Marina Shirakawa's Yokai Picture Book

October 12, 2021, 12:19 pm

≫ Next: Tomi Ungerer's Nonstop

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Details from a book collection of Marina Shirakawa's yokai drawings. Shirakawa (1944-2000) also features prominently in an anthology of mushroom-themed manga from the same Japanese published, ele-king books/P-Vine.

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Tomi Ungerer's Nonstop

October 13, 2021, 11:42 am

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How it begins

From Tomi Ungerer's final picture book, Nonstop, published by Phaidon in 2020. Find it at 50 Watts Books or on Bookshop.org (I'm a regular affiliate there, not a bookstore affiliate).

My summary: Vasco's shadow helps guide him through a crumbling world where "birds, butterflies, and rats were gone" and "flowers had turned into memories." Along the way he rescues Poco, the little green child of Nothing, and they eventually find a gigantic cake in the desert (a happy ending!). I love this book.



How it ends

The Fake Kyoto Collection

October 18, 2021, 11:16 am

≫ Next: Posters by Ghobad Shiva

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Some blown-up details from Imiri Sakabashira's The Fake Kyoto Collection, a Japanese book from 2020.
Born in 1964, Imiri Sakabashira is part of the Japanese underground generation centering around publications like Garo and AX. His work has been exhibited in the Trancepop Gallery in Kyoto and the Billiken Gallery in Tokyo.

Posters by Ghobad Shiva

January 5, 2022, 1:33 pm

≫ Next: A Dream Within a Dream

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silk-screen prints from 1975

Posters by Ghobad Shiva (born 1940) found in the book Music Posters from Pre-Revolution Iran, 1960s-70s. The section opens with some quotes by Shiva:
"Posters offer a vast field to every graphic designer. While you present the information, you find an opportunity to add your individual artistic and intellectual view, what you seldom enjoy in other graphic media."
"I spend more time on designing a poster than I do on other graphic works because you send a poster into the streets, where it generates thought, for which a graphic designer is highly responsible."
"I believe you must turn the voices and melodies of music into a visual format. This is an Eastern view. Eastern artists almost never include real elements in their design."

silk-screen prints from 1972



silk-screen prints from 1976

A Dream Within a Dream

March 7, 2022, 1:52 pm

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Jan Konupek, from the cycle Dream Land, 1940, found in Edgar Allan Poe and Art in the Czech Land

Some images from A Dream Within a Dream: Edgar Allan Poe and Art in the Czech Land, a recent publication now available at 50 Watts Books


Frantisek Kobliha, The Black Cat, 1950, found in Edgar Allan Poe and Art in the Czech Land



Frantisek Kobliha, Shadow, 1950, found in Edgar Allan Poe and Art in the Czech Land




Alfred Kubin, Pendulum, 1903, found in Edgar Allan Poe and Art in the Czech Land




Josef Vachal, 1946, The Masque of the Red Death, found in Edgar Allan Poe and Art in the Czech Land

Bookstore Image Dive 1

March 8, 2022, 9:55 am

≫ Next: 50 Watts Books - Our First Publications

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Nicole Claveloux, c1974, for a French edition of Alice in Wonderland
found in Les images libres - Illustrations for Children, 1966-1986

A selection of images found in books on the shelves at 50 Watts Books. Books go in and out of print, and I look forward to revisiting a post in a few years to marvel at what was available.

Nicole Claveloux, c1971 for Le Chat de Simulombula
found in Les images libres - Illustrations for Children, 1966-1986



from La Faune de Mars by Mobeius



from La Faune de Mars by Mobeius



Helene Jeudy, from Digital Species




Alain Gauthier, from Les Avatars de Pilou, 1977 found in Les images libres - Illustrations for Children, 1966-1986




A reprint of a 1925 Japanese edition of Aesop's Fables, illustrated by the legendary Takeo Takei (1894-1983)



A reprint of a 1925 Japanese edition of Aesop's Fables, illustrated by the legendary Takeo Takei (1894-1983)



The Birds' Broadcast, found in Locomotive by Julian Tuwim, illustrated by Lewitt and Him, c1938

50 Watts Books - Our First Publications

April 12, 2022, 3:05 pm

≫ Next: A Tiger in the Land of Dreams

≪ Previous: Bookstore Image Dive 1

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4/12/2022: Forthcoming from 50 Watts Books in 2022 and 2023. While running the bookstore over the last year, I've been working on four books at the top of my list of dream projects. These books have fascinated (and confused) me for years -- longtime followers of the blog might recognize some -- and I'm excited to put them into the world.
To follow their progress and be alerted when preorders begin, sign up for the 50 Watts Books email list. I'll also keep this page up-to-date. Booksellers, please get in touch!
I will be selling some rare books by Tiger Tateishi and Kiyoshi Awazu to raise printing funds.


A Tiger in the Land of Dreams
by Tiger Tateishi
Translated by Yosuke Kitazawa
ISBN 9781957625003
32 pages, 7.5 x 10.25 inches, full color
Publication date: summer 2022 / $19.95 / hardcover
A Tiger in the Land of Dreams is the first English-language edition of a legendary picture book from 1984. Tiger Tateishi, a well-known artist in the worlds of art and manga, takes us on a journey through a surreal world with Torakichi, a constantly-morphing green tiger. The artist saw this strange tiger as a combination of an animal and a plant. Suitable for all ages, but this is the type of book you buy for the dreamy artwork.


from A Tiger in the Land of Dreams by Tiger Tateishi


from A Tiger in the Land of Dreams by Tiger Tateishi

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The King of Circles
by Shuntarō Tanikawa
Designed and illustrated by Kiyoshi Awazu
Translated by Yosuke Kitazawa
The first English-language edition of a 1971 Japanese picture book. Suitable for all ages, but of particular interest to followers of the legendary graphic designer Kiyoshi Awazu.

24 pages, 9 x 9.25 inches, full color
Publication date, price & format -- coming soon


Translation forthcoming, but here's a taste of the incredible artwork

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Animal Land where there are no People
by Sybil and Katharine Corbet
A 50 Watts Production (which has been in the works for 10 years): we've given a colorful twist to a book originally published in Scotland in 1897 (when it was popular enough to inspire parody versions). It was written by a very imaginative 4-year-old (Sybil) and illustrated by her mother. Suitable for all ages.
"With art reminiscent of Mervyn Peake and nonsense reminiscent of Edward Lear, this gorgeous, crazy Victorian bestiary is a reminder that the best taxonomies are written by kids."--Carson Ellis
"A professional wit would be in labor to create these animals and these words, which Sybil has only to open her eyes and see, to open her lips and utter. In the field of pure Nonsense this is genius."-—from the introduction by Andrew Lang
64-page paperback, 6 x 6 inches, full color
Publication date: summer 2022 / $14.95

from Animal Land by Sybil and Katharine Corbet


from Animal Land by Sybil and Katharine Corbet


from Animal Land by Sybil and Katharine Corbet


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Pange-Rehe Stories
Text and illustrations by Jüri Arrak
Translated by Adam Cullen
The first English-language edition of a 1975 Estonian book. It is only 20 pages long, but you'll never forget it.

20 pages, 7-7/8 x 9-3/8 inches, full color
Publication date and price -- coming soon

A Tiger in the Land of Dreams

August 29, 2022, 12:37 pm

≫ Next: Kozo Yokoi

≪ Previous: 50 Watts Books - Our First Publications

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A look inside the 50 Watts Books edition of Tiger Tateishi's incredible A Tiger in the Land of Dreams

A Tiger in the Land of Dreams
by Tiger Tateishi
Translated by Yosuke Kitazawa
ISBN 9781957625003
32 pages, 7.5 x 10.25 inches, full color, hardcover
Publication date: Fall 2022 (now shipping!)
A Tiger in the Land of Dreams is the first English-language edition of a legendary picture book from 1984. Tiger Tateishi, well-known in the worlds of art and comics, takes us on a journey through a surreal land with Torakichi, a constantly-morphing green tiger. The artist saw this strange tiger as a combination of an animal and a plant. Suitable for all ages, but this is the type of book you buy for the dreamy artwork.


from A Tiger in the Land of Dreams by Tiger Tateishi


from A Tiger in the Land of Dreams by Tiger Tateishi


from A Tiger in the Land of Dreams by Tiger Tateishi

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Kozo Yokoi

September 9, 2022, 11:08 am

≫ Next: Naoyuki Katoh SF Illustrations

≪ Previous: A Tiger in the Land of Dreams

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Here's a real find (for me at least): an illustration from a 1925 issue of Kodomonotomo. I had never seen work by this person (I think I'd remember!): Kozo Yokoi (1889–1965), who went on to a career as a painter (dubbed "the Japanese Rousseau"). I scanned these from a 2017 book on Kodomonotomo. I'll see what else I can dig up.

Naoyuki Katoh SF Illustrations

August 1, 2023, 11:00 am

≪ Previous: Kozo Yokoi

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Images found in two 1980s books, Naoyuki Katoh SF Illustrations I and II (there's also a volume III), which I occasionally have for sale at 50 Watts Books.

Naoyuki Katoh, Voyage of the Space Beagle, c 1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s




Naoyuki Katoh, c1980s