Nights at the Circus - Angela Carter - £49.95

Published today by Folio.

https://www.foliosociety.com/uk/nights-at-the-circus.html?

$145 AUD shipped (standard) to Australia.

Present £ equivalent = £80

That's expensive.

Love the book and would definitely order (even though I already have a nice copy of it), but I honestly really don’t like the illustrations and don’t think they suit the book. Nice choice by Folio though!

>2 LesMiserables:
£50 in England isn't exactly cheap either. I've long wanted them to do an Angela Carter novel, but sadly it'll have to wait. £30-something and I've been in there.

>4 Willoyd: I've long wanted them to do an Angela Carter novel

They did The Bloody Chamber & Other Stories in 2012, though that doesn't fit your criteria exactly,

I have never before been so immediately off-put by illustrations in a book. They actually overpower any interest I have in the content and merits of the book itself. Unfortunate.

Wondering if this release is going to all be a slow trickle?

Hideous cover and the illustrations are not my thing at all. Is the story any good?

Happy about the Sarah Waters introduction...have been hoping they would do one of her books, this might be a first step!

I like this book and although I am not immediately enamoured with the illustrations, I think that they will quickly grow on me. Although Cooper is a Royal Academician I don’t know her work and to my only partially educated eye I am thinking as a cross between Paula Rego and Russian folk.
Generously illustrated by current standards, and I like the cover illustrations and slipcase colours, this is another book on my wish list.
It is also an exciting contemporary (well 1984) British novel, so pleasing to see a more literary choice.

FS never fails to surprise us with their tactics. When will the entire collection be released? I was hoping this Wednesday but then...

I actually love the illustrations, I'm just waiting for FS to be done with their spring collection so that I can place my order.

The illustrations are so awful that this one is a definite miss for me. Unfortunately, FS have a tendency to choose either ugly illustrations (for my taste, I know not everyone shares that) or pretty, but kind of superficial ones in recent years. The beautiful mix between artistic depth and beauty that I most enjoy has become increasingly rare.

>5 folio_books:
Yes, I have a copy!
(Later edit: Or, at least, had one. Have now sold it, and replaced with Everyman omnibus edition that includes Fireworks and Wise Children).

>1 folio_books: You could consider truncating that link and deleting everything after the first questionmark. It looks like you took it from Facebook, and every time someone clicks it from here it'll look to the FS like it's a referral from Facebook, as opposed to LibaryThing. It's not a big deal, but it does skew their data.

Also, I hope this is not offensive, but it does look like the cover illustration is that of a drag queen out for a really fabulous night. I won't comment on the illustrations anymore.

The price is a bit too high for me...and this sort of 'ugly' aesthetic is not to my tastes either when it comes to illustrations. Maybe it goes on sale one day.

On the plus side, more illustrations than usual, the colours of the book and slipcase are really quite pretty and I like the selection.

Easy pass. Unfamiliar with story, dislike cover color and illustrations, and priced too high to take a chance.

Joining the throng put off by the illustrations. This isn't for me, I'm afraid.

Let me offer a slightly contrarian opinion. I’m not familiar with the book and don’t love the illustrations but I read some reviews and decided that I’m going to buy the book. Surveys are nice but Folio’s customers really vote with their wallets. Folio is stepping up its SFF offerings because fans of those genres are buying those books in large numbers and at full price. For those of us who want to see more offerings of recent fiction, we have to support those offerings. I’m certainly not telling anyone that they have to buy a book that is more expensive than they can afford, or if they cannot abide the illustrations. But if this is the type of book you want to see Folio publish you might consider a purchase even if it is not the design of your dreams. Just a thought.

>16 U_238:

Done. /

>12 bookish_elf: I was hoping this Wednesday but then...

Of course there's nothing to say it won't be this Wednesday but I think you're a little early. Mid-March would accord with their previous pattern so next week (possibly) or the two following weeks would be a better bet, imo.

>22 folio_books: They just replied to a question on Twitter and said very soon, but who knows what that means...

>23 RRCBS: very soon, but who knows what that means...

Indeed. I'd welcome the new collection this week to put us out of our misery but I wouldn't bet on it. That's just my opinion.

I don't love the artwork, but I don't dislike it enough to be put off from picking this up eventually. I've already got The Bloody Chamber, hopefully Folio will be encouraged to do The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman at some point, too.

hideous and overpriced as has become the standard during the last few months

Those illustrations are absolutely hideous. Not even tempted. I love my copy of The Bloody Chamber, but I honestly never even heard of this work. I love her style, but if I ever read this, I will be perfectly content with a paperback copy. It doesn't look like something I would read often. Pure skip for me.

Never heard of this but, after looking at the photos, "EILEEN COOPER’S EXTRAORDINARY ARTWORK" cracked me up.

This book looks so unappealing that I'm not even sad at the fact that Brexit has made ordering from Folio an unjustifiable luxury for me.

>20 Redshirt: Respectfully, there's nothing I find in your post to be contrarian. As often as the FS publishes books that are desirable to me, I'll buy them. I don't count this book among the desirable ones.

>21 folio_books: Thank you! I hope you don't mind my nitpicking about things like these and post titles.

I don't like the illustrations in Over Sea Under Stone, but I have found that when I read the novel they actually work really well, I wonder if these may not do the same. It is rather grotesque story so I don't find the artwork inappropriate.

Admittedly I try to limit my FS buying, so I too will pass for now, but I find it an interesting choice and might pick it up later.

>20 Redshirt: You're quite right. This is also the reason why I sort of feel like buying the book...Just to be encouraging since the direction itself is quite appealing to me. We will have to see.

>30 U_238: I didn't mean to suggest anyone should buy a book that isn't desirable to them. But in making my buying decisions, I am trying to favor the content of the book over the design/illustrations. Thus, while I didn't love the shade of green chosen for the recent version of Middlemarch, I bought it (and the color has grown on me). Similarly, I found "A Confederacy of Dunces" garish but bought it anyway (it's design hasn't particularly grown on me). This book wasn't on my radar but I like the editorial direction it represents and therefore want to support it.

I love that book, the story is fantastic and crazy, but those illustrations are hideous. What a shame.

Actually I find the illustrations very interesting and I have ordered. More Angela Carter would be nice and this is a good start. The illustrations are very like Brazilian folk art woodcuts (called xilogravura) which I have always admired (and collect). So, I was predisposed to like these linocuts.

Not a lot of love around for the illustrations. I like them, a lot. I think they complement Carter's prose very well. And it could have been so much worse. "Hey people. quirky author. Can you think of a quirky illustrator?" "How about David Hughes?" "Who?" "You know, he did Connecticut Yankee and Cuckoo's Nest for us ...." See what I mean?

No, if I have a complaint it's about the price, as I have a sinking feeling that may well be the new normal for standard editions.

Count me in the "love the illustrations" camp.

>6 U_238: Yes, from my experience, this is the kind of book that jars the sensibilities of many Faddicts. It will be in a Folio Society sale soon enough.

It is $79.95 for US buyers plus shipping and State taxes.

Based on an imaginary exchange rate?

Having realized that I don’t have a nice copy of this one of her novels and seeing that the introduction is by Sarah Waters, it’s a definite purchase for me. I thought the illustrations for A Confederacy of Dunces were ugly, but was still happy to have acquired a well made copy.

Won't be buying, but the illustrations seem to be in the tradition of earlier FS offerings. Go to her website and you can buy limited edition woodcuts from a cheapo b&w at £500 to a variety in colour at £3,500. Makes the selection here a bargain.

>27 Lady19thC:
but I honestly never even heard of this work.
It's one of her 'classic' novels, alongside Wise Children. It won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, and was later voted the best winner of that prize to date (I think it was around 2012) - not bad given that the prize has been going since just after WW1, unlike modern upstarts like the Booker! Prize winning, of course, isn't a necessary guide to excellence, but these novels are definitely worthy of the FS treatment, more so IMO than quite a few published lately.

I'm definitely in the 'illustrations OK' camp, although have to say the cover doesn't grab me. However, the price is, again IMO, plain silly, and, like >36 folio_books:, I have a distinct sinking feeling about it. I'd love to support this book as Redshirt suggests, but not at these sorts of prices.

>41 Jayked: She is a pillar of the British art establishment, so can command high prices. Having said that, they look reasonably priced to me.

I like the illustrations (except for the one of two people and a baby with what look to be collage additions) but I'm not keen on the cover, either for the typeface but especially the colour. When I think of Victorian circus tents I don't think of turquoise blue. Still, I will buy it at some point I think.

>38 LesMiserables: It seems I generally love all the editions which provoke the most loathing for their design, but have been waiting for Confederacy of Dunces, Work and Ubik to be in sales with no luck as yet!

I don't find the price unreasonable. I'm just waiting for the rest of the collection so that I can place my order. I like the fact that FS doesn't stick to a particular style and however quirky the illustrations might be they always add an extra dimension to my library. I like the fact that one is always surprised. I hope they have some good books in their spring collection.

I like the illustrations but not the price. Given the current situation for ordering from the UK, it's become more than a bit difficult to decide on a purchase from Folio.

As Elizabeth Montgomery might say: Weeeell.

I've been wishing for more Angela Carter from Folio for a long time. And I like the look of this.

I can see, I suppose, why some might not like the illustrations. They are stylised, not realistic, do not conform to stereotypes of beauty. (Maybe that's the point?) But, from my own personal point of view, I've seen much worse from Folio. It's all thoroughly subjective.

I will probably buy it but I'll wait and see the full collection first.

This is a title I’m interested in. I’m firmly in the ‘dislike’ camp with the illustrations, but they aren’t a dealbreaker for me. The price is, though. For $80 I want to like everything about the book. So this will go on my wish list and I’ll hope for a decent sale. I think $50 would be the sweet spot for me, unless folks that order it are really wowed by it.

Regarding prices in general: Here in the US a standard, cheaply made hardcover with no illustrations goes for about $30-35 anymore. So about double that for a well made book with illustrations and high-end materials seems about right, frankly.

>48 Jason461: Agreed. One needs to pay for quality.

>48 Jason461:
So about double that for a well made book with illustrations and high-end materials seems about right, frankly.
The retail price here for a single-work Everyman Classic is £13-£14. The FS Angela Carter is £50 before compulsory postage, ie. almost 4 times the amount. If it was double, i would think it good value. If this book was around £35, I'd have probably ordered instantly.

>50 Willoyd: The Everyman Angela Carter actually contains three of her works (The Bloody Chamber, Wise Children, Fireworks) and is £12.99. If someone hasn’t read any of her work this might be a cheaper way of getting a feel for her work to decide whether to take the plunge

>51 DMulvee:
Yes, I have it. Rather better value than the FS edition IMO. A pity that Everyman seems to have stopped there, as I'd have definitely had a copy of Night at the Circus if they'd done that.

>52 Willoyd: I have it too and it’s great!

>53 RRCBS: I'm a bit of fan of the series - just wish that they did some of the writers in a wee bit more depth, eg completing George Eliot novels and doing more than just 2 Woolfs. But what they do is excellent, and there's a good range of great literature.

>54 Willoyd: The Trollope Palliser series is the one that bothers me. They have published books 1, 2, 3 and 6 of the series but not 4 or 5!

>55 DMulvee:

Just writing from memory, but isn't it that the FS has published the first three Barsetshire novels in recent years, plus the sixth and last Palliser novel in an LE justified by its being the first presentation of the complete text as Trollope intended it? The other Palliser novels, beginning with Can You Forgive Her?, haven't seen the light of Folio day since their publication in the collaborative Folio/Trollope Society edition. I've not been paying the closest attention since those 48 volumes came my way at a very modest price.

>56 terebinth:

I think they're discussing the Everyman edition, Paul. Confused me too when I read it!

Deleted duplicate post.

Oops, thanks Glenn. I'd been reading the thread then came back and just read the single new post. Apologies >55 DMulvee: , I'll try harder to keep up! Presumably it's Everyman's also having access to the full Duke's Children that goes a little way toward explaining their prioritising it, though that still seems odd.

>59 terebinth: Sorry for the confusion! I was referring to the Everyman

>60 DMulvee:
Yes, and to add further to the confusion, just to say that because of that lack of completion, I have instead built up a complete run of the Pallisers with those rather dimimutive mid-twentieth century hardback Oxford Word's Classics in their rather attractive pictorial dustjackets. I have a permanently fixed shelf in a nice glass fronted cabinet in the sitting room that was built to house CDs, and can only take this size of book - it's now home for my small but growing collection of those Trollope hardbacks, enabling me to collect them without consuming shelf space elsewhere! They didn't publish all Trollope's works, but then I don't have room for them all, and it's unlikely I'll ever get around to reading them all either, however much I enjoy Trollope. They are fun though! The Barchester Chronicles remain as Everymans, and I will get a copy of the complete Duke's Children through them too (I found the Folios too vulnerable with their pale easily marked paper covers, and anyway they and the Trollope Society books - preferable - were just too big and too many for my space).

Has anyone received this yet? How is it in person? I am still on the fence and am weighing this vs something on my longtime wishlist to add for my order tomorrow.

From first look I find the illustrations to be (objectively) ugly.

I will reserve ultimate judgement however... I thought the same for "One Flew over the Cuckoo's nest" - and yes, those are as (objectively) ugly but they couldn't be more in tune with the story. I ended up loving them.

>63 bacchus.: Right- I was hoping some of the illustrations not shown in the marketing materials were maybe better somehow. That said if it works for the story I would get it it. Maybe I will wait until my summer order and think on it some more.