Richard III discussion

Someone from the Richard III Society's American branch Yahoo group posted a link to this page featuring cover art from various editions of Shakespeare's play:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14168877...

Maybe it might be fun to post examples from various Ricardian novels as well. Tanzanite on her blog has some nice examples from Rosemary Hawley Jarman's books:

http://tanzanitesbookcovers.blogspot....

I gave away my copy of We Speak No Treason with the cheesy cover, and I'm still kicking myself for it. Hated the book, loved the cover!

Thanks for sharing. That RHJ cover, yikes! I don't think I've ever seen Shakespeare's R3. Must get the CD from the library one of these days.

Thank GOODNESS I didn't get that We Speak No Treason cover. I would have instantly given it to Goodwill without ever reading it. And since it was the thing that got me interested in Richard III, that would have been tragic.

Misfit wrote: "Thanks for sharing. That RHJ cover, yikes! I don't think I've ever seen Shakespeare's R3. Must get the CD from the library one of these days."

You really should! The Olivier version is excellent, and the modern-dress version by Ian McKellan is fun too. I haven't seen any of the other filmed adaptations.

MAP wrote: "Thank GOODNESS I didn't get that We Speak No Treason cover. I would have instantly given it to Goodwill without ever reading it. And since it was the thing that got me interested in Richard III, ..."

There are times when a cover is really deceiving and you have to wonder WTF the publisher was thinking. The new cover for Jennifer Roberson's Lady of the Glen being a prime example. I mean, the book is about the massacre at Glencoe FGS and any sex there is in the book is very low key.

I agree "what were they thinking?!"

I'd never read a book with these horrid covers.

And what do the people think who choose them for these covers only to discover that the story inside doesn't bare any resemblance to the cover? I think it would be a lose lose sort of thing...

Here's one of my favorites--a 1952 paperback of The King's Mistress by Jean Plaidy, also published as The Goldsmith's Wife. It's about Jane Shore. Imagine carrying this one on the bus--it took some guts to read historical fiction then!

Barb wrote: "I agree "what were they thinking?!"

I'd never read a book with these horrid covers.

And what do the people think who choose them for these covers only to discover that the story inside doe..."

"bare" Freudian slip?

It really is a shame because you can miss out on a very good book, while a reader expecting a lot of sex would be sorely disappointed.

Imagine carrying this one on the bus--it took some guts to read historical fiction then!"

I will readily admit that I do make decisions about whether to bring a book with me when I go out to eat (almost every night for dinner) based on what its cover looks like. Despite what the actual topic might be, if it looks like some bawdy romance novel, I am NOT taking that sucker out into public with me.

EDIT: Good lord, the candle she's holding even has a vague penis shape.

Egads, that's some cover.

Agree with Susan - the Ian McKellan Richard III is a lot of fun.

Here's a cover that might frighten young children (I'm thinking of setting this one out for Halloween):

Oh my god.

I have a couple of Hale books with covers in a similar creepy vein. I guess since they were printed mainly for the library market, they didn't feel the need for a great deal of shelf appeal. Makes you appreciate the headless women in pretty dresses though!

Is that blood dripping from his mouth?
I'm not sure I'd want to be seen reading that one in public...

I'm afraid to ask what the book is like on the inside.

Misfit wrote: "I'm afraid to ask what the book is like on the inside."

From what I can tell from a skim, Buckingham is nasty, and Richard has the redeeming quality of loving his wife and son but not much to recommend him otherwise.

It doesn't even show up on Amazon.com

MAP wrote: "It doesn't even show up on Amazon.com"


I don't think most of these books got much distribution outside of the UK. As I understand, the publisher, Hale, produced most of these for the UK library market.

I borrowed mine from the R3 Society fiction library. I usually borrow three every 2 months or so just to get a gander at these older or hard-to-find novels. It's an addiction, but at least it's a cheap one!

I found it on Amazon by searching the ISBN#. Not much there and no copies available for sale.

I must admit I love Arrow's new cover for some of Plaidy's book. Yuo can buy them at abe books snd see them on http://royal-intrigue.net/covergaller....

I've actually replaced some old books just for the new covers.

I like the new UK covers myself. I'm too cheap to buy new copies of the ones I already have, though--I keep hoping they'll turned up used somewhere.

Why is it that the English covers are so much nicer and why do books cost more in Canada? This inside of a book's jacket say $x for US and $y for Canada?

Susan wrote: "I like the new UK covers myself. I'm too cheap to buy new copies of the ones I already have, though--I keep hoping they'll turned up used somewhere."

I find used on Abe books!

I think the Canadian price on a book reflects the Canadian dollar? Could be wrong though.

The differential in the book price dates back to the mid 1980s, when the Canadian dollar started to plunge against the US dollar. (like -- 70 US cents or less...) In recent years, that relationship has come closer to parity and for a few months (2007 or maybe 2008) the C$ was actually worth more than the US$ for a few months. The dollar differential is established by publishers and printed on book covers. Some Canadian booksellers have advertised they will sell at the US$ price (i.e. if the US price is $27.95, they will sell for C$27.95) when the dollar has been more closely aligned. Sometimes, Canadian book buyers got a deal this way; these days, it's more like tax.