Polish poster for SOLARIS (1972), directed by Andrei Tarkovsky and based on the 1961 novel of the same name by Stanislaw Lem - BOTD in 1921

It's almost here. The Prompt-Brush 1.0 book ships next week. After more than 1700 drawings, it's finally about to land in readers' hands. If you'd like to be among the first, pre-orders are open now — and they make a huge ditterence. Prompt-brush.com

ICYMI last week, here's the most recent book covers of note post: www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2025/08...

And and and, you can find my picks here if you missed them yesterday... www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2025/08...

And and, Zach Petit's picks for PRINT: www.printmag.com/book-covers/...

And Lit Hub's... lithub.com/the-14-best-...

Here are SPINE's August picks... spinemagazine.co/book-covers-...

Here are this month's book cover selections!

Still looking at old posts, these Cynan Jones covers designed by Jenny Grigg for Granta are great... www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2016/09...

April 2017 was also a good month for book covers! www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2017/04...

Apropos nothing, I was just looking at some old posts and there were some fantastic book covers back in November 2018! www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2018/11...

Artist Amy Sherald: Censorship Has Taken Hold at the Smithsonian. I Refused to Play Along. “History shows us what happens when governments demand that museums perform loyalty. Nazi Germany weaponized them. So did the Soviet Union.” [msnbc.com]

Cover for Swallows by Natsuo Kirino, out now on Canongate. Art Director: Rafi Romaya

Reissue cover for Dave Randal's Sound System, out now on @plutopress.bsky.social Art Direction by Melanie Patrick.

BOOKS! by Murray McCain, with cover design and illustrations by John Alcorn (1962). #wardsmorguefile #moreartlessdoom

Judge, April 18, 1925, with cover art by Ruth Eastman.

My latest cartoon for @newscientist.com

Just about the best thing about being a teacher is watching kids delight in stationery. That's right, Olivia. Four-colour ballpoints ARE fucking awesome. You'll lose all interest in about two years.

Manchester's Finest: Gregg the sign painter youtube.com/shorts/Q3nJD...

One last July round-up, SPINE's look at new university press cover designs spinemagazine.co/articles/uni...

Lithub's best book covers of July lithub.com/the-11-best-...

And here are Zachary Petit's latest book cover picks for PRINT Magazine! www.printmag.com/book-covers/...

Check out SPINE's July Book Covers We Love: spinemagazine.co/book-covers-...

ICYMI, here's this month's look at some new and recent book covers: www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2025/07...

Something for the weekend?

Kate Jarvik Birch (b. 1977) Coffe Time Goache on paper

The Design Museum’s upcoming Wes Anderson exhibition looks amazing, with tons of props like Max Fischer’s Swiss Army knife, Margot’s fur coat, the Rat puppet from Fantastic Mr. Fox, Boy With Apple, and a Baumer poster. [kottke.org]

Fantastic read about Susan Kare & her work on the original Apple Mac icons. www.newyorker.com/culture/cult... By @langealexandra.bsky.social

'Our Dreadful Future'. An alphabet I created for Nobrow magazine in 2015.

'Our Wonderful Future'. An alphabet I created for Nobrow magazine in 2015.

"You should hit Instagram hard until you have enough subscribers to go full-time on the magazine" was a suggestion in a conversation yesterday. Going full-time is my dream, but I'm not returning to Instagram to make it a reality. ("It's not a principle until it […] [Original post on typo.social]

NY Times covers Jim: www.nytimes.com/2025/07/06/a... The reporter called me for info. Ended up using a lot from our FontShop interview, and photos from @nicksherman.bsky.social.

Here are Zach Petit's June book cover picks for PRINT: www.printmag.com/book-covers/...

A decade-plus in the making and now on Kickstarter: a book of Pooja Saxena’s photography of signs and lettering found on the streets of cities all over India. [kickstarter.com]

This month's post has now been updated to include additional credit info for the cover of Valencia by Michelle Tea designed by Megan Grace ( @profilebooks.bsky.social / June 2025). The photo is from Chloe Sherman's series Renegades: San Francisco, the 1990s www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2025/06...

Here are @literaryhub.bsky.social's book cover picks for June: lithub.com/the-13-best-...

🚨The asher Tote is here🚨 We went though seven different materials and two printers to make sure we got it right. Simply put, there has never been a better bag to carry your book all day. asher tested, Eugene approved.

ICYMI, here's my latest round-up of new and recent book covers and design trends: www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2025/06...

Jim Parkinson died today. He was a prolific and astoundingly gifted lettering artist, type designer, and painter. I feel lucky to say he was also my friend. typographica.org/on-typograph...

Here are this month's book covers of note!

There's also a look at some new covers from university presses on Spine this month: spinemagazine.co/articles/uni...

Graphic artist Chris Ware has created a set of 20 stamps for the US Postal Service’s 250th anniversary in his iconic style. The stamps will be available in July but you can pre-order them now. [kottke.org]

Designed by Saul Bass in the 1960s. Matchbooks and tins for Ohio Match Co. www.presentandcorrect.com/blogs/blog/l...

Here's Spine's latest Book Covers We Love update: spinemagazine.co/book-covers-...

Yum. A video tour of AJ Wells, enamel sign makers for the London Underground, courtesy of the London Transport Museum. The section about signs starts around 14m 20secs. youtu.be/mLh9BSay-80?...

Click for the interview, scroll for the photos... www.washingtonpost.com/books/intera...

The power of juxtaposition -- classical painting + poppy type (gift link): www.nytimes.com/2025/06/21/b...

A legend, someone whose work is literally everywhere, and the most supportive of young designers (+ design critics) www.fastcompany.com/91265497/the...

New work for Stanford University Press

Cover for Monaghan (mo-na-han for the non-Gaels out there) by Timothy O'Grady, out today. The second image shows some process work, where I made some ink prints with a roller from a cutout of my brother's silhouette from a photograph.