The Scarlet Letter by Hawthorne, Nathaniel

Recommended for Grade 11

(Page last edited 10/09/2017)

• Title: The Scarlet Letter
• Author: Hawthorne, Nathaniel
• ISBN: 1451566646
• ISBN 13: 978-1451566642

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Description:

THE SCARLET LETTER is considered Nathaniel Hawthorne's most famous novel-and the first quintessentially American novel in style, theme, and language.

Review (From Amazon.Com):

Amazon Exclusive: Editorial Director Elda Rotor on Classics That Never Go Out of Style

Dear Amazon Readers:

Penguin Classics is pleased to publish three new Penguin Classics Deluxe editions of Wuthering Heights, The Scarlet Letter and Pride and Prejudice, with covers designed by world-renowned fashion illustrator Ruben Toledo.

With Penguin's history of excellence in book design and following the success of our continued series of award-winning deluxe editions with covers by leading graphic and comic artists, we wanted to explore another inspiring world of design for Penguin Classics. Roseanne Serra, our art director for this series, which we call in-house the Couture Classics, had the vision of inviting fashion illustrators to create specially commissioned art work. My first choice of an artist to ask was Ruben Toledo, whose work I have admired since I was a student combing through pages of the earlier incarnations of Paper and Details magazines. I always found his drawings of women dressed in the latest styles to be so imaginative, whimsical and surreal, that they could be characters out of beloved novels.

Ruben agreed to draw these three covers, each in a different medium of ink, watercolor or pencil, because he was attracted to the idea of creating covers for a younger generation of Penguin Classics readers and to promote literacy. They are "not your mother's Bronte" as Glamour tagged the set. Our hope is that these vibrant covers will entice general readers and students with an interest in design to delve into the stories that inspire these artistic creations. We hope that book lovers, those that cherish the old-school feel of a physical book, who love book design, fonts, and the all-around aesthetics of a beautiful book, will want all three.

Cathy and Heathcliff, Hester and Pearl, and Elizabeth and Darcy are the literary muses for these covers, and readers will enjoy Ruben's interpretations of these classic characters plus the mood, texture, and scenery inspired by them. From front to back cover, extending even to the French flaps, each cover represents a refreshing representation of the classic work through Ruben's unique artistic sensibility.

The fun of these covers is that they reiterate that classics are relevant for every generation, especially the latest one. Liesl Schillinger for the New York Times blog identifies the fun in seeing the aesthetics of today's youth embodied in Toledo's art: "Was Heathcliff--the wild child of Wuthering Heights--a 19th-century emo boy? Can you picture Jane Austen's Lizzy Bennet as a Regency gossip girl, and Darcy as her Mr. Big in knee breeches? And what about Hester Prynne--was she Nathaniel Hawthorne's idea of a colonial yummy mummy?" Nylon first blogged about Toledo's series, and the tongue-in-cheek challenge to judge a book by its cover: "While his surreal take on the Yorkshire moors or his Technicolor vision of Hester Prynne might not change the actual details of the plot, they certainly add a stylish edge to book club mainstays."

I've heard that people love the Wuthering Heights cover because it exudes the same dark Gothic sexiness of Twilight's Edward and Bella. (How perfect that Bella herself reads Wuthering Heights for advice on her own love life.) Toledo's details capturing Cathy's persona are mesmerizing, and the chic mysteriousness of Heathcliff peering above his collar captures the perfect bad-boyfriend tone.

The stark black and white Pride and Prejudice cover in silhouette is precise yet witty. (I love the chair on the back cover.) Ruben has a little extra for readers of Pride and Prejudice with a frontispiece of extra “accessories” for the cover's characters.

But my personal favorite is The Scarlet Letter cover. I love the gossiping women, who extend to the French flaps of the cover, emphasizing the size of Hester's scandal. For the font-crazed, Ruben creates various fonts of the letter "A" tacked along the fence. The rose bush, a classic image that appears in 19th-century illustrated editions, is the perfect anchor to this modern interpretation. Look at the ravishing Hester entangled by the mark she must wear on what might be a cashmere sweater dress with an utterly intimidating Pearl in tow in what could be Wolford baby tights. With such alluring images, who wouldn’t be compelled to read these novels?

What went through Ruben's mind in creating these covers? Ruben discussed his process with Women's Wear Daily, "I did approach each story as abstract images--visual quotes from a dream. As I read, I was playing the animated movie in my head. These masterpieces are all so well written."

We hope you enjoy all three books. We hope they spark your imagination and stir up passion for the classics, for Penguin Classics, so timeless and trend-setting, they never go out of style.

Best wishes,
Elda Rotor
Editorial Director, Penguin Classics

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