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Starting Out: Margaret Atwood

by Rosemary Sullivan
Published by CITIC Press Group
2024
Book Cover Design
After designing several women's biographies, I also worked on the design for Margaret Atwood's biography, "Starting Out". At 85, she is a luminous presence not only in the realm of literary creation but also in social commentary. Before diving into this design project, I read "The Handmaid's Tale", explored some of her non-fiction works, and attended her Masterclass on writing. She imparted to me the wisdom of delving deeply into one's profession while also reaching out broadly. We must care about literature and art, but also remain sensitive to society, the environment, and politics.

The design of this book follows the style of the foreign version, using Atwood's photo, yet the colors are more passionate and striking. As a woman and the designer of this biography, she stands as my role model.



Paperback, 480 pages
Size: 147mm×210mm
Published by CITIC Press Group
2024
Book Cover Design
Before embarking on the design of this book, my familiarity with Tove Jansson was limited to her beloved creation, the Moomins. Delving into Jansson's biography revealed the remarkable woman behind these whimsical characters. Her life story illuminated the path of an artist and creator, offering profound insights into living authentically and courageously. Jansson's journey as an artist inspired me to embrace vulnerability and resilience, shaping not only the conceptual framework of this book but also my own approach to creativity.



Paperback, 384 pages
Size: 147mm×210mm
Published by CITIC Press Group
2024
Book Cover Design
Virginia Woolf was one of the first female writers I encountered, and her struggles resonated deeply with me as the struggles of all women. Her pain was a shared pain, a reflection of the collective female experience. Reading Woolf's diaries evokes a profound sense of female solidarity and understanding. Given the wealth of content, I chose to design the book in two volumes, bound together with an elegant slipcase. This design not only honors the depth and breadth of Woolf's thoughts but also creates a timeless keepsake for readers to cherish.



Paperback with dust jacket, 571 pages
Size: 155mm×230mm
Published by CITIC Press Group
2024
Book Cover Design / Cover Illustration
Tiempo de silencio (Time of Silence) is a seminal work by Luis Martín-Santos, depicting the harsh realities of 1940s Madrid and the struggle against poverty and oppression. Tiempo de destrucción (Time of Destruction) is his unfinished novel, continuing his exploration of existential despair and social critique.

Inspired by the powerful prose of the author, I designed the covers for these two books using intense colors. My goal was to evoke the fragmented and raw energy present in the narratives, allowing readers to feel the underlying strength and turmoil of the stories.



Paperback with dust jacket, 320 pages / 384 pages
Size: 145mm×210mm

The Enemies of Books

by William Blades
Published by Gold Wall Press
2023
Book Cover Design

The wittiest commentary on book-collecting and the care of books ever written, Blades's Enemies of Books enummerates the enemies as: Fire; Water; Gas and Heat; Dust and Neglect; Ignorance and Bigotry; The Bookworm; Other Vermin; Bookbinders; Collectors; Servants and Children. This new and corrected edition adds an article on Librarians as Enemies of Books, an Introduction, a biography of Blades, and many helpful notes. William Blades (1824-1890) was a printer and bibliographer. His Life of Caxton revolutionised our understanding of the first English printer.



Hardcover, 160 pages
Size: 116mm×170mm


Published by CITIC Press Group
2017
Book Cover Design / Typeface Design

Welcome to the Monkey House is a collection of Kurt Vonnegut’s shorter works.  These superb stories share Vonnegut’s audacious sense of humor and extraordinary range of creative vision.


Paperback, 400 pages
Size: 148mm×210mm

The End of The Story

by Lydia Davis
Published by CITIC Press Group
2017
Book Cover Design

Mislabeled boxes, problems with visiting nurses, confusing notes, an outing to the county fair―such are the obstacles in the way of the unnamed narrator of The End of the Story as she attempts to organize her memories of a love affair into a novel. 


Paperback, 308 pages
Size: 148mm×210mm


Wartime Lies

by Louis Begley
Published by Shanghai Translation Publishing House
Book Cover Design
Wartime Lies is a semi-autobiographical novel by Louis Begley first published in 1991. Set in Poland during the years of the Nazi occupation, it is about two members of an upper middle class Jewish family, a young woman and her nephew, who avoid persecution as Jews by assuming Catholic identities. Time and again the boy, who narrates the story from some remote point in time, reminisces about how he learned at an early age to lie in order to survive. Thus, his whole adult life is founded on the "wartime lies" of his childhood.


Paperback, 169 pages
Size: 148mm×210mm
Published by Baihuazhou Literature and Art Press
2009
Series Book Branding / Book Design / Layout Design
Sarah Waters is best known for her novels set in Victorian society and featuring lesbian protagonists, such as Tipping the Velvet, Fingersmith, and Affinity. 

Fingersmith is awarded as: 
  • Shortlisted for the Orange Prize
  • Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize
  • Winner of the CWA Historical Dagger for Historical Crime Fiction


Paperback with dust jacket
Tipping the Velvet:  473 pages
Affinity: 411 pages
Fingersmith: 552 pages
Size: 145mm×210mm

La muerte de Artemic Cruz

by Carlos Fuentes
Published by People’s Literature Publishing House
2011
Book Cover Design
The Death of Artemio Cruz (Spanish: La muerte de Artemio Cruz) is a novel written in 1962 by Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes. It is considered to be a milestone in the Latin American Boom.


Paperback, 402 pages
Size: 148mm×210mm

智惠子抄

by Takamura Kotaro （高村 光太郎）
Published by CITIC Press Group
2017
Book Cover Design
A long love letter from the famous Japanese sculptor, painter and poet, Takamura Kotaro to his wife in forty years. Their love affair was not approved by their parents, but they devoted all their emotions to each other. However, the hardships of life, frustrations in artistic creation, and the bankruptcy of her mother's family caused 智惠子 to suffer from mental illness. After battling with the disease for several years, she passed away.

智惠子抄 is a record of the poet's life from the uneasiness of their love, their poor and happy life after marriage, to the time when 智惠子 became ill as if she was living in another world, and the time after she left. After its publication, the book became widely popular and has been adapted in various fields such as film and theater.


Paperback, 200 pages
Size: 148mm×210mm

Orange Are Not the Only Fruit

by Jeanette Winterson
Published by New Star Press
2010
Book Cover Design / Cover Illustration
Winner of the Whitbread Prize for best first fiction, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit is a coming-out novel from Jeanette Winterson. The narrator, Jeanette, cuts her teeth on the knowledge that she is one of God’s elect, but as this budding evangelical comes of age, and comes to terms with her preference for her own sex, the peculiar balance of her God-fearing household crumbles.


Paperback, 272 pages
Size: 148mm×210mm

L'herbier d'une vie

by Véronique Barrau
Published by Chongqing University Press
2018
Book Design
This is a cultural book, but also a beautiful botanical illustration, the author has gathered more than a hundred kinds of plants that people come into contact with at various stages and occasions in their lives, with the help of plants expressed emotions and wishes, etc. For example, rosemary and laurel are used in the bride's bouquet to expect many children, pregnant women who wish to have a boy should eat carrots, and if you have a fever, you can hug a mountain poplar to pass on your illness to it… There are many traditions related to plants in our lives, some of which have disappeared, while others are still common. Plants are closely related to our lives.


Hardcover, 156 pages
Size: 210mm×220mm
Published by Beijing United Publishing Co.,Ltd
2017
Book Design
In the book, I Came Towards the Flame, the nine stories focus on a group of lonely men and women burdened with indescribable pasts, but persistently seeking the flame of life. These individuals are pure and sophisticated, cautious but passionate, sensitive and emotional. They commit evil to punish themselves, they are suspicious de to a lack of trust within, and they betray for the sake of persuing love. Author Zhang Yueran's sharp writing style and rich poetic flare, has created a modern day fable with elements of love and loneliness, money and talent, cultural prejudice and class segregation. Combining these elements, I Came Towards the Flame, presents the glory and darkness of our age visable in the lives revealed through the pages of this book.


Paperback with dust jacket, 304 pages
Size: 145mm×210mm

Newriting

Bookzine edited by Zhang Yueran
From 2008 till now
Art Director / Creative Design / Book Branding
Newriting is a literature MOOK published first in 2008, and have published 25 magazine books so far. Newriting focuses on literature, art, youth culture, and provides a platform for young writers and artists to create, communicate and publish. While constantly recommending cutting-edge writers and artists from other countries, it is also committed to introducing and translating works of domestic writers and artists to other countries. Newriting represents an international literary vision and the editorial standard of "new literature for young people", and has shaped the new landscape of Chinese literature for many years.


Paperback
Size: 168mm×235mm

向死而生、毒舌北野武、浅草小子

by Takeshi Kitano（北野武）

Published by Shanghai Century Publishing (Group) Co.,Ltd
2010
Book Design
The Asakusa Kid（浅草小子） is a book that serves as a prequel to Takeshi Kitano's directorial journey. It explores the earlier life of "Peter Takeshi," known as the Asakusa Kid. During his time studying under Chisaburo Fukami in Asakusa, important decisions were made that shaped "Peter Takeshi's" future.

In Takeshi Kitano（毒舌北野武）, Takeshi boldly declares himself as the "first person with a poisonous tongue." This mindset is not only evident in his intense and visually striking films, but also in this manifesto-style work.

The book Towards Life and Death（向死而生） is a profound reflection by Takeshi Kitano, who faced the brink of death. It shares his thoughts from the accident to the period of recovery, providing a unique perspective on life's fragility.
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