Cover of the Week: Nineteenth Century German Tales, (ed.) Angel Flore
Anchor Press, Doubleday (1959). Cover illustration by Edward Gorey
From 1953 to 1960, graphic artist Edward Gorey created over 50 covers and internal illustrations for Anchor Press paperbacks. Anchor Press published literary and classic titles that were aimed at the growing college market so the published authors like Conrad, Gide, Dickens, and Henry James. Gorey’s brilliant covers for the Anchor Press books were all imaginative and had that signature style of ink drawing and bold colors. If I had to choose a favorite cover it would be the one he did in 1959 for Ecuadorian translator and editor, Angel Flores’s, Nineteenth Century German Tales. What a wonderful cover!
Gorey was a great reader and I’m sure he read the collection before he began designing the book cover because the best story (actually, a novella) in the entire collection is “The Black Spider” by Jeremias Gotthelf. Written in 1842, Gotthelf’s tale is an early example of 20th-century “Weird Fiction” and has become quite influential.
Gorey’s depiction of the spider in flames surrounded by gloomy trees and a castle on the hill is so well-designed and singular I can imagine it standing out on a rack full of paperbacks. He catches the tone of the story perfectly.
Anchor Press titles with Gorey covers are quite collectible now, so you’ll pay a premium for them. But if you shop and smaller paperback shops, you might find a few that are reasonably priced. The best bet is a paperback lot of them on eBay. Another favorite is his cover for Alain Fournier’s The Wanderer (see below).
A recent biography of Edward Gorey is Mark Dery’s Born to Be Posthumous: The Eccentric Life and Mysterious Genius of Edward Gorey. It is immensely entertaining and will completely change any notion you have of Gorey’s life and character. I would also visit the Edward Gorey House website for more info on the author. Emily Temple’s article on Gorey’s covers for Anchor Press is excellent and features a gallery of covers.