Celebrating Friday 13th with Warren the 13th

What are your Friday 13th plans?

If I’m at home, I usually spend the day watching scary movies and shows until I can’t stand it anymore (meaning by nightfall) and then spend the night scared of my own shadow. But this year on my blog, I’ll celebrate it with Warren the 13th, the hardworking 12-year-old orphan boy in Tania del Rio and Will Staehle’s illustrated book Warren the 13th and the All-Seeing Eye.

Published by Quirk Books, Warren the 13th and the All-Seeing Eye is a fun middle-grade book about Warren’s adventures at his family’s hotel as he searches for the mysterious and magical All-Seeing Eye, while also trying to prevent the hotel from being torn apart by patrons also in search of it, such as his evil Aunt Anaconda.

I read it last year and liked it, but I think it’s one kids will enjoy reading as they try to solve the puzzles embedded in the story. I loved the illustrations the most. Staehle, the creator of Warren the 13th and illustrator of the book, did a superb job. The illustrations are done in black and white with pops of red to highlight certain things in a scene. Here are a few photos I took of the illustrations when I reviewed the book:

Here’s Warren the 13th.

A close-up of our hero.

I love the shading.

The hotel, the Warren.

One of my favorite illustrations in the book. I like the reason for her tattoos.

For Friday 13th, Tania del Rio and Will Staehle worked on a short story about Warren the 13 and his adventures called Warren the 13th and the Unlucky Day. The story is available for download on Scribd and it also includes an activity booklet of puzzles and riddles. I haven’t yet read it, but I plan to do so later today. Staehle also created this cool cover for the short story:

I love Will Staehle’s illustrations. They are so precise and I tend to like artwork with a lot of lines and angles. In his illustrations, Staehle sometimes uses lines for shading (placing them close together or apart to make an image darker or lighter), which I tried to show in the examples from the first Warren the 13th book above.

Staehle is also a cover designer and you might be familiar with some of his covers. Since I’m working with Quirk Books for this post, I’ve decided to celebrate Friday 13th with Warren the 13th by featuring 13 of my favorite book covers designed by Will Staehle. Check them out! (I think I like his covers for Michael Chabon’s books the most.)

All 3 Warren the 13th covers

Warren the 13th and the All-Seeing Eye is already out and I linked to the short story, Warren the 13th and the Unlucky Day, above. The second book, Warren the 13th and the Whispering Woods, will be out in March.

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

I am Radar by Reif Larsen

The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon

I LOVE this one. From what I’ve read on his website, Staehle seems to be Chabon fan. However, as popular as Chabon is, I’ve never before read his books. I’ll have to grab one, one of these days, especially if the cover was designed by Staehle.

Made to Kill by Adam Christopher

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders

Armada by Ernest Cline

The Bullet Catcher’s Daughter by Rod Duncan

Empire State by Adam Christopher

His design for Empire State is another of my favorites. Love the placement of the target at the bottom and the Empire State building in the middle and the figures balancing it all out. All these images make me curious about the story.

Telegraph Avenue by Michael Chabon

I really like this one, but I love another cover Staehle designed for Telegraph Avenue even more. It’s the one that has a man’s head on it and it looks like he has an afro and his mustaches are the silhouettes of guns. It’s badass, but the publisher didn’t choose that one so I couldn’t find it anywhere online; so go visit Staehle’s website to see it.

The Sherlockian by Graham Moore

I love the pipe as a question sign with the blood splatter after it.

 And that’s all 13 designs I’ll include in this post. Staehle has a lot more on his website, including rejected cover designs, other illustrations he has done, and his thoughts on his work. (By the way, his design for Chabon’s The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is another awesome one. Check it out!)

Go ahead and let me know below which of his cover designs are your favorite.

And share your thoughts on Warren the 13th, if you’ve read the book or want to read it.

For more about the creators of Warren the 13th, visit their websites: Tania del Rio, author of books (She’s also an illustrator); Will Staehle, creator and illustrator of the books.

As for the books:

Warren the 13th and the All-Seeing Eye

Website | Goodreads

Warren the 13th and the Whispering Woods

Website | Goodreads

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