Spectrum 15 - Edited by Cathy Fenner and Arnie Fenner

Books Completed: 6
Date Completed: January 4, 2009
Pages: 248
Publication Date: November 1, 2008

Reason for Reading: It's the new Spectrum book... Do I need another reason?

With art drawn from a wide variety of sources -- books, graphic novels, video games, films, galleries, and advertising -- "Spectrum 15" reinforces both the importance and prevalence of fantasy art in today's culture. Featuring 350 exceptional works by artists from around the globe, this gorgeous full-color collection celebrates a cadre of creators working in every style and medium. Included are luminaries such as Brom, James Gurney, Marc Gabanna, Shaun Tan, and 2008's Grand Master Award winner, John Jude Palencar.

I am actually surprised I waited until today to enjoy this book. I had planned to read through it yesterday, but then I got caught up in Fables. (Which is fitting, actually, because the artist of the covers for that series won an award in the book!) Anyway, I was so excited to see this book yesterday. It comes in plastic wrap and it is a big thrill to peel of the wrapper and still smell that new book smell! That part I did do yesterday... This is my third year experiencing Spectrum, and one of these days I am going to start collecting the past volumes! I am a huge fantasy nerd, which I think most people that read my blog know, so this series is right up my alley!

I think my favourite artist in Spectrum 15 was probably Melanie Delon. There were three of her works in this book and I found myself pausing over all three of them without knowing that they were her pieces. I was on her website for a while this evening. I wouldn't mind buying some of the stuff in her store... Anyway, I think she is a fantastic artist. I am pretty sure she was in Spectrum 14, too, but I cannot remember for sure. I think I will probably dig out the other two books after I write this review anyway...

Another artist I quite like is James Gurney. I am not so big into dinosaurs anymore, but there was a time in my youth that I wanted to study them when I grew up. So, I, of course, own all three Jurassic Park movies and have seen them a million times! Since it was educational, I also have a lot of books on the subject. They are a bit dated now, though. I used to know all their names and everything, but now I am lucky I know a thing! I really should find something on the subject to refresh my memory.

My favourite section in the book is always the book section. They say not to judge a book by its cover, but you know I look at all the covers and find ones that catch my eye and look up the book description on Amazon! I can't help it... There were a few in there that I knew what books they were from because I have either already read the book, own the book, or want to buy the book. I probably spend the most time on this section, but I do enjoy the whole thing.

I could go on, but then I am sort of ruining the book for others! It is really something you should experience for yourself.

For a more in-depth look at the art, head over to Carl's review at Stainless Steel Droppings.

My Secret Santa

I am so sorry, I have been sooo busy lately, that I just cannot seem to find the time to write decent posts! I received my Secret Santa present last week, and here I am FINALLY finding the time to do the happy dance! As I saw other people receiving their gift, I have been anxiously watching my mailbox for mine. It arrived last week, and I wanted to write a decent post about it, so the time just has not been here for that. I posted a list back in November about the books that I wanted to buy with the gift card that I know I am getting for Christmas, well, I think it probably helped my Secret Santa out. Well, that and all the messages I left in various cases about how I really wanted to buy a certain book, but I was waiting for after Christmas.

I do not have to wait any longer! I got SPECTRUM 14! Considering how much of a fantasy nerd I am, I have quickly discovered that this is just the series for me. I owe it to Carl for sending me Spectrum 13, so now you know I am going to have to backtrack and get the other 12.... Thank you so very much C.J.! I have been really fighting the temptation to buy this book since it came out, so I am so happy to have it here in my hands. I have not looked through the whole thing, but I have flipped through it. I just love the cover!

Home Again!

So, I am back from my weekend away. It was a lot fun, actually. I saw a newborn baby, hung out with some friends, and bought books. Now, is that not a great way to spend your days? I also finished a book, which I blogged about on Twisted Kingdom. To read the review, click here. I hope that other people also had a fun weekend. I have a book to review on here, Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet. I finished it last week, but I think I will wait and review about it tomorrow.

For now, I will just say hi and share another very cool picture from Spectrum 13. I plan to spend some time with that book tomorrow, as well as starting reading Conan by Robert E. Howard. He was the author that 'invented' the sword-and-sorcery genre. I have always wanted to read him, and I won a copy of one of his books for the Once Upon a Time Challenge. The other two books were out-of-print in my neck of the woods, so Carl was also nice enough to pick them up for me. Lots of great reading ahead!

On page 24 of Spectrum there is a picture by Tony DiTerlizzi. It is actually an advertising picture for The Spiderwick series, but I think that the little guy is great looking! I might have to check this series out. To see this piece of art and others by the artist you can visit his web site by clicking here. I can't seem to find a picture online of the little guy that I want to share, but it is on his website. Anyways, has anyone read the books before? I noticed they are being made into a movie. So, since that did not work, the picture on this post is from page 27 and is called Promise by Robert Chang. He has a web site too, found here. It is a promo piece for a 3-D short, it sounds interesting. I know why they do this book now, to make me spend more money...

The Wonders of the Art Found in Spectrum

I should be getting ready to go away this weekend, but I received part of my prize from the Once Upon a Time Challenge, and I have been sitting here staring at pictures instead of getting ready! So, I am supposed to leave soon and I have not even changed out of my pjs! You would think I would be doing so right now, but I had to share my delights before doing so. Part of my prize was the Spectrum 13 book edited by Cathy Fenner and Arnie Fenner. I saw it listed as part of my prize, but I had never heard of it before. This morning, I got the thrill of tearing off the plastic, which meant that the book still had that lovely new book smell! The cover is fantastic, it is called Prometheus and was apparently done for Asimov's SF. For those that might not know who Asimov is, he is an author. I have not got to him yet, but he is pretty high up in science fiction writing, and has a tonne of books. (I, Robot, the movie with Will Smith, was based on one of his books, actually.)

Anyways, the pictures in this book are amazing. Some I had seen before, and some I had not, so I cannot wait to have the time to really look at this book. I seriously need to go get ready, but this is one of my favourite pictures in the book on the left. It is called The Mists of Avalon and was drawn by Doug Beekman. I will have more 'eye-candy' next week when I have the time to actually read the whole thing.

Thanks very much to Carl for introducing me to something so great! The other stuff I got was great too, but I will wait until it is all here to share next week.