Paperback 538: Nightmare Alley / William Lindsay Gresham (Signet 1326)

 1956, Frank, James Avati, Lingerie, New York Herald-Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Signet, Smoking, William Lindsay Gresham  Comments Off
Jun 152012
 
Paperback 538: Signet 1326 (4th ptg, 1956)

Title: Nightmare Alley
Author: William Lindsay Gresham
Cover artist: James Avati

Yours for: $21



Sig1326.NightAlley
Best things about this cover:

  • A noir classic. Early editions (Signets, like this one) are pretty rare. New York Review of Books reissued this book a couple years ago.
  • "Nightmare Alley, or The Carny's Ennui"
  • "I'm so ashamed that Eddie Munster has to see me in this get-up."
  • Not just "frank"—"Brutally Frank!" This book is so frank, it hurts my eyeballs.
  • No lie, I love her outfit. Pants could be a little lower-waisted, but the bra is a total win.




Sig1326bc.NightAlley

Best things about this back cover:

Ooh, the rarely seen "Double Frank" paperback. Nice. Whoa, triple ... though that SF Chronicle quote is really just a callback of the front cover copy.

William Lindsay Gresham is not happy with how this photo session is going.
"Magician."


Page 123~

Under that brilliant stare she began to simper and found it difficult to control her hands.

This explains why she's looking away from him and anchoring her hands on the edge of the, let's say, dunk tank.

~RP

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Tumblr]

Paperback 527: Arch of Triumph / Erich Maria Remarque (Signet S796)

 1950, alcohol, Erich Maria Remarque, france, James Avati, Signet, Smoking  Comments Off
May 112012
 
Paperback 527: Signet S796 (1st ptg, 1950)

Title: Arch of Triumph
Author: Erich Maria Remarque
Cover artist: James Avati

Yours for: $6

Sig796.Arch
Best things about this cover:
  • Now *this* is what an Avati cover typically looks like. A set piece. Still life with moody people. There's something almost religious about the tone of the paintings. This one is a very miniature Last Supper, if the Last Supper had consisted of wine, coffee, cigarettes, moody introspection, and distant staring.
  • Figures even have very faint haloes of light—grime-colored haloes.
  • What's happening beneath the table? Is he on pillows? Sitting crosslegged? Perspective seems slightly off to me.


Sig796bc.Arch

Best things about this back cover:
  • NOBODY CROSSES ERICH MARIA REMARQUE! NOBODY!
  • ERICH MARIA REMARQUE WILL HAVE HIS REVENGE!
  • ERICH MARIA REMARQUE CAN READ YOUR MIND!
  • Seriously, that is one freaky author photo.

Page 123~

He got up and began to dress. One must remain independent. Everything began with small dependencies. One did not notice them much. And suddenly one was entangled in the net of habit. Habit for which many names existed—love was one of them. One should not grow accustomed to anything. Not even to a body.

Not a fan of the long sentences. I like. I'm mentally underlining "entangled in the net of habit," which is a useful and elegant metaphor.

~RP

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Tumblr]

Paperback 524: The Farmers Hotel / John O’Hara (Bantam A2203)

 1960, alcohol, Bantam, Black people, Hall of Fame, James Avati, John O'Hara, Military, Motel, New York Times, Staircase  Comments Off
May 062012
 
Paperback 524: Bantam A2203 (4th ptg [1st thus], 1960)

Title: The Farmers Hotel
Author: John O'Hara
Cover artist: [James Avati]

Yours for: $10

Bant2203.Farm
Best things about this cover:
  • I love this cover. Specifically, I love the use of text—generously sized and spaced, in gorgeous contrasting white (like the snow it's describing), in a 1/2-cover sized block that abruptly Stops and leaves the lower half quiet as 3am. 
  • James Avati is best known for doing Every Damn Cover for Signet for several years, but this is up there with my favorite work of his. I clearly need a "Sexy Staircase" or "Woman Ascending a Staircase" or "Staircase Puts Woman's Ass at Man's Eye-Level" tag. This is not the first. 
  • I love how the painting is so still (very Avati), and yet there is subtle motion in both him (rounding the corner) and her (slowly ascending, with a slight but meaningful over-the-shoulder glance).
  • The dress is the thing. Magenta pops against the monochromatic brown background, as well as against the creamy V of her upper back. So, to sum up, Love.



Bant2203bc.Farm

Best things about this back cover:
  • Less love, though this does make me want to read the book.
  • This is the second version of this book that I've featured on this blog.
  • "Jerry Mayo and the Pickwick Sisters" would be a Great band name.

Page 23~ (book is only 119pp. long)

The quiet of the room was almost total, but not peaceful.

~RP

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Tumblr]

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