Alex Johnson
autor
Rooms of Their Own
Rooms of Their Own travels around the world examining the unique spaces, habits and rituals in which famous writers created their most notable works.
The perennial question asked of all authors is, 'How do you write?'. What do they require of their room or desk? Do they have favourite pens, paper or typewriters? And have they found the perfect daily routine to channel their creativity? Crossing centuries, continents and genres, Alex Johnson has pooled 50 of the best writers and transports you to the heart of their writing rooms - from attics and studies to billiard rooms and bathtubs.
Discover the ins and outs of how each great writer penned their famous texts, and the routines and habits they perfected. Meet authors who rely on silence and seclusion and those who need people, music and whisky. Meet novelists who travel half-way across the world to a luxury writing retreat, and others who just need an empty shed at the bottom of the garden. Some are particular about pencils, inks, paper and typewriters, and some will scribble on anything - including the furniture. But whether they write in the library or in cars, under trees, private islands, hotel rooms or towers - each of these stories confirms that there is no 'best way' to write.
From James Baldwin, writing in the small hours of the morning in his Paris apartment, to DH Lawrence writing at the foot of a towering Ponderosa pine tree, to the Bronte sisters managing in a crowded co-working space, this book takes us into the lives of some of history's greatest ever writers, with each writing space illustrated in evocative watercolour by James Oses.
In looking at the working lives of our favourite authors, bibliophiles will be transported to other worlds, aspiring writers will find inspiration and literature fans will gain deeper insight into their most-loved authors.
Bookshelf
A title that will appeal to those interested in book culture as well as furniture and interior design, "Bookshelf" is the first publication to take bookshelf design as its subject. From the conceptual Read-Unread Bookshelf (which weighs books read against those still to be started) to the multi-function Trick (a unit that transforms from shelf-space into a table and two chairs), "Bookshelf" presents over 200 inventive and experimental shelving designs in more than 400 colour illustrations that are sure to covet and inspire. Individual specification details are provided for each bookcase, including materials and documentation, and the accompanying texts by Alex Johnson, author and editor of "The Blog on the Bookshelf", provide a fun and informative look at the history of the bookcase, as well as reflecting on how a new generation of designers have re-imagined a classic. One might have presumed that, with the advent of the e-book, the days of the bookshelf were numbered. In fact, readers are now taking almost as much interest in the furniture that houses their libraries as the books themselves; if the titles in your collection are a reflection of your personality, then so too is the design of your bookshelf.
Vypredané
18,99 €
19,99 €
Improbable Libraries
From the rise of the egalitarian Little Free Library movement (motto: Take a book, return a book) to the growth in luxury hotel libraries, Alex Johnson whose parents were both librarians maps out the history and future of the 21st-century library revolution in seven thematic chapters, each consisting of a brief essay followed by illustrated project profiles. Whether by bike in Chicago or by donkey in Colombia, librarians all over the world are coming up with astonishingly ingenious ways of ensuring their books reach the people who need them. Many of these new libraries function as community centres, and assist their members in overcoming economic, social and political barriers. Others provide an unexpected dose of culture for travellers and commuters or even prisoners. Elsewhere, architects are designing monumental public libraries without walls, and prefabricated home libraries that can be assembled in an ordinary back garden. Whether youre at an airport, a park, a cafe or in the wilds, you can still find just the right book all for free.
Vypredané
21,38 €
22,50 €
Book Towns
The so-called “Book Towns” of the world are dedicated havens of literature, and the ultimate dream of book lovers everywhere. Book Towns takes readers on a richly illustrated tour of the 40 semi-officially recognized literary towns around the world and outlines the history and development of each community, and offers practical travel advice.
Many Book Towns have emerged in areas of marked attraction, such as Urena in Spain or Fjaerland in Norway, where bookshops have been set up in buildings including former ferry waiting rooms and banks. While the UK has the best-known examples at Hay, Wigtown and Sedbergh, the book has a broad international appeal, featuring locations such as Jimbochu in Japan, College Street in Calcutta, and major unofficial “book cities” such as Buenos Aires.
Vypredané
18,00 €
18,95 €
Menus that Made History
This fascinating miscellany of menus from around the world will educate as well as entertain, delighting both avid foodies and the general reader.
Each menu provides an insight into its particular historical moment - from the typical food on offer in a nineteenth-century workhouse to the opulence of George IV's gargantuan coronation dinner. Some menus are linked with a specific and unforgettable event such as The Hindenburg's last flight menu or the variety of meals on offer for First, Second and Third Class passengers on board RMS Titanic, while others give an insight into sport, such as the 1963 FA Cup Final Dinner or transport and travel with the luxury lunch on board the Orient Express. Also included are literary occasions like Charles' Dickens 1868 dinner at Delmonicos in New York as well as the purely fictional and fantastical fare of Ratty's picnic in The Wind in the Willows.
Vypredané
18,00 €
18,95 €
