ROY G. BIV: An Exceedingly Surprising Book About Color. Buy it now.
With trumpets fanfaring and tiny rainbow-flags fluttering in the golden breeze, I am very happy to announce: today my book “ROY G. BIV: An Exceedingly Surprising Book About Color” hits bookstores and mailboxes!
Gorgeously illustrated by Oliver Munday, “ROY G. BIV” takes readers on an irresistible tour of color’s many meanings (by way of the colors of the rainbow – hence the title). It’s witty and felicitous, tantalizing color-fans and general-interest readers alike with answers to questions like: Why isn’t brown in the rainbow? Why isn’t the world still covered in purple plants? What’s the average color of the universe? I also tackle the big-picture questions we all have about color, like: Why are barns red, taxis and pencils yellow and theater’s antechamber “the green room”?
Each chapter opens with an inventive infographic, giving you a feel for the surprising journey between thematic poles that chapter will take you on. In pink, for example, readers can pinball between stories about pink’s masculine side, its ties to empire and revolution, its persistent strain through Iranian and Japanese identities, and its under-appreciated links to speed, ghostliness and secrecy:
Infographic opening the pink chapter from “ROY G. BIV”
You can read this book cover-to-cover, or hop around at will between thematic cross-references. For example, you might be reading about Mountbatten Pink, a color used briefly during WWII to camouflage British warships during dawn or dusk raids. A color-coded cross-reference invites you to check out other color stories along related themes, like the invention of the color mauve, kick-starting modern industrial chemistry, or why the sky is blue and why plants are green—and why neither of those colors were inevitable.
Example of a cross-reference in “ROY G. BIV.”
Color evokes strong opinions in a remarkable range of thinkers. So the book’s entries are interspersed throughout with Oliver’s beautiful illustrations of how heatedly we feel about color and its aloof, cagey form of persuasion.
Illustration by Oliver Munday in “ROY G. BIV.”
Lovingly packaged with full-color illustrations on every page, “ROY G. BIV” is a great reference or inspiration for designers, artists and color-fans of every stripe. Get a foretaste of the book via these sample pages, too.
My Goodreads and Amazon author profiles will stay up-to-date with upcoming readings, reviews and other late-breaking news. Meanwhile, I do hope you’ll consider buying a copy of “ROY G. BIV” today.