Monday, November 9, 2009

Tuesday Tomorrow

Under the Dome by Stephen King
Published by: Scribner
Publication Date: November 10th, 2009
Format: Hardcover, 1088 Pages
To Buy

Official patter:
"On an entirely normal, beautiful fall day in Chester's Mill, Maine, the town is inexplicably and suddenly sealed off from the rest of the world by an invisible force field. Planes crash into it and fall from the sky in flaming wreckage, a gardener's hand is severed as "the dome" comes down on it, people running errands in the neighboring town are divided from their families, and cars explode on impact. No one can fathom what this barrier is, where it came from, and when — or if — it will go away.Dale Barbara, Iraq vet and now a short-order cook, finds himself teamed with a few intrepid citizens — town newspaper owner Julia Shumway, a physician's assistant at the hospital, a select-woman, and three brave kids. Against them stands Big Jim Rennie, a politician who will stop at nothing — even murder — to hold the reins of power, and his son, who is keeping a horrible secret in a dark pantry. But their main adversary is the Dome itself. Because time isn't just short. It's running out."

Sure everyone's excited about the whole, Stephen King might have finally written a book to best The Stand (at least in length). Personally, as a graphic designer, I find the whole concept of the cover fascinating. Not only was Scribner willing to sink a ton of money into it, but it was also all from Stephen King's own wishes! A publisher doing the bidding of an author? How novel... but then again, if you're Stephen King... To perfectly create the town he created within the dome of their doom the cover had almost as much work done on it as a big blockbuster movie! From using photos to illustration to computer rendering to CGI, plus we must not forget the "big reveal," this cover has generated a lot of buzz. I think it turned out pretty well, I do like the full panorama going on.

Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays by Zadie Smith
Published by: Penguin Press
Publication Date: November 10th, 2009
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A sparkling collection of Zadie Smith's nonfiction over the past decade.

Zadie Smith brings to her essays all of the curiosity, intellectual rigor, and sharp humor that have attracted so many readers to her fiction, and the result is a collection that is nothing short of extraordinary.

Split into four sections-"Reading," "Being," "Seeing," and "Feeling"-Changing My Mind invites readers to witness the world from Zadie Smith's unique vantage. Smith casts her acute eye over material both personal and cultural, with wonderfully engaging essays-some published here for the first time-on diverse topics including literature, movies, going to the Oscars, British comedy, family, feminism, Obama, Katharine Hepburn, and Anna Magnani.

In her investigations Smith also reveals much of herself. Her literary criticism shares the wealth of her experiences as a reader and exposes the tremendous influence diverse writers-E. M. Forster, Zora Neale Hurston, George Eliot, and others-have had on her writing life and her self-understanding. Smith also speaks directly to writers as a craftsman, offering precious practical lessons on process. Here and throughout, readers will learn of the wide-ranging experiences-in novels, travel, philosophy, politics, and beyond-that have nourished Smith's rich life of the mind. Her probing analysis offers tremendous food for thought, encouraging readers to attend to the slippery questions of identity, art, love, and vocation that so often go neglected.

Changing My Mind announces Zadie Smith as one of our most important contemporary essayists, a writer with the rare ability to turn the world on its side with both fact and fiction. Changing My Mind is a gift to readers, writers, and all who want to look at life more expansively."

Sometimes you just feel in the mood for some reading that's not a novel with an elaborate plot but a nice little article. But on top of that, it's sometimes such a hassle to find new writers. So what could be better than a writer you already know and love releasing exactly what you were craving? Nothing! Zadie Smith, the celebrated author of White Teeth has often contributed articles and other writing to the world of literature, but now they're all collected in one place. Ah convenience! Plus I love how the cover is designed to integrate into your "Zadie Smith Section" of your library, being reminiscent of the On Beauty cover. I love consistency...

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