Twyla Tharp

Buy The Creative Habit from Amazon

Another book to fall casualty to my irrational and unstoppable spending sprees at Amazon is Twyla Tharp's The Creative Habit. Tharp unveils the mystery behind the unseen process of choreography; what drives Tharp to create, where her inspiration and motivation comes from.

Artists and their creative processes have always fascinated me. And the deeper you dig, one discovers that it is less about inspiration and more about perspiration. Great artists put in the hours. For every success they would have had three previous works (or thereabouts) panned by the critics.

The Paris Review, back in the day when it was edited by George Plimpton, used to be a favourite. Especially the interviews, which - thanks to generosity of TPR - is now available online. I've got an itch to pick the magazine up again, but I can't seem to find it in the bookshops. If anyone knows, please let me know.

This Is London

Deadlines in real life have come and gone. magpiestyle is back in business.

For a long time I have had my eye on This Is London by Miroslav Sasek. So when it came to do my ritualistic monthly order of books from Amazon, This Is London was put out of its 'Wish List' misery and the fateful order was placed. And my God, was it worth it.

The illlustrations throw you back to the '60s; a time when London was the largest city in the world, when tube tickets were made from stiff cardboard, when WH Smith was still run by Mr Smith.

Not necessarily a bedtime story just for kids, it's one for the grown-ups too.

Buy This Is London from Amazon

See: www.miroslavsasek.com

The Story Of Coco

The World of Coco Chanel traces the life of the grande dame behind the eponymous design house Chanel. Written by Chanel's close friend and biographer, Edmonde Charles-Roux, the book's illustrations are drawn from Charles-Roux's archive. The result is an intimate portrayal.

Just bought from Claire de Rouen today, fresh out its wrapper, I can't wait to read the book cover to cover.

Buy The World of Coco Chanel from here.

Page Turner: Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

Those of you familiar with the oeuvre of Julie Garland and Jude Deveraux will love this book. However, du Maurier's command of the English language is quite something else. Straightforward storyline which one can guess from about 50 pages in (or less), but du Maurier sweeps you on a journey that leaves you wanting.

There's also the film, directed by Alfred Hitchcock with Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine in the leading roles.

Image borrowed from here. Rebecca, 1940. Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier.
Image courtesy of MPTV.net

New Books For My Bookshelf

On dance, cooking and graphic.

• Twyla Tharp: The Creative Habit
• Simple Menus for the Bento Box
• Leith's Seasonal Cookery Bible
• Edward Gorey: The Unstrung Harp
  

Magazine Culture

UK £27.50
Trade Paperback (10 x 13 inches)
ISBN10: 0-7893-1497-5 ISBN13: 978-0-7893-1497-0
Published by Universe
Buy from Magma Books

Magazines are social anthologies. In the case of independent/niche magazines, they are normally started by young creatives, probably slightly frustrated with the mainstream media. So the magazines they publish are a reflection of their desires, passions and aims. To make it all possible, a pool of like-minded individuals are normally called upon to photograph and write reflecting the same left-field view as the publishers'.

Today, we have Butt, Fantastic Man, Kilimanjaro and Werk along with many others; some too small that's yet to register on my radar. Not just the content, but the smell and feel of a magazine is seductive. Living a life in the thrall of magazines, I am eager to get my hands on the newly published The Last Magazine. Initially thinking it's a book about magazines, a description about the book in Magma's catalogue has managed to confuse me. It goes like this,

"Presented here in this visual anthology are the current boutique periodicals so cutting-edge, they will continue to flourish in print even as their mainstream contemporaries move to digital."

This hasn't detracted, and instead have heightened, my curiosity. I suppose the only way to find out is to buy a copy.

While on the topic of books about magazines, there's one that exceeds all others. 100 Years of Magazine Covers authored by Steve Taylor and designed by Neville Brody has to be the best of its genre. Now, Neville is know from his time at the now-defunct The Face. More recently, he was behind the way The Guardian website looks today and is a renowned designer with studios stretching from Berlin to London to New York.

The choice of magazine covers featured aren't limited to 'avant-garde' titles, but open-minded. The inclusion of fashion titles like i-D, The Face and Dazed & Confused isn't surprising. The editorial team did not forget that the magazine publishing business does stretch furtherer than that. So covers of Fast Company (business), Maxim (mens) and Mayfair (adult) sit comfortably with Tatler, Time Out and Vanity Fair.

UK £29.95, US $45.00
Hardback, 288 pages, 400 illustrations (23 x 30 cm)
ISBN10: 1904772420 ISBN13: 9781904772422
Published by Black Dog Publishing
Buy from Amazon

Pet Shop Boys Exhibition

On the lower ground floor of London's National Portrait Gallery in the little foyer outside the bookshop, Pet Shop Boys is featured in a small exhibition. The highlight is the screening of their pop videos. Love Comes Quickly, It's A Sin, What Have I Done To Deserve This, every Pet Shop Boys classic you can think of. Just fabulous.

Don't forget to get the accompanying book Catalogue. It'd make for a great Christmas present actually.

The Little Prince

Do you remember when you first read The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry? I was about 10 years old, if I remember rightly. A long time has passed since. The Little Prince rebranded, entered the world of mass marketing and commercialism, spawning endless spin-off products like notebooks, mugs etc. Despite everything, I think it is time to give it a second read.