SO....what's a PorPor Book ?
'PorPor' is a derogatory term my brother used, to refer to the SF and Fantasy paperbacks and comic books I eagerly read from the late 60s to the late 80s.
This blog is devoted to those paperbacks and comics you can find on the shelves of second-hand bookstores...from the New Wave era and 'Dangerous Visions', to the advent of the cyberpunks and 'Neuromancer'.
Les Edwards (b. 1949) is a UK illustrator and artist. He regularly produced artwork for the Games Workshop, including artwork for rule books and the magazine White Dwarf, in the 80s. He also provided cover artwork for both UK and US publishers for mass market paperbacks in the fantasy, sf, and horror genres. In the 90s, he expanded his repertoire to include artwork for comics, such as Eclipse Comic's series of graphic novels based on Clive Barker titles such as 'Rawhead Rex'.
'Blood and Iron' (98 pp) remains the only book showcasing Edwards's artwork, and while its publication date of 1989 means that much of his catalog is not represented, it does provide some useful information about how the artist goes about working up an illustration, his techniques, and his perceptions of the commercial art world.
Many of the illustrations in Blood and Iron will be instantly recognizable to US readers, especially those who read DAW books in the late 80s, as Edwards contributed a number of cover paintings to The Year's Best Horror Stories.
Other cover paintings that will be familiar to US readers include Edwards's work for the 'Cadre' trilogy by Robert O' Riordan, the cover painting for Frederik Pohl's novel Man Plus, and the cover painting for the Neil Barrett, Jr novel The Karma Corps.
It goes without saying that Edwards's work is some of the best to ever appear on fantastic literature book covers, and he stands alongside artists like Michael Whelan, Darrell K. Sweet, Jim Burns, Tim White, Paul Youll, David Mattingly, Paul Alexander, and other artists who adroitly combined a high degree of technical skill with an imaginative approach to their craft.
'Blood and Iron' is long out of print and copies in any condition are expensive. In the absence of any new compilation of Edwards's artwork, readers are directed to his website, which features an expansive collection of his older and newer commissions for book covers, private works, CD covers and sleeves, and advertising.
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