Just recently released by Beehive Books, following a successful Kickstarter campaign, Pinocchio: The Illuminated Edition is a uniquely immersive experience that I’d highly recommed to Daily Dead readers. Not just a traditional reprint of Carlo Collodi’s work, this “Illuminated Edition” has Mike Mignola teaming up with Lemony Snicket for illustrations and handwritten commentary that create an all-together new experience for this classic tale.
Whether you’re a long-time fan of Pinocchio or are reading the story for the first time, The Illuminated Edition offer something new and exciting, and Beehive Books have really produced a high-quality edition that you can proudly display in any book collection. As someone who has read the original book, and have seen many adaptations over the years, I was impressed by how new this story felt with accompanied by Mignola’s vision for the characters and the world, combined with Snicket’s commentary. Placing me in an entirely different headspace as familiar events unfolded, this edition sets a high standard for how classic works can be revisited and I’m excited to share a handful of Mike Mignola’s illustrations below.
Renowned Hellboy creator Mike Mignola, award-winning colorist Dave Stewart, and celebrated novelist Lemony Snicket (A Series of Unfortunate Events) are teaming up with Beehive Books for an illustrated and annotated edition of Carlo Collodi’s classic novel PINOCCHIO. This all-new, deluxe hardcover edition includes over more than 50 exquisite original illustrations from Mignola, which breathe new life to the charm, gloom, and chaos of the seminal novel, alongside over 100 full text annotations by Snicket, presented as slipped-in typewritten sheets produced by Snicket during his Pinocchio-induced descent into madness.
Beehive Book’s PINOCCHIO: THE ILLUMINATED EDITION provides commentary by Lemony Snicket, which takes both the reader and the acclaimed writer on a first experience of the iconic novel, chock full of surreal symbolism and commentary. “For many years I have been curious to see if I, too, will join the tradition of readers completely transformed into lunatics from a reading of PINOCCHIO, and although Carlo Collodi died long ago, I like to think that somewhere, somehow, he is interested in seeing what I might have to say as I read this book and likely lose my mind,” writes Snicket. “Perhaps you are too.”
“This is not just a new edition of Collodi’s classic—it’s both a celebration of a classic work of children’s literature, and a strange Borgesian experiment,” said Beehive Books Editor Josh O’Neil.” Mignola and Snicket have invented an entirely new way to read this beloved Italian fable. Covered with coffee-stains and ink-blots, Snickett’s notes are more than text annotations -—they’re missives from the brink of literary agony and ecstasy, and in their strange conceit they walk us through the wilds of Collodi’s fabulous tale, and reintroduce us to its odd, wonderful music.
The project is part of Beehive Book’s acclaimed Illuminated Editions imprint, the Philadelphia-based company’s distinctive line of book art editions of literary classics which reimagine literary masterworks with all-new covers and illustrations from the world’s greatest graphic artists, including the Balbusso Twins, Rebekka Dunlap, Brecht Evens, Dave McKean, Paul Pope, Yuko Shimizu, Bill Sienkiewicz, Kent Williams, and Jim Woodring, alongside original essays from the likes of Academy Award-winning filmmakers Guillermo Del Toro and Darren Aronofsky and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Michael Cunningham. The Beehive Books Illuminated Editions feature singular design sensibilities, the highest production values, and a special emphasis on comics and graphic art.
To learn more and pick up Pinocchio for yourself, visit Beehive Books: https://www.beehivebooks.com/products/pinocchio-illuminated-edition?variant=43067814314183
To read our previous Q&A with Mike Mignola, visit: https://dailydead.com/qa-mike-mignola-discusses-pinocchio-the-illuminated-edition-and-new-hellboy-movie-check-out-exclusive-pinocchio-artwork/
