Cover Conversations: Seeing Double

Seeing double?

I've been doing a bit of Goodreads research and I've noticed an interesting trend. Sometimes the exact same cover model is used for different books. I think I've mentioned it before in one of my Judging by the Cover comments. However, today I stumbled across something very interesting. 
Earlier in the year I read and reviewed Jenna Black's Glimmerglass and I loved the cover.

Judging by the Cover: Glimmerglass has a beautiful cover. I like the symmetry and the way it reflects Dana's abilities as a Faerie Walker! The softness of the models face looks great against the black background and the dots and smoke give a surreal feel to the cover!

 Who wouldn't?
This morning I was researching Caragh M O'Brien's Birthmarked series which I'm eager to get my hands on for a new dystopian segment I want to start. I popped on to her website to get some background information on the woman in question and saw a list of all the different languages Birthmarked has been published in.

There are a few different (and all gorgeous) covers for the English editions of Birthmarked:

 Most interesting though was the cover of the German edition Die Stadt der verschwundenen kinder (which, according to google chrome translator means The City of Lost Children):

            See any strange similarities? Or a lot?
      They're almost exactly the same - ignoring the different titles of course. It's just been reflected and undergone a                                                    slight colour change. Interesting right?

Is this a screw up or an international oversight? I don't think it matters too much - it's unlikely we will ever get the two confused, but they better be careful if they ever publish a German edition of Glimmerglass and want to use their original cover.

It does imply that there isn't just a photobase for models and poses, but for cover art as well!

Austenland by Shannon Hale

Jane Hayes is a seemingly normal young New Yorker, but she has a secret. Her obsession with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, is ruining her love life: no real man can compare. But when a wealthy relative bequeaths her a trip to an English resort catering to Austen-crazed women, Jane's fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become realer than she ever could have imagined.
Decked out in empire-waist gowns, Jane struggles to master Regency etiquette and flirts with gardeners and gentlemen;or maybe even, she suspects, with the actors who are playing them. It's all a game, Jane knows. And yet the longer she stays, the more her insecurities seem to fall away, and the more she wonders: Is she about to kick the Austen obsession for good, or could all her dreams actually culminate in a Mr. Darcy of her own?

Original Language: English
Publisher: Bloomsbury Pub Plc USA
Country: USA
Publication Date: 2007
ISBN: 1596912855
Page Count: 208

Austenland is Shannon Hales first excursion into a Regency role playing holiday destination where everyone can (temporarily) find their own Mr Darcy. It's a new and exciting idea, but fails to live up to its real potential.

Jane is a boring protagonist. I can easily understand her obsession with all things Austen (especially Mr Darcy)  but I can't understand how ridiculous it makes her. It's one thing to compare men to Mr Darcy, it's a complete other thing to expect a Darcy clone - wouldn't that be boring? And where does her embarrassment of her Austen obsession come from? I'm proud of my collection and would never resort to hiding anything in a pot plant.

I got sick of her complaining about not being able to find the right man - it's not something that happens overnight...exactly. Her 'confusion' between' Martin and Henry was irritating and irrational. It was obvious her attraction to Henry was a reflection of the antagonistic relationship between Lizzy and Darcy in Pride and Prejudice. The relationship between Jane and Martin is unrealistic, I can't stand how he treats her and how she reacts to him.

Speaking of which...the twists at the end (which I won't reveal in case others want to read it) comes from no where and adds nothing to the story. It just succeeds in making the cast, and the story, less likeable. I just can't stand Martin and there is no real character to Henry.

The world Hale creates in Pembrook Park is interesting and somewhat authentic - though Jane comments on a number of historical inaccuracies. The role playing seems like a fun, if not awkward, adventure and the characters are quite an endearing bunch - though Charming is as ridiculous and annoying a character as possible (anyone who says 'what what' more than once a book is an unsatisfactory character).

I am very disappointed by Austenland. I love re-exploring stories in new ways but Austenland had none of the special magic of Jane Austen.

Raiding Bookshelves Rating

Judging by the cover: The manor house is quite pretty and provides a nice contrast between the modern and regency eras. It's nice but not fantastic.

(Belated) Top Ten Tuesday: Books I wish I could reread for the first time

A fun new segment started by the book groupies over at The Broke and the Bookless who will post a new Top 10 list each week. 

I was considering this just the other day. I finished Anna and the French Kiss and couldn't remember the last time I'd enjoyed a book so much. So when I saw this meme I couldn't help but take it on board. So here are my ten from #10 down to my very favourite.
#10 Anne of Green Gables by L.M MontgomeryAnne has been one of my favourite characters since I was a little girl. Her spunk, curiosity and thrist for knowledge made her an inspiration to me in my childhood. I still get a wonderful feeling of cosiness when I reread but I wish I could remember how I felt the first time Anne smashes her slate over Gilbert's head.
#9 Pride and Prejudice by Jane AustenI first read Pride and Prejudice when I was about fifteen. I was starting my first literature class and wanted to prepare myself; I spent the summer reading all the Austen and Bronte novels I could get my hands on. Pride and Prejudice is definitely my favourite romance (though Persuasion and Wuthering Heights are better stories - shh don't tell Darcy). I know the story backwards, forwards and twisted in on itself. I remember reading it cover to cover on the plane home from Queensland and wish I could remember what I thought.
#8 The Eyre Affair by Jasper FfordeI read this book...two years ago? It was a set text for a fantasy narrative class and I did a ten minute presentation discussing how Fforde uses intertexuality and explaining how it reflected Jane Eyre. I was excited, passionate and astounded by how much I'd enjoyed the book. Unfortunately no one else has read it, or Jane Eyre and my excitement fell on mostly deaf ears.
#7 Ice Station by Matthew ReillyI've been reading Reilly since I started highschool, and now, nine years later, I still get excited enough by a new release to reread all his other books. Ice Station was my first Reilly adventure and will probably always be my favourite for that reason. His latest book, another Scarecrow adventure, came out in Australian book stores today. I look forward to reading Scarecrow and the Army of Thieves so recapture that first read feeling.
#6 The Sword of Shannara by Terry BrooksMy Mum introduced me to the Shannara series about ten years ago and I've read it religiously since. At the time there were eight books in the series, today there are 22 as well as a short story and graphic novel. I've seen the publication of thirteen of those books, and enjoyed most of them as much as the first time I picked up the Sword of Shannara. I'll always associate that book with Avril Lavigne's Sk8r Boi which I was obsessed with at the time.
#5 Obernewtyn by Isobelle CarmodyI learn something new every time I reread Carmody's post-apocalyptic series, but there's I still lose something in knowing how it will all turn out (up to a point) and that almost makes it feel premeditated - or predictable - and Carmody's stories are too well written for that! 
#4 The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen ChboskyGee whiz, there is something so special about this book! I read it for the first time at the start of the year and it still rocks my world. I'm hoping the movie will do the same thing - the cast looks impressive.
#3 Daughter of the Forest by Juliet MarillierMarillier is my favourite author and Daughter of the Forest is probably my favourite of all her books. It takes the story of the six swans and turns it into an epic tale. Her other fairytale rewrites, Heart's Blood and Wildwood Dancing are amazing as well.
#2 The Hunger Games by Suzanne CollinsThere is no need to explain the overwhelming level of awesome in this trilogy. While the first book is undoubtedly the best and strongest, the trilogy as a whole shook me. It instilled in me a love of dystopian literature and a desire to write my own (don't hold your breath). I view the forthcoming movie with a wary eye.
#1 Harry Potter by J.K RowlingThese books were my childhood. When people tell me they haven't read the books (or at least watched the movies) I feel like I've walked into a wall. My boyfriend thinks he outgrew them around Order of the Phoenix (as if it's possible to outgrow Harry Potter) but he still enjoys the movies (or else he'd be very single) and his Mum is reading the books. She remembers giving up part way through Goblet of Fire but this time around she can barely put the book(s) down. I love her excitement (and being the only HP authority she knows) and find myself envying it a little.I went to the shops at 7am on a Saturday morning for the release of Deathly Hallows and finished it before Mum got home from work that afternoon. Sometimes I wish I'd savoured the experience more.
I encourage everyone to try and pick up the books on my list. They are some of the most amazing books you will ever read. 
Until next week!