Simone deux Pingouin (Ace Jet 170)

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I found a couple of curious Penguins at the weekend. In a box with other less interestingly covered de Beauvoirs, I thought they're both top-notch but, from a brand point of view, beg questions. First off, they were both published in 1967 and yet they're so different (a time of uncertainty at the publishers?).

Although both have Marber-grid factors, both are departures: "Memoirs..." has lost horizontal lines, the "long" title alternative positioning and, obviously, uses caps. "She Came..." on the other hand is a much more dramatic shift in direction: a brand new position for the enlarged and newly coloured type, and a bird that's grown considerably. Interesting pricing too.

I guess "Memoirs..." could be a straight or near-straight re-print of the first-time-for-Penguin 1963 edition, while "She Came..." (de Beauvoir's first novel) was published by Penguin for the first time just a year earlier in '66. I suppose that all kind of makes sense. But still, an opportunity to release both with similar covers must have been considered.

Differences apart, they're still both excellent covers but "She Came..." is, to my eyes, a stonker! That beautiful cover illustration is by the enigmatic Giannetto Coppola. Can't find anything about the man and from what other covers I can find, this is, by his own standards, an exceptional piece of work. Very stylish, very "sixty's".

Incidentally, the other cover is by Penguin stalwart Alan Spain.

Comments

The use of caps, and a collage, may have been a litle stylistic sub-series of biography. 2068 Trumpets from the Steep by Diana Cooper of 1964 shares the style (I'm emailing a scan to you); maybe there are others. Amusingly, it too is largely set in Paris, but in a different city, that of the British ambassador's wife, from that of de Beauvoir.

Posted by: James Mackay | 24 September 2009 at 11:07 AM