book pickings

a visual way to explore the brain pickings book archive :: otlet's shelf theme :: back to brain pickings

CREATIVITY :: DESIGN :: SCIENCE :: HISTORY :: PSYCHOLOGY :: ART

illustration

  1. The Mighty Lalouche Matthew Olshan & Sophie Blackall What Parisian boxing from the early 1900s has to do with contemporary technoparanoia about robots replacing us – a heartening underdog story illustrated by the inimitable Sophie Blackall

    The Mighty Lalouche

    Matthew Olshan & Sophie Blackall

    What Parisian boxing from the early 1900s has to do with contemporary technoparanoia about robots replacing us – a heartening underdog story illustrated by the inimitable Sophie Blackall
  2. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: Illustrations by Michael Sieben L. Frank Baum “Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable.” So great: Skateboard graphic artist Michael Sieben reimagines The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

    The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: Illustrations by Michael Sieben

    L. Frank Baum

    “Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable.”

    So great: Skateboard graphic artist Michael Sieben reimagines The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
  3. All the Buildings in New York James Gulliver Hancock “It is the other ordinary buildings, spilling with hectic daily life, that hold real New York life and passion.” All the buildings in New York, illustrated.

    All the Buildings in New York

    James Gulliver Hancock

    “It is the other ordinary buildings, spilling with hectic daily life, that hold real New York life and passion.” All the buildings in New York, illustrated.
  4. The Bed Book Sylvia Plath “Most Beds are Beds for sleeping and resting, but the best Beds are much more interesting!” Sylvia Plath’s vintage verses about unusual beds, originally written for her own children, illustrated by the great Quentin Blake in this rare British first edition:

    The Bed Book

    Sylvia Plath

    “Most Beds are Beds for sleeping and resting, but the best Beds are much more interesting!”

    Sylvia Plath’s vintage verses about unusual beds, originally written for her own children, illustrated by the great Quentin Blake in this rare British first edition:
  5. The It-Doesn’t-Matter Suit Sylvia Plath Sylvia Plath’s little-known and lovely vintage children’s book, a charming cautionary tale about the perils of self-consciousness, with wonderful illustrations.

    The It-Doesn’t-Matter Suit

    Sylvia Plath

    Sylvia Plath’s little-known and lovely vintage children’s book, a charming cautionary tale about the perils of self-consciousness, with wonderful illustrations.
  6. Tender Buttons: Objects Gertrude Stein “A feather is trimmed, it is trimmed by the light and the bug and the post, it is trimmed by little leaning and by all sorts of mounted reserves and loud volumes…” A book is a book is a book… unless it’s a BOOK. Gertrude Stein’s vintage verses about objets, gloriously illustrated by artist Lisa Congdon.

    Tender Buttons: Objects

    Gertrude Stein

    “A feather is trimmed, it is trimmed by the light and the bug and the post, it is trimmed by little leaning and by all sorts of mounted reserves and loud volumes…”

    A book is a book is a book… unless it’s a BOOK. Gertrude Stein’s vintage verses about objets, gloriously illustrated by artist Lisa Congdon.
  7. Alice B. Toklas Cookbook Alice B. Toklas A culinary biography of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas’s love and life, full of delicious and gorgeously illustrated recipes:

    Alice B. Toklas Cookbook

    Alice B. Toklas

    A culinary biography of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas’s love and life, full of delicious and gorgeously illustrated recipes:
  8. A Map of the World: The World According to Illustrators and Storytellers “Cartography can be an incredible form of escapism, as maps act as proxies for experiences.” A collection of more than 500 maps by artists, illustrators, and designers representing the creative zeitgeist of modern cartography around the world.

    A Map of the World: The World According to Illustrators and Storytellers

    “Cartography can be an incredible form of escapism, as maps act as proxies for experiences.”

    A collection of more than 500 maps by artists, illustrators, and designers representing the creative zeitgeist of modern cartography around the world.
  9. The War of the Worlds (illustrated by Edward Gorey) H.G. Wells Two classic masters of the macabre and wonderful, together.

    The War of the Worlds (illustrated by Edward Gorey)

    H.G. Wells

    Two classic masters of the macabre and wonderful, together.
  10. Our Friend The Atom Heinz Haber Vintage science illustrations by Disney, extolling the virtues of nuclear power

    Our Friend The Atom

    Heinz Haber

    Vintage science illustrations by Disney, extolling the virtues of nuclear power
  11. How People Earn and Use Money Muriel Stanek Vibrant vintage illustrated guide from the golden age of consumer culture

    How People Earn and Use Money

    Muriel Stanek

    Vibrant vintage illustrated guide from the golden age of consumer culture
  12. Pride and Prejudice (Penguin Drop Caps) Jane Austen Jessica Hische’s stunning illustrated drop cap covers of literary classics. More at the link.

    Pride and Prejudice (Penguin Drop Caps)

    Jane Austen

    Jessica Hische’s stunning illustrated drop cap covers of literary classics. More at the link.
  13. Song Reader Beck “Each era finds something new to return to; things that seemed out of date have a way of coming back in new forms, and revealing aspects of themselves we might not have noticed before.” Beck revives the romance of sheet music with 26 illustrated songs:

    Song Reader

    Beck

    “Each era finds something new to return to; things that seemed out of date have a way of coming back in new forms, and revealing aspects of themselves we might not have noticed before.”

    Beck revives the romance of sheet music with 26 illustrated songs:
  14. Waterloo & Trafalgar Olivier Tallic A thoughtful, minimalist Cold War allegory that tells the story of two characters who watch each other observantly through the seasons across the narrow walls that separate them. As they move between day and night, glued to their binoculars and brimming with suspicion over even the most mundane of activities, they stubbornly refuse to bridge the gap between them — until, one day, a snail shows up, followed by a bird and then, suddenly, they find themselves face to face, realizing that having differences doesn’t mean they have to be foes. Tallec’s stunning, expressive duotone illustrations capture the intricate frictions of passive-aggressive conflict with equal parts wit, poignancy, and contained eloquence. One of the best children’s books of 2012 – read on for the rest:

    Waterloo & Trafalgar

    Olivier Tallic

    A thoughtful, minimalist Cold War allegory that tells the story of two characters who watch each other observantly through the seasons across the narrow walls that separate them. As they move between day and night, glued to their binoculars and brimming with suspicion over even the most mundane of activities, they stubbornly refuse to bridge the gap between them — until, one day, a snail shows up, followed by a bird and then, suddenly, they find themselves face to face, realizing that having differences doesn’t mean they have to be foes.

    Tallec’s stunning, expressive duotone illustrations capture the intricate frictions of passive-aggressive conflict with equal parts wit, poignancy, and contained eloquence.

    One of the best children’s books of 2012 – read on for the rest:
  15. The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume 2 Joseph Gordon-Levitt A delightful compilation of 62 tender, poignant, beautiful micro-narratives selected from nearly 15,000 submissions. All the stories are made collaboratively — a writer would submit a story to the site, then an artist who likes it would illustrate it, or vice-versa, then others would join in and remix the stories and artwork.

    The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories: Volume 2

    Joseph Gordon-Levitt

    A delightful compilation of 62 tender, poignant, beautiful micro-narratives selected from nearly 15,000 submissions. All the stories are made collaboratively — a writer would submit a story to the site, then an artist who likes it would illustrate it, or vice-versa, then others would join in and remix the stories and artwork.
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