There's just something about this cover image that seems a bit wrong, but what could it be?
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I've seen some bad cover art, and I mean real bad, but this takes it. And here is where I go refill my Ambien prescription so I can sleep again...
ReplyDeleteWhat, are you telling me that you don't fantasize about riding a giant snake naked in a river?
ReplyDeleteMore seriously, that's probably the worst cover art I've ever seen. Whoever commissioned that for the book should be fired.
Well, the nudity and the oversized, grinning phallic symbol do sort of beg the question of just how "adult" the short stories are.
ReplyDeleteI mean, that can't even be comfortable.
I can't decide whether the best part is the unicorn in the corner (let's double up on phallic symbols) - or - the observation that this is Volume 2 of the series.
1970's homo-eroticism anyone?
ReplyDeleteI like it.
ReplyDeleteSomething in its overall design (man, snake, bird, sun) appeals to me-- what can I say?
The landscape is a Rouseeau rip-off. I like Rousseau but not R rip-offs. The snake is somewhat absurd, and the guy on its back is just fucking bad. Some of the Berkley books had good covers, though.
ReplyDeleteJeff Ford
I agree the incredibly phallic imagery of the snake is underneath the man's naked body is a bit strange and absurd. However, this cover art's aesthetic is interesting and I think it is better than much of the cover art that is coming out these days. It screams fantasy without screaming trashy or clichéd. It evokes a sense of mythology and/or folklore. In essence, I like it.
ReplyDeleteHarry.
Oh, I thought it was the cruelty to animals being shown by the man having dominance over the beast by the reins cutting into it's mouth.
ReplyDeleteNaked dudes on animals, come on, who DOESN'T see stuff like every day now?
ahh but those "Great short Novels" volumes have some really good stuff in them.
ReplyDeletethe Anthologies that Carter put together for that BAF line are some of the gems.. The Young Magician's even has two Tolkien Poems in it that I've never seen published anywhere else.
but the cover art is hit or miss on a lot of them.
Agree, as so many of these stories in the Ballantine series are really good, with some covers that are awesome and some that bring teh suck.
ReplyDeleteis that guy riding a snake, or is he really, really, really happy to see me?
ReplyDelete