, more in a getting what I want way. The internet, in an obvious attempt to stop me from reproducing, has come up with a new site called LookyBook. The site features hundreds of children’s picture books from cover to cover, both new and old, making it easy for parents to decide which books they’d like to get for their child. It comes with all of the usual bells and whistles including a favorites list (bookshelf), sharing, purchasing (Amazon and Barnes & Noble), as well as embedding the flash book on a website (you might have noticed). It’s nice to know that the internet wants to keep me from having kids. I’m warning it though, I’ll replace The Girl’s pills with aspirin if there isn’t a free cake delivery site up and running in the next few months. Consider yourself warned.

LookyBook