Before After: An art book with the broadest appeal imaginable

This is one of the most ingenious titles I have come across in ages! It's absolutely basic, the simplest design, and yet the more pages you turn the more appealing it becomes.

On the left side is an image representing "before" and on the right there is "after". The subjects are all over the place - the bud and flower as above and then everything from a honeypot to a beehive, a pigeon to an airmailed letter, a rocket to the moon and a watching lizard to a fly.

There are no words, just fully painted images that range in size but maintain a muted intensity. The whole thing ends up being funny, thoughtful and utterly entertaining. It also has an unexpected calming effect--one enters a bit of a zen-like state while considering the creativity behind the project and can only wonder what comes next before the page is turned.



Before After was published for children but I can't stress enough the timelessness of the design and idea. It's a great book for pre-readers who will love all the humor and making up stories on their own, but any smart and careful reader is going to embrace this book. It's the best kind of cheeky humor and just so lovely to look at--a real treat for young and old.