Friday Faceoff – I’m so dizzy… #Brainfluffbookblog #FridayFaceoffdizzycovers

This meme was started by Books by Proxy, whose fabulous idea was to compare UK and US book covers and decide which is we prefer. This meme is being nurtured by Lynn’s Book Blog and this week we are featuring covers with dizzying images. I’ve selected Dead Astronauts – Book 2 of the Bourne series by Jeff VanderMeer.

Fourth Estate, December 2019

This edition was produced by Fourth Estate in December 2019 and it’s certainly eye-catching. And has the sense of surrealism and power that runs through VanderMeer’s writing. I love the swirling colour and glorious difference – I just wish the title and author fonts were less wussy and more visible.

MCD, December 2019

Published in December 2019 by MCD, someone must have heard my grizzle about the previous cover. Because this time around, we get the psychedelic colours AND the emphatic title and text – in eye-blurring detail, actually. But you certainly can’t miss them… And I take my hat off in tribute to the cover art designers – this book pushes all sorts of boundaries in regards to narrative, use of language and story conventions. New Weird aptly sums it up. And it’s a testament to the skill and imagination of the designers that this offering and the previous cover gives the potential reader a very strong clue as to what they’re getting into.

Subterranean, 2020

This edition was published in 2020 by Subterranean. It couldn’t be more different to the other offerings for this book – but is still beautiful, for all that. My main reservation is that I’m not sure it adequately conveys the sheer oddness of the book.

Turkish edition, March 2021

This Turkish edition, produced by Alfa Yayınları in March 2021, is my favourite. I love the Mandelbrot fractal designs – a strong clue to the challenging nature of the book, as well as being beautiful and very easy on the eye. And the addition of the fox outline introduces another main character who features in the book, which is always a plus for me. Which is your favourite?

Friday Faceoff – Pink isn’t just a colour – it’s an attitude, too… #Brainfluffbookblog #FridayFaceoffdogcovers

This meme was started by Books by Proxy, whose fabulous idea was to compare UK and US book covers and decide which is we prefer. This meme is being nurtured by Lynn’s Book Blog and this week we are featuring PINK covers. I’ve selected Borne by Jeff VanderMeer – see my review.



This offering was produced by Macmillan in April 2017. This is the default cover for this book – and is… extraordinary. You keep looking at it and seeing something else every time. I think this has to be one of the weirdest designs I’ve ever featured – and not remotely like any other PINK book cover I’ve encountered. I love this one – it’s so clever and original.

 

Published in April 2017, by the publisher Fourth Estate, this cover is a bit more traditional. It is also beautiful. The rainbow-coloured background is lovely and I love how dear little Borne is wriggling through the title font. Another creative, clever design that grabs your attention and makes you want to pick this one up.

 

This Italian edition, published by Einaudi in February 2018, is another amazing offering, though I can make sense of this one. This is Borne, as he is found in amongst the fur of the bear, Mord. I love that beautiful iridescent eye and the lovely glowing colours punching out of the dark grey. And yes, I know the title and author fonts are rather underwhelming, but I do love this one. It is my favourite.

 

This Russian edition, published in January 2018 by Эксмо: fanzon, is another unusual offering. We have Borne in all his odd glory staring out at the reader. This one is enjoyably quirky and the colour glows against the dark brown background – presumably against Mord’s bulk. I really like the treatment of the title and author font on this one.

 

This Dutch edition (I think!) published by Bezige Bij b.v., Uitgeverij De in July 2018, once again depicts Borne living in Mord’s coat. This time we get to see the ruined city in the background through the thick, pink haze of the toxic pollution, which is disturbingly pretty. I love the elegant simplicity of the design and how the lettering is white against Mord’s fur and black against the pink air. That bee is just a lovely little detail, as it Borne himself becoming the O of the title. This one was so nearly a contender – in fact this week I found it very hard to choose. Which is your favourite?

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of KINDLE Ebook Borne by Jeff VanderMeer

I spotted this offering on Netgalley and really loved the sound of it, so requested it and was delighted to be approved, given that VanderMeer is a talented author with a gift for writing the disturbing – see my review of Annihilation.

Rachel survives as a scavenger in a ruined city half destroyed by drought and conflict. The city is dangerous, littered with discarded experiments from the Company—a biotech firm now derelict—and punished by the unpredictable predations of a giant bear. Rachel ekes out an existence in the shelter of a run-down sanctuary she shares with her partner, Wick, who deals his own homegrown psychoactive biotech. One day, Rachel finds Borne during a scavenging mission and takes him home. Borne as salvage is little more than a green lump—plant or animal?—but exudes a strange charisma. However, in a world where any kind of weakness is lethal, can Rachel afford to bond with this odd creature?

VanderMeer’s atmospheric writing spins a stunningly vivid evocation of this wrecked landscape where Mord, the gigantic bear, stalks through the city peopled by knots of scavengers – some of whom have been altered and twisted by the biotech that has escaped into the environment. The river is poisoned, the rain toxic and people eke out a subsistence existence.

Rachel’s story is one that is probably heartbreakingly familiar in any refugee camp throughout the world. She recalls a happy family life with her parents, both with solid jobs and plenty of love for their only daughter, but as the sea levels rose and law and order broke down, they ended up in camps. She is unsure how exactly she has arrived in the city, scavenging and teaming up with Wick, a former employee of the Company with dark secrets of his own, but they are holed up in a defensible apartment block and coping reasonably well.

It is into this scenario that Borne enters her life as a scrap of biotech she picks out of the fur of the sleeping Mord. There is something about this unusual thing that attracts her – for starters, it smells of her childhood – of the sea. It is always hungry and empties out their accommodation of lizards and insects – and is clearly intelligent. So she teaches it to speak…

This is a tale of loss and change. And of the resilience of the human spirit when confronted with terrible circumstances. Given the backdrop and context, it ought to be a completely bleak read – but although there is violence and death – how could there not be in such a hard-scrabbled environment? – there is also is a fair amount of humour and a lot of tenderness. I found it very moving that Rachel, alone and childless, nurtures this creature and calls it Borne. They play games, and tell each other jokes. But Borne isn’t human and was never intended to mix with humanity. Borne is something else…

Rachel is a striking protagonist. It is always a tricky business writing a character where a defining aspect of the protagonist is left to the climactic final scene of the book – and to be honest, about halfway through I was feeling a bit fed up that she didn’t ring completely true. By the end, the reason why becomes clear. VanderMeer’s writing always burrows beneath the surface and often finds the darkness lurking there – this time around, he has also celebrated what defines us as humans. If you are a fan of interesting, post-apocalyptic reads, then give this one go. I’ll guarantee it will stay with you.
9/10

Sunday Post – 11th June 2017

 

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Book Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written.

Last Sunday was all about the garden – before it started raining… and until yesterday, it has rained every day, with gale-force winds for the first half of the week. My fault entirely, of course – that will teach me to boast about the wonderful weather we’ve been having.

This week, I was back to teaching – it was lovely to catch up again with my students, as well as going out on Wednesday evening to my writing group where we read our work aloud to each other and speculated on the up-coming election. On Thursday Mhairi came over and we were able to exchange writing ideas and in the evening, we attended West Sussex Writers to an excellent talk and workshop on travel writing by Janet Rogers. It was the first time I’d managed to go for several months, so it was lovely to catch up with several members and enjoy listening to an experienced and successful writer talk about a writing genre I know little about. When I got home, I flicked on the television, saw the exit polls and had to see more. Himself needed to go to bed – he still finds he has to have a solid 6-7 hours after years of sleep apnea – but my daughter and I spent the night texting and talking over the phone as the results first trickled and then poured in. It was a very exciting election night – and what a feast for writers as we watched politicians confronted with defeat and loss of career – or vibrating with joy as unexpected victory took them to a new, exciting opportunity.

On Friday afternoon, we picked up Frances from school because on Saturday, I had arranged to take her to the International Comic Expo held at the Hilton Metropole Hotel in Brighton. We had a great time. She loves drawing and is busy designing her own comics, so I wanted her to see a range of art styles and stories. Everyone was so very chatty and encouraging to her. She came away with a selection of comics, all with different story and artwork styles, and buzzing with new ideas.

Throughout all that, I haven’t experienced the now-familiar feeling of utter exhaustion and pounding headache so I’m profoundly hoping that by taking some supplements and ensuring I keep away from too much sugar – which always hoovers up my energy anyway – I have finally bounced back, healthwise. Yippee!

This week I have read:
Borne by Jeff VanderMeer
A young woman named Rachel survives as a scavenger in a ruined city half destroyed by drought and conflict. The city is dangerous, littered with discarded experiments from the Company—a biotech firm now derelict—and punished by the unpredictable predations of a giant bear. Rachel ekes out an existence in the shelter of a run-down sanctuary she shares with her partner, Wick, who deals his own homegrown psychoactive biotech. One day, Rachel finds Borne during a scavenging mission and takes him home. Borne as salvage is little more than a green lump—plant or animal?—but exudes a strange charisma. Borne reminds Rachel of the marine life from the island nation of her birth, now lost to rising seas. There is an attachment she resents: in this world any weakness can kill you. Yet, against her her wishes – and those of Wick, Rachel keeps Borne.
While VanderMeer gives us a vivid portrait of a ruined landscape, distorted by the trashed biotech the Company flung away, it is more of a love story between a young woman yearning for a lost world and an odd creature desperate to learn. The consequences are unexpected and disturbing… VanderMeer’s writing has a habit of getting under my skin and into my head – I really enjoyed this.

Lightning in the Blood – Book 2 of the Ree Varekai novella series by Marie Brennan
Once, there was a call–a binding–and so, a woman appeared, present in body but absent in knowledge of her past self. Making the ultimate journey of rediscovery was not without its own pitfalls–or rewards–and now Ree, a roaming Archeron, spirit of legend and time and physically now bound to her current form, has yet to fully uncover her true identity.
After reading the first book in this series, I was keen to discover what happens next. This enjoyable adventure gives us a few more clues about Ree and who she is.

River of Teeth – Book 1 of the River of Teeth novella series by Sarah Gailey
In the early 20th Century, the United States government concocted a plan to import hippopotamuses into the marshlands of Louisiana to be bred and slaughtered as an alternative meat source. This is true. Other true things about hippos: they are savage, they are fast, and their jaws can snap a man in two. This was a terrible plan.
Contained within this volume is an 1890s America that might have been: a bayou overrun by feral hippos and mercenary hippo wranglers from around the globe. It is the story of Winslow Houndstooth and his crew. It is the story of their fortunes. It is the story of his revenge.
With a premise like this, Himself and I found this offering irresistible – and it is certainly crammed full of bloodthirsty adventurers, unexpected betrayals and lots of bloody violence. Oh, and hippos… don’t forget the hippos. I thought this was great fun and will be reviewing it this coming week.

My posts last week:

Sunday Post – 4th June 2017

Review of Reaper – Book 1 of the End Game series by Janet Edwards

Teaser Tuesday featuring The Dog Walker by Lesley Thomson

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of The Broken Ones – prequel to The Malediction series by Danielle L. Jensen

Discovery Challenge 2017 and Tackling my TBR

Friday Face-off – It shuffles through the dry, dusty darkness – featuring The Osiris Ritual – Book 2 of the Newbury and Hobbs Investigations series by George Mann

TAGGED – I’m It

Interesting/outstanding blogs and articles that have caught my attention during the last week, in no particular order:

The Art of Voice Changery – Part 2  https://jeanleesworld.com/2017/06/08/the-art-of-voice-changery-part-2/ Jean always has something worthwhile and sparky to say about the process of writing – and this article is no exception.

A Guide to Hanging Out with Cloth Ears  https://justanotherblogfromawoman.blog/2017/05/18/a-guide-to-hanging-out-with-cloth-ears/ This useful article is recommended for EVERYBODY – we all encounter people hard of hearing in our daily lives and these tips can help make communicating easier.

What Are the Rules?  http://writerunboxed.com/2017/06/07/what-are-the-rules/ This is an outstanding article on a subject that all writers should pay attention to – and often don’t.

Dust Breeding  https://photolicioux.wordpress.com/2017/06/01/dust-breeding-elevage-de-poussiere/ I’ve always wondered how dust bunnies are made – and here is the photograph that telle me – I think…

How the Library of Congress is Trying to Archive Twitter https://kristentwardowski.wordpress.com/2017/06/07/how-the-library-of-congress-is-trying-to-archive-twitter/ Frankly, I’d have thought catch light in a sieve would be easier, but this is what they’re attempting to do.

Thank you for visiting and taking the time and trouble to comment – and may you have a wonderful reading and blogging week.