Book picks similar to
Blooming Books by Raymond Briggs


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Jim Cornette Presents: Behind the Curtain - Real Pro Wrestling Stories


Jim Cornette - 2019
    This is the graphic novel that old-school wrestling fans have been waiting for: a no-holds-barred representation of the moments that wrestling insiders couldn't talk about for years!Behind the Curtain - Real Pro Wrestling Stories presents three chapters of tales, personally curated by Jim Cornette and adapted by Brandon Easton and Denis Medri, the team behind the critically acclaimed Andre the Giant: Closer to Heaven.Featuring stories about Ric Flair, Jerry Lawler, Andy Kaufman, Sputnik Monroe, The Sheik, Junkyard Dog, the Fabulous Freebirds, the Midnight Express, Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, and more. Also includes Jim's colorful Glossary of Pro Wrestling Terms, as well as photos and newspaper clippings from his personal archives!

Unnatural Talent: Creating, Printing and Selling Your Comic in the Digital Age


Jason Brubaker - 2013
    While the publishing industry struggles to adapt to the rapidly changing digital world, independent artists now have the ability to build a successful and lucrative brand completely on their own with a little hard work and some Internet savvy. Now there's nothing stopping you from getting your book in front of thousands or even millions of people. Suddenly you can't blame anyone for not giving you a chance. You can only blame yourself for not trying. So roll up your sleeves, sharpen your pencils and fire up your Internet because we are about to make and sell comics! Jason Brubaker's graphic novel reMIND raised over $125,000 in pre-order sales on Kickstarter, won the Xeric Award and made ALA's Great Graphic Novels for Teens List. This book is a collection of his thoughts, strategies and practical lessons developed during his experience writing, drawing and self-publishing reMIND.

This Is Me, Period.: The Art, Pleasures, and Playfulness of Punctuation


Philip Cowell - 2017
    Each chapter in This is Me, Period introduces one of the major pieces of punctuation and all of its idiosyncracies, including:The dashing em dash— So-called "quotation marks"The colon: and on and onThe shouty exclamation!The three dots of . . . (Don't forget the brackets)And even moreAs charming as it is educational, This is Me, Period helps you understand sentence structure in a novel way that keeps you turning the pages for more.

A Monster Calls: The Art and Vision Behind the Film


Desirée de Fez - 2016
    A. Bayona (The Impossible), based on the acclaimed novel by Patrick Ness.A Monster Calls tells the story of Conor O’Malley (Lewis MacDougall), a young boy whose world has been turned upside down by his mother’s (Felicity Jones) terminal illness. Conor’s life is thrown further into disarray when he is visited by a gigantic monster, formed from the bark of a tree in a nearby churchyard. The monster vows to tell Conor three stories over several visits and demands that Conor must then tell his own story. As his mother’s health worsens and Conor struggles to deal with everyday life and the visits of the monster, he must confront his worst fears to survive. Also featuring the voice of Liam Neeson as the monster, plus an exceptional performance by Sigourney Weaver as Conor’s grandmother, A Monster Calls is an emotionally gripping tale delivered with style and panache by director J. A. Bayona, whose next film is the much-anticipated Jurassic World 2. This book tells the full story of the creation of A Monster Calls through revealing interviews with the cast and crew—including Bayona, MacDougall, Jones, Neeson, and Weaver—and stunning behind-the-scenes visuals, such as concept art and on-set stills. The Art of A Monster Calls also delves into the electrifying special effects that bring the titular behemoth to life and the creation of the unique animated segments that accompany the monster’s stories in the film. The ultimate companion to one of the most exceptional films of 2016, The Art of A Monster Calls is a must-have for film fans.

Sacred Summits


Peter Boardman - 1982
    In one climbing year Peter Boardman visited three very different sacred mountains. He began in the New Year, on the South Face of the Carstensz Pyramid in New Guinea. This shark's fin of steep limestone walls and sweeping glaciers is the highest point between the Andes and the Himalaya, and one of the most inaccessible, rising above thick jungle inhabited by warring Stone Age tribes. During the spring Boardman was on more familiar, if hardly more reassuring, ground, making a four-man, oxygen-free attempt on the world's third highest peak, Kangchenjunga. Hurricane-force winds beat back their first two bids on the unclimbed North Ridge, but they eventually stood within feet of the summit - leaving the final few yards untrodden in deference to the inhabiting deity. In October, he was back in the Himalaya and climbing the mountain most sacred to the Sherpas: the twin-summited Gauri Sankar. Renowned for its technical difficulty and spectacular profile, it is aptly dubbed the Eiger of the Himalaya and Boardman's first ascent of the South Summit took a committing and gruelling twenty-three days. Three sacred mountains, three very different expeditions, all superbly captured by Boardman in Sacred Summits, his second book, first published shortly after his death in 1982. Combining the excitement of extreme climbing with acute observation of life in the mountains, this is an amusing, dramatic, poignant and thought-provoking book, amply fulfilling the promise of Boardman's first title, The Shining Mountain, for which he won the John Llewelyn Rhys Prize in 1979. Peter Boardman and Joe Tasker died on Everest in 1982, whilst attempting a new and unclimbed line. Both men were superb mountaineers and talented writers. Their literary legacy lives on through the Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature, established by family and friends in 1983 and presented annually to the author or co-authors of an original work which has made an outstanding contribution to mountain literature. For more information about the Boardman Tasker Prize, visit: www.boardmantasker.com

Block Printing: Techniques for Linoleum and Wood


Sandy Allison - 2011
    - Detailed, illustrated instructions for selecting tools, paper, and ink; carving both linoleum and wood; and printing by hand in one color or more to achieve professional results - Techniques can be used for art prints, posters, signs, invitations, greeting cards, gift wrap, and fabric - Expert tips on registering, editioning, tearing down paper, and cleaning up - Includes an annotated gallery of finished prints that feature the artist's comments

A Field Guide to Redheads: An Illustrated Celebration


Elizabeth Graeber - 2016
    Illustrated by Elizabeth Graeber, a redhead herself, this pretty little hardcover gift book presents a pantheon of 100 famous redheads, both real and fictional. Each page is a treat in how it surprises and pleases, acting as a field guide to every type of redhead, whether amber or auburn, ginger or strawberry: David Bowie and Rita Hayworth; Archie, Adele, and Axl Rose; Malcolm X, Sylvia Plath, and Yosemite Sam; Eric the Red, Louis C.K., Anne of Green Gables; Woody Woodpecker and Morris the Cat. Not to mention Napoleon, Shirley Temple, and those Raggedy Twins, Ann and Andy.   If you are a redhead, celebrate your place among such distinguished company. If you love, or are loved by, a redhead, discover just how special the world is that you orbit.

Grandma's Dead: Breaking Bad News with Baby Animals


Amanda McCall - 2008
    Are you afraid to tell your girlfriend that her ass looks fat? Do you need to explain to your nephew that dreams don't come true? Why not let a cute, fuzzy bunny do it for you! We understand how hard it is to tell someone that you're sleeping with his wife, so let a photograph of a duckling sleeping on a teddy bear soften the blow. These perforated postcards answer all of your cowardly prayers - you'll finally be able to tell the truth without ever conquering your fear of confrontation. Let these adorable baby animals supply a silver lining to any bad situation and avoid, a long, tearful afternoon explaining why daddy's never coming home.

Codename Tricycle: The true story of the Second World War's most extraordinary double agent


Russell Miller - 2004
    In fact, he was one of Britain's most successful double agents, and, some say, the inspiration for James Bond. With full access to FBI and MI5 records, along with private family papers, his incredible adventures can now be told authoritatively for the first time. Recruited by the Abwehr in 1940, 27-year-old Popov immediately offered his services to the British. His code-name was Tricycle. Throughout the war he fed the Germans with a constant stream of military 'intelligence', all vetted by MI5, and came to be viewed as their most important and reliable agent in Britain. But when he was ordered by the Abwehr to the United States to report on the defences at Pearl Harbor, J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the FBI, failed to heed his warnings, distrusting all spies and detesting Popov in particular, whom he considered to be 'a moral degenerate'. Facing the danger of exposure, arrest and execution on a daily basis, Tricycle went on to build up a network known as the Yugoslav Ring, which not only delivered a stream of false information to Berlin but also supplied vital intelligence to the Allies on German rocketry, strategy and security. After the war Dusko Popov was granted British citizenship and awarded an OBE. The presentation was made, appropriately, in the cocktail bar at the Ritz.

Ellerbisms: A Sporadic Diary Comic


Marc Ellerby - 2012
    Ellerbisms catches a glimpse into the life of a young couple, their highs and lows, their sighs and LOLs.Ellerbisms collects more than 200 original strips plus an additional 30 pages of brand new material exclusive to this edition.

My Eyes Looking Back at Me: Insight Into a Survivor's Soul


Menucha Meinstein - 2015
    Rejoice over the bonds of love, friendship and forgiveness, of finding relatives, and share the triumph of unexpected turns in Leah's story that will inspire you, leaving you breathless. "How did she do it?" You'll find it all here, as you follow Leah through the many phases of her life, her redemption and revenge against Hitler's evil, and to grateful happiness during her 90th year. When Leah Cik Roth decides to write her secret memoirs for her children, writer, Menucha Meinstein, walks into her life as a volunteer. The two develop the deepest of human bonds as together they uncover Leah's lifelong bitterness and suppressed Holocaust memories. Through Soul-Writing, they struggle to relive Leah's stories, revealing heroic patterns of resilience from the young age of five. Her memories bring out fresh pain, and renewed feelings of loss and loneliness. The Holocaust is merely a backdrop to Leah's life. Together, the two women share joy in the legacy that Leah leaves for the world.

The Little Book of Big Weightloss


Bernadette Fisers - 2017
    Based on a simple set of 31 food and lifestyle 'rules', this inspiring book is packed with invaluable tips and strategies and provides a fresh, 'can do' approach to dieting and sustainable health benefits.Successful hair and makeup artist Bernadette Fisers had struggled with her weight for years. She'd tried and failed at many diets over the years but things came to a head when she was forced to face some harsh truths: her weight had ballooned to almost 130 kilos and she had a BMI reading of 42. Pre-diabetic and diagnosed as morbidly obese with a fatty liver and high blood pressure, Bern decided that now was the time to ditch the faddy diets and take matters into her own hands to turn her life around. So she turned to those she knew well, the glamorous models she worked with, finding out about their healthy eating habits and their tips on staying trim. She also began researching medical reports and health and nutrition papers, until finally - by trial, error and a lot of experimentation - she created a healthy lifestyle plan that was quick to read, easy to follow and, most importantly, would work long term. Following her new 'rules', Bern went on to lose more than 30 kilos in just 30 weeks and she is now on a mission to help others to achieve their goals.

A Garden In Sarlat: Fulfilling an ambition to run a bed and breakfast in The Dordogne


David Prothero - 2016
    They knew that it was a massive gamble. Their friends called them brave. Their families thought that they had either gone completely mad or were dreaming of a delusional easy life in the sun. In the event none of these assumptions were completely accurate. Moving and funny, this is the story of the trials and tribulations involved in buying and converting their new house. The challenges of starting a new business in a foreign land, speaking a language they had struggled to learn thirty years previously and had since forgotten. But ultimately of fulfilling their ambition to work, laugh and play in the beautiful town of Sarlat.

The Man Who is Mrs Brown - The Biography of Brendan O'Carroll


David O'Dornan - 2013
    Finally, he was being acknowledged as a worldwide sensation in his role as the irrepressible ‘Mammy’ Agnes Brown.Over the last few years, Brendan has spread his wings to taste success as an author, a playwright, a comedian, an actor, a television star and more, picking up major awards along the way. But it hasn’t always been a bed of roses for the Dubliner, who started off life working as a waiter before evolving into the hardest working man in showbiz.Born in 1955 as the youngest of 11 children, he grew up in a two-bedroom corporation house in the rough-and-tumble working class area of Finglas in north Dublin. After his father Gerard died, when Brendan was just seven years old, his formidable mother Maureen – who influenced Brendan’s future career – raised him on his own.Life truly didn’t begin until 40 for Brendan, who left school aged just 12 and tried his hand at anything to earn a living, including jobs as a milkman, DJ, bar manager and painter and decorator. But after being persuaded to have a go on the comedy circuit it was the the beginning of a new dawn in Brendan’s life that would see him become the man with the Midas touch.In the years since, his work rate has become phenomenal as his earthy comedy has become a global hit, he found love again with his second wife and co-star Jennifer Gibney and he has become rich beyond his wildest dreams thanks to his foul-mouthed matriarch Mrs Brown.In this first ever biography of the star, David O’Dornan reveals the extraordinary rags to riches journey Brendan O’Carroll has made to become a comedy genius loved by millions of devoted fans. This is a must-read book for any fan and includes exclusive interviews with those nearest and dearest to the star.

The Last Hedgehog


Pam Ayres - 2018
    Pam Ayres’ spiky and wonderful creation reminds us that unless we take steps to prevent it, they will soon be far from ‘common’ indeed: beautifully illustrated by Alice Tait, the poem sees our hero tell of all the terrible ends his family come to at our own hands - and exactly what we can still do to keep them alive, and see them thrive once more.