02 Adopted at more than 1,000 colleges and universities, Bedford/St. Martin's innovative Case Studies in Contemporary Criticism series has introduced more than a quarter of a million students to literary theory and earned enthusiastic praise nationwide. Along with an authoritative text of a major literary work, each volume presents critical essays, selected or prepared especially for students, that approach the work from several contemporary critical perspectives, such as gender criticism and cultural studies. Each essay is accompanied by an introduction (with bibliography) to the history, principles, and practice of its critical perspective. Every volume also surveys the biographical, historical, and critical contexts of the literary work and concludes with a glossary of critical terms. New editions reprint cultural documents that contextualize the literary works and feature essays that show how critical perspectives can be combined.

From Penguin’s designer hardcover classics series. This series reprints books to cherish, collect, and pass on with striking new editions of literature's most beloved books. Designed by graphic design artist Coralie Bickford-Smith, all of the books feature gorgeous patterns stamped on linen cases, colored endpapers, and ribbon markers. These rich and sumptuous volumes will likely be one of the most coveted sets of books ever produced. Bickford-Smith uses conforming grid patterns for the cover designs, imposing a recognizable style that works across the entire series of books. The patterns on the grids convey something of the character of the individual titles. These patterns are signifiers for the book’s character and meaning, bringing contextual complexity to the design. Each title’s design was worked on extensively using the book’s text, mood boards, picture research, and literal patterns to take a slightly new angle on a familiar work. Examples of this can be seen with the peacock feather design on Dorian Gray, which plays on the book’s themes of vanity and the superficial; whereas the leaf motif on Jane Eyre refers directly to the lightning-blasted chestnut tree, a concrete element in the text that serves as a potent symbol of the book’s central relationship.