Hello everyone, and apologies for not posting some recommendations yesterday but I did the biggest experiment I have ever done at work and I was just far too exhausted when I got home to take photos. But today I have a great bunch of recommendations for those people out there who love beautifully illustrated books.

1 – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Illustrated by Anna Bond

There are so many beautifully illustrated versions of Alice in Wonderland out there, and who doesn’t like a beautiful copy of Alice in Wonderland? No one.

Matching (sort of) the Puffin in Bloom series of children’s books, this edition is full of beautiful and vibrant illustrations with a bit of a folky feel. If this edition isn’t doing it for you but you like the idea of giving a beautiful edition of Alice in Wonderland, you can always check out my Five Beautiful Editions of Alice in Wonderland post. But if you do like this edition, you can get it here: The Book Depository, Amazon.

2 – The Resurrectionist: The Lost Works and Writings of Dr. Spencer Black by E. B. Hudspeth

 

Typical for books published by Quirk Books, this is a truly unique book.

The story in this book is based around these incredible anatomical drawings of all these mythical creatures and they are seriously awesome. It’s like the Gray’s Anatomy of monsters. Doesn’t that sound awesome? Yes? Get a copy here: The Book Depository, Amazon.

3 – The Other Side of Eve by Paul Ikin

This is the debut novel of a new Australian writer who does all of the beautiful illustrations himself!

These gorgeous black and white illustrations are scattered though out this novel. This book is the story of two young girls in very different worlds, and explores anxiety through fantasy. I am actually reading this at the moment, but I already feel comfortable recommending it. It’s so imaginative and the illustrations are incredible and it has a bit of a Wizard of Oz vibe, which is also awesome. You can get it here: The Book Depository, Amazon.

4 – The Wizard of Oz, Classics Re-imagined edition, illustrated by Olimpia Zagnoli.

Speaking of The Wizard of Oz, have you seen this edition? It’s pretty awesome.

Okay, I’m not an artist, so I really can’t tell you what the style of these illustrations is. Bright and blocky? Kind of abstract? I don’t know what you call it, but I love it. I really love illustrated editions of classics. I just love seeing other peoples interpretations of these books that have been read and imagined so differently by so many people. This series of classics is becoming one of my favourites! Get this here: The Book Depository, Amazon.

5 – Watership Down by Richard Adams, Illustrated by Aldo Galli

If you’re like me and was completely traumatised by the animated film version of this book as a child, and therefore put off reading it, you should definitely give this another go. The writing is stunning, and this illustrated version is absolute perfection!

This edition is full of beautiful moody (rather than traumatizing) illustrations that fit this amazing story perfectly. Get this edition here:  The Book Depository, Amazon.

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So those are my recommendations for beautifully illustrated books. I would love to hear what some of your favourite illustrated books are in the comments!

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Check out the other Bookmas posts on what to buy:

The Creature of the Night

The Witch/Wizard

And all the Bookmas posts (including 2014) here.

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