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Books

Great Literary Characters Inspired by Real Famous People

By Emily Temple on

This week will see the release of a book we’re pretty excited about: Carlene Bauer’s Frances and Bernard, a novel inspired by the relationship between Flannery O’Connor and Robert Lowell. After the jump, we’ve put together a list of some other great novels with characters inspired by real life people that have caught the cultural consciousness — excepting works that are primarily autobiographical, and focusing on books that are not just historical fiction, but true adaptations (names are changed!) of people and events. Read through our list after the jump, and if we missed your favorite in this category, be sure to add it on in the comments. … Read More

Books

The Best-Selling Books in 10 Countries Around the World

By Emily Temple on

We know what we’re reading in America, but what about the rest of the world? Next week, Indonesian writer Andrea Hirata’s first novel The Rainbow Troops, will be published in English for the first time. The novel, which with over five million copies sold is Indonesia’s best-selling book of all time, got us thinking about the books topping the charts around the world — that we may have never even heard of. After the jump, some potentially surprising — or just illuminating — best-sellers from India to the UK. Let us know your thoughts in the comments. … Read More

Art

Gorgeous Vintage Magazines Published by Soviet Exiles

By Emily Temple on

Convenient though they may be, the more e-readers and tablets we collect, the more we appreciate the fine design work and craftsmanship that went into the printed products of old — especially those from other countries, which seem ever strange and fresh to our eyes. This week, Christopher King at MobyLives pointed us towards Russians Without Russia, an archive created by designer Fiodor Sumkin, who has collected and scanned a series of newspapers and magazines published by Soviet exiles in Paris, Berlin, Harbin, and Constantinople in the ’20s and ’30s. A little weird and a lot beautiful, if these don’t have you hunting around for an indie journal instead of that iPad, we don’t know what will. Check out a few of our favorites after the jump, and then head straight over to the Russians Without Russia archive for more. … Read More

Pop Culture

The Intriguing Passports of 20 Famous Artists and Writers

By Emily Temple on

Like business cards, passports can say a lot about a person — where they’ve been, where they’re going, and well, how photogenic they are under the worst conditions. This week, we caught a glimpse of René Magritte’s passport (and pipe!), and so we decided to check out the legal papers of a few more of our favorite artists, from Virginia Woolf to Walt… Read More

Architecture

11 of the Most Beautiful Museum Libraries in the World

By Emily Temple on

We’ve shown you many beautiful libraries from around the world, and we’ve shown you some of the most fantastic museums, as well — so what about gorgeous museum libraries? Well, because many museum libraries are strictly utilitarian, meant for easy browsing and not necessarily planned to be easy on the eyes. That said, some standouts manage to be both, and since we’re always on the lookout for lovely architecture, preferably lovely architecture that incorporates books, we thought we’d round a few of them up for you here. After the jump, check out 11 of the most beautiful museum libraries from around the world, and as ever, let us know if we missed your favorite in the comments. … Read More

Art

Laura Callaghan's Intricate Illustrations of Cool, Bookish Girls

By Emily Temple on

For the most part, the girls Laura Callaghan draws are bookish metalheads, with beautifully bushy eyebrows and a penchant for patterns. Which makes them, dare we say, our kind of girls. Callaghan’s work, which we recently spotted over at It’s Nice That, is adorable and disturbing in equal measure, like an uneasy truce between sisters. She creates her cheeky illustrations and beautifully intricate patterns with watercolor, indian ink and “the smallest pens I can get my hands on,” which allow for each picture to be stuffed with tiny details that reward the close observer. After the jump, check out a few of our favorites of Callaghan’s work, and then be sure to head on over to her website for much more. … Read More

Books

Boozy, Graphic Book Covers for Bukowski's Italian Backlist

By Emily Temple on

In January, rock star graphic designer Emiliano Ponzi was awarded a gold medal at the Society of Illustrators New York for his book covers for the Italian language editions of Charles Bukowski’s backlist, published by Feltrinelli. The covers, which we spotted over at It’s Nice That, embody the infamous writer’s work to a T — they’re slightly garish, winkingly vulgar, uninhibited and generally awesome. Check them out after the jump, and then be sure to head on over to Ponzi’s website to see much more of his great work. … Read More

Books

10 New Must-Reads for February

By Emily Temple on

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s getting cold out there. February is our traditional hibernation time, so as far as we’re concerned, for the next month we’ll be eschewing nightlife and staying inside with various hot beverages and various room-temperature books. This month, we’re looking forward to blistering essays, masterful short stories, incredible debut novels, and a posthumous book from Maurice Sendak. Sounds good right? But as we all know, February’s a short month, so you’d better get cracking. Let us know what you’re most excited to read over the next few weeks in the comments. … Read More

Photography

The Everyday Lives of Furries at Home

By Emily Temple on

Though they might not always like to admit it, furries are people too. The geeky subculture known as “furry fandom” has gotten a lot of press over the years — most of it related to the sexual aspects of some parts of the culture. But British photographer Tom Broadbent knows that for all their apparent weirdness, furries are a lot more like us than we may imagine. In his ongoing series At Home With the Furries, which we recently spotted over at Feature Shoot, Broadbent captures some of these “furries” at home, engaging in the same mundane tasks we’re all familiar with — just a little bit more fuzzily. After the jump, check out a few of our favorites from Broadbent’s series, and then be sure to head on over to his website to see the rest, as well as much more of his work. … Read More

Books

10 of the Most Bizarre Fairy Tale Adaptations

By Emily Temple on

Today sees the release of Catherynne M. Valente’s Six-Gun Snow White, a novella that sets the classic tale of Snow White in the Old West — a trick we’ve never quite seen before. To celebrate the book, and to suggest a little extra reading to those who are excited about it, we’ve chosen ten bizarre, out-there literary adaptations of fairy tales (which, let’s be honest, started out pretty strange in the first place) to add to your library. Maybe not your kids’ libraries, though. After the jump, ten of the strangest, best fairy tale reinterpretations we’ve ever read — and as always, if we missed your favorite, add it to our list in the comments. … Read More