Description: Cartoonist and national treasure Ralph Steadman's unique take on a variety of extinct birds ...
Brief description:
Ralph Steadman was born in 1936. He began his career as a cartoonist, and through the years has diversified into many creative fields. Ralph collaborated with Dr Hunter S. Thompson in the birth of 'gonzo' journalism, with Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas; he has illustrated classics such as Alice in Wonderland, Treasure Island and Animal Farm, and written and illustrated his own books, which include Sigmund Freud, I Leonardo and The Big I Am. Steadman is also a printmaker, and has travelled the world's vineyards, culminating in his books The Grapes of Ralph, Untrodden Grapes and Still Life with Bottle. Steadman's recent books for Bloomsbury include his epic collection of bird illustrations, Extinct Boids.
Review Quotes:
"Not since Adam named the beasts ... has anyone so enriched the language of ornithology as Mr. Steadman and his co-author, Ceri Levy, in Extinct Boids" --New York Times
"A characteristically madcap and often very funny voyage through the dark tale of extinction" --Stephen Moss, Daily Mail "While Steadman gives us paintings of the dodo, the great auk and other familiar lost species in burning, unforgettable colours, we also find the nasty tern, the wizened twit, the dickie bird, the jail bird, and the lesser Peruvian blue-beaked blotswerve. The film-maker and conservationist Ceri Levy anchors it all in sanity with an appealing running commentary." --Michael McCarthy, The Independent "Every turn of the page reveals a bird brought to life in Steadman's inimitable style." --New Scientist "Ralph's remarkable paintings... pay a tribute to some of the most beautiful creatures ever to have lived." --The Lady "Each species is splashed across the page in Steadman's unique style, accompanied by a witty and informative commentary by Levy" --The Guardian "The illustrator Ralph Steadman has used his weird imagination to conjure up colourful, faded feathered friends." --Leicester Mercury "The national treasure that is Ralph Steadman utilises his trademark cartoon-style to document those "ghost birds" whose demise stands as an indictment of mankind's destructive tendencies." --Sunday Express "A riotous flight of imagination with a serious message" --Birdwatch