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Goodbye BDR

Just like every other book blogger (and their mum),  I was sadden to read that Joseph Sullivan has decided to put his blog The Book Design Review on an “indefinite hiatus.”

The BDR has consistently been one of my favourite book blogs and was one of the first I added to my RSS reader.

It was a revelation to discover a blog that was about books and design. But more importantly The BDR made me realise that book blogs could be about the people who made books as well those that wrote them, and that enthusiasm might just be more interesting than snarkasm.

Nevertheless, I understand why Joe is taking a break (and I hope it is just a break, even though I don’t really think it is). Taking blogging seriously — taking the time to curate material and write about it well — can wear you down. There is (self-imposed) pressure to deliver, and when it doesn’t pay (and it doesn’t) it is hard to justify — especially if other creative projects fall by the wayside…

But, to be honest, I also feel kind of responsible. In the 5 years since Joe started The BDR a lot of other book design blogs like mine (even though I tell myself this isn’t really a book design blog) and sites like FaceOut Books and Pieratt‘s The Book Cover Archive have cropped up. Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it’s also fucking irritating. Even though he’s always been very kind to me, I’m sure Joe must have thought WTF? on more than one occasion. Perhaps the Amazon poll for the best book cover of 2009 was the final straw?

All I really know though is that I will miss The BDR terribly, and that will try not to disappoint Joe’s regular readers who chose to haunt The Casual Optimist in its (hopefully temporary) absence.

Thanks again Joe. (And sorry).

(Pictured: The Great Perhaps, designed by Jamie Keenan, one The BDR‘s Favourite Book Covers of 2009)

5 Comments

  1. Dan:

    Wow. What to say. Thanks for your kind words. I’m glad to have contributed to what Ingrid Paulson called “this curious subgenre of design.” And if The BDR helped spread the notion that “enthusiasm might just be more interesting than snarkasm,” I’m really happy with and proud of that.

    I’m drinking a glass of wine and just put down the X-Acto knife after starting a collage project that I’ve been wanting to work on for months, so right now, this decision is proving to be the right one. But who knows: if you don’t keep up the good work, I might just have to come back.

    All the best,
    Joe

  2. Dan

    Joe: Thanks again man. I hope that you’ll share your collage project when it’s complete. I promise I will post/email pics of my collage/painting projects in return (should they ever get finished). ;-)

  3. Dan

    Ian: I know. It’s a heartbreaker. :-(

  4. Very sad. But I think Joe and BDR will return one day.

    It seems that http://covers.fwis.com/ has decided to close down their blog too.
    They’ve been stagnant for a while.

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