I feel like I may have done this before but perhaps it needs to be said again, what is with all those bizarre cat books we have? Let's take a little voyage through the new ones shall we?
Tiny Cat is as you would expect, about very small cats. I do not know why these are a thing but apparently they are. I was wondering why it was so easy to get published but apparently the author has been a photographer for 20 years so whatever! It is pretty cute I will admit, but how many times can one read it? A lot apparently!
The second one is Cats are Capable of Mind Control which is actually only momentarily about cats. The rest is filled with inane trivia that I am to be honest, skeptical of its truth. Any story that starts with 'A woman/man who' with nothing else doesn't seem so fact checked... But if they are indeed true they are interesting facts indeed. Well, read more to see for yourself!
Finally, Cats are Weird and more Observations by one of our favourite cartoonists Jeffrey Brown! He also penned the Darth Vader and Son/Daughter and you can bet this will be full of wry humour too!
Happy reading!
As promised, here is my post about a talk that I went to last week. I know you've all been holding your breath to find out more.
So last Monday I attended a talk at Deakin Edge (formerly BMW Edge) in Federation Square that was run by the Wheeler Centre. An excellent organisation dedicated to all things discussion. So I digress! The keynote for the night was Jon Gray - also known as Gray318, an American based designer and oh my goodness some people have the best jobs. Imagine reading new manuscripts and then creating covers for them! I mean it wouldn't be easy of course, the sheer number of covers that he has to do (approximately 100 per year) and the number that he actually likes (approximately 4 maximum out of those) does have you scratching your head about how he can come up with so much content. I suppose it's like most creative things though - I cannot recall who told me about writing, people think they will only write when they have a burst of inspiration but often it's actually about practice and just honing your skills even on the days that you don't feel like it. It was refreshing and comforting to hear that he of all people had designer block! You may be thinking, who is this guy and why should I care but if you frequent our shop you may see some of his titles. It's also sort of funny but I don't know if you remember that scene in the Devil Wears Prada where Miranda talks about how the haute couture styles filter down, it's the same with book design as well!
I AM A GENIUS JUST AS I WAS STANDING HERE I REALISED THAT THE GERMAN CHARACTER IN PITCH PERFECT TWO IS THE SAME ACTOR IN THAT DANISH SHOW BORGEN - KATRINE!! THIS IS INCREDIBLE. It's Birgitte Hjort Sørensen just FYI.
But back to what I was actually talking about, the interviewer facilitator for the event was Australian designer called W.H Chong and you will ddefinitely know his covers! Someone else cool who I think found out about was Jamie Keenan. If you're interested in Aussie book covers (you know I always love Allison Colpoys) then check out Australian Book Designers Association ABDA here!
Some of Jon Gray's most famous covers (among many)
W.H Chong covers
And just because here's a little Jamie Keenan for you
Recently, and by recently I mean yesterday, I went to a local gig by one of my favourite bands (Oh Pep! if you're wondering and if you've been in store on a day that I'm working you're likely to have heard them too!) who are from Melbourne. It must be pretty cool to play to your hometown after months of touring. But anyway, I digress. Before they began I saw some of the merchandise including a vinyl of their beautiful record, of course I could just buy the CD not to mention having it already on iTunes, a vinyl copy just seemed a bit unnecessary. So I thought that I'd mull over it during the performance to see if I really wanted it. Well the answer was yes. Not to flood you with my love for them but sometimes it is worth it to buy a piece of something you really love! For one their lyrics are simply sublime and having the album cover open up to two leaves with all the lyric inside is really lovely. And secondly, we met them and they signed it for me! Having a chat too with someone whose work you like is quite cool.
But how does this relate to books I hear you ask? Well, much like music (it is often lyrical thus word related) books can elicit that same feeling of fangirling. I'm not really a fan (haha) of that phrase but I'm yet to find a suitable alternative. I'll let you know when I do... There's just a very excitable feeling I have whenever I meet an author that I enjoy. If you must know I was probably a little too enthusiastic when I got to meet Maureen McCarthy when I was back in school but that was probably okay because it made up for the lack of large attendance from other students (how could they?!). You listening to them speak, unraveling their train of thought in creating the story, the characters and scenery and then you saunter up to them at the child sized desk ready with a pen in hand. I felt a bit embarrassed because some of my books (five of them) were in pretty messy condition not to mention, one was an uncorrected reading copy proof (bookshop perks!). But I realised that I had no shame regarding this and took a photo anyway ;)
That was only half an hour for me but it's nice to look back on my book and see my name written in it by the same hand that wrote my favourite stories! I definitely want to start going to more author events and have more fangirling moments. And I encourage you to do the same! Were they what you expected? In a good or bad way? Do they have ugly hand writing in real life? So many questions!
The City of Literature Website (click the image) is a great place to start looking for events as is the Wheeler Centre here.
In other news, I'm going to a talk this week about book cover design but you'll have to wait until next week to hear about that...
Spring has sprung! That is incredibly cliched and for that I am sorry. But not that sorry because the change in the calendar officially marks the start of warmer weather (I hope anyway). Not that I don't like winter, I am a winter baby after all, but I will be honest and say that I think I'm running out of outfits...
Hmm what does spring change for you? For one it does mean that you can SIT OUTSIDE and read! Although you have to contend with bees and other grotesque insects, sorry if you're a bug lover. I just worry that a swarm will attack me. So, for this post I'll list some of my picks where you can have a good public peruse of a book.
1. Library Lawns
State Library, University of Melbourne's (many I'm sure) libraries and my absolute new favourite Library at the Dock in Docklands. It is absolutely stunning. I have a weird thing about wood and concrete and metal and books of course. It's alovely communal sort of area away from the buzz of the main CBD. The water is calming too but don't drop your book in!
2. Art Galleries
Of course how could you talk about places to read without mentioning my favourite NGV - either the Great Hall or Sculpture Gardens out the back. Convivial and comforting what's not to love? Similarly and in close proximity are the grassy areas between the Arts Centre and Hamer Hall (think where the Sunday Market is usually held). And if you're looking for somewhere slightly more secluded, just take a wander to the back of Hamer Hall - it's sort of like a little hill but quiet and a sunny spot (when it's sunny of course).If you want to feel like you're reading on the set of a dystopian wasteland (kind of) then the ACCC forecourt is pretty cool. Maybe to complement an angsty book?
3. Cafes
There is no shame in eating alone especially when you have a good book with you! I have just been alerted to the existence of a cafe in Heidelberg West that sells only scones. ONLY SCONES! Um yes please! It's called Jam and Cream and I have never been but it is definitely on my list. East Ivy in East Ivanhoe also has a nice vibe for chilling out and reading whatever you please.
4. The Museum
I may be a bit of a nerd (that was never in dispute I don't think) but I love just hanging out at the museum. Exhibition building is stunning and the museum itself is surrounded by a number of gardens - from the rainforest part at the back to the Indigenous section that I'm pretty sure has eels in it... Carlton Gardens is conveniently nearby.Beautiful! And you can always go and stuff your face with Italian food when you're done in Lygon Street :) Although my favourite ice-cream place has since closed down. *quietly crying*
5. Federation Square
Is this a cliche again? Maybe, but I love it or the banks of the Yarra when you only have a few moments to wait or read. What else can I say? They do have some pretty cool installations at times.
Where do you like to read? I'd love to know!
