Book Review: 'Michael Whelan's Works Of Wonder'

Michael Whelan is one of my (many) favourite sci-fi / fantasy artists and 'Work's Of Wonder' is a very apt title and showcases some of his well known illustrated book covers. I'm very happy to have got my hands on this book, albeit second hand.

Inside this 108 page hardcover artbook, originally published in 1987, if you're a fan of fantasy or science fiction then you'll probably recognise some of the covers collected in this volume. Covers from the books of authors like Alan Dean Foster, Piers Anthony, Arthur C Clarke, plus of course the covers for Isaac Asimov's 'Foundation' series (Asimov also wrote the foreward), Anne McCaffrey's 'Pern' series and Edgar Rice Burroughs' 'Martian Tales'.

Accompanying each colour panel is a brief paragraph or two that describe what Michael was attempting to do and how the finished artwork turned out, plus some of the initial preliminary sketches as well.

It's perhaps not as in depth as it can be (I have another Michael Whelan artbook on order), but if you enjoy science fiction and fantasy art, then this book is very much recommended.

***** out of 5