Thursday 26 May 2011

The James Bond Books: Better In Croatia

Croatian book publishers Algoritam are doing wonderful things for the good of mankind. Specifically, they're getting shit hot Croatian photographers to create new covers for Ian Fleming's James Bond books.

Marina Filipovic Marinshe has gone to great lengths to ensure that each of her covers, depicting a different Bond girl, is as faithful to Fleming's descriptions as possible. So far she's shot covers for 'Casino Royale', 'Live And Let Die' and the short story collection 'Quantum Of Solace', and they're all amazing:
As the author intended: Vesper Lynd, Solitaire and Judy Havelock

By far the best cover so far, though, is Hrvoje Radeljic's recently-revealed 'Moonraker', featuring Gala Brand (a character who never made it to the filmed version) inside Drax's rocket shaft, staring up at the titular vessel of death. Made up and dressed in period wear to reflect the original publication time of the book, model Ana Kurobasa is every inch the 1950s British Special Branch agent of the novel, specifically the 38-26-38 inches Fleming specified. Whether she went as far as including the mole on the upper curvature of her right breast remains sadly unknown.

Amusing Footnote
The model on the cover of 'Live And Let Die' is called Ana Fuckar. Don't tell Roger Moore, he'll have a heart attack.

4 comments :

  1. Heart attack? He'll more likely have a stroke. Oh James...

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  2. Would be great to see Gala in a cinematic version as the one that got away for Bond, thought she was a great character. Had only seen the Moonraker cover so good to see the others here. They really are fabulously close to how Fleming described them. Surely there's an ingenious programme out there to scan this picture for that mole? Would be the icing on a very appealing cake.

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  3. Those are awesome.

    I mean the covers, of course.

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  4. I never pictured Judy looking like that, to be honest. Although Vesper and Gala are pretty spot on. Nice work.

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