A fortunate find
A fortunate find
In a pile of abandoned books at the bottom of a flight of stairs, I found these two beauties. Lorna Doone had a dust jacket on, so I didn’t see the amazing design on the cover at first, nor that the books had the same publishers, which must have had a rocking design department in the 1950s.
Love the endpapers too. I’m going to be keeping my eyes out for more of these – they’ll look amazing in a row on a shelf.
alex sunday
what a find!
alex sunday
what a find!
Lara Brehm
wow! lovely! Lorna Doone reminds me of your red sevilla rock 🙂 have a nice day!
Lara Brehm
wow! lovely! Lorna Doone reminds me of your red sevilla rock 🙂 have a nice day!
angeltreats
Gorgeous, you lucky thing! Modern books are just not as pretty 🙁
julochka
wow! those are great! i’ve found a few of late as well, but more art deco and not as repeating in pattern as these. i’ll have to take some pix. and you’re right, they look great on the shelf together and they’re always tucked away in the 10 kroner boxes. 🙂 i love that nobody else has figured out what treasures they are!
Christina Lowry
I can’t even imagine how book shops would have looked when these were printed, but I dare say these still would have been the funkiest ones on the shelf! Great find! 🙂
the whole half
wow! books with lovely patterns abandoned at the home of a textile designer…if that isn’t fate, i don’t know what is 😉
DoJo
Great designs, I agree! Now you gotta read the books. By the way, do you know that you are related – just ever so remotely – to RD Blackmore? Interesting huh?
orange you lucky!
Oooooh… I want to do some patterns with horses!
These two look like they were meant to be together on the shelf:)
Jesse
I have the Lorna Doone too (I don’t think it came with a dust jacket, found it at Cafda just like that). Tried to read it, but couldn’t actually finish it, so I’ve been meaning to take it to the bookbinding people to turn into a sketchbook!
Liz Cox
Wow – gorgeous books! Thought you might like this link: http://www.uppercasegallery.ca/uppercase-journal/2009/4/15/penguins-cross-the-pond.html which has some other awesome patterned book covers from Penguin. They don’t make them like they used to! Liz
Anonymous
This post had me heading straight to the shelf where my poetry books live, and yes, sure enough, also published by Dent, and with an equally attractive cover and endpapers, is “The Book of Verse for Children” given to me and my sisters by my Grandma in 1962. The design has the same two colour, one dark one light, closely arranged shapes – in this case a strange little bearded man in three different positions: standing on his head, upright and swallowing what looks like an eel, and sitting holding a knife and fork, with a goose coming out of his mouth! (I have just realised that these are images taken from the poem “You are old Father William” by Lewis Carroll, which is included in the book.)
I would send you a picture, but I have no access to a digital camera at the moment.
Thank you for making me look at an old treasure with new eyes!
Helen
Heather Moore
Thanks for that great link, Liz. I think I may go and hunt for more lovely books in bookshops tomorrow.
Loved your description of your bookshelves Helen! The Lewis Carroll images sound fantastic.
The nice thing about this post for me is that it jogged my memory about a book cover design I’m supposed to pitch for on 20 April, which I’d totally forgotten! Oops!
Oh, and I must find out more about that Blackmore connection, DoJo (aka Mom)! Next time we meet, ok?
Hollabee
What a great find. Never understand how people can part with such beautiful things… Lucky you!
Pattern and Perspective
Your 4/20 meeting — there was a reason then these landed in your lap. They are beautiful. I love older books, but I especially love the ones that find their way into my heart. (ie my third impression of To Kill A Mockingbird – I do love the book & the movie so)
Cicada Studio
These almost look like they could’ve been designed by you! Nice, unexpected find.
Momma Bear
such a good eye. perhaps why I dig your stuff. can’t wait until you sell yardage cause i want to recover my dinig room chairs.
take care!!
alisha
truly amazing find! love.