Literary Inspiration: Shades of Grey

Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde

I have loved everything I've read from Jasper Fforde, and I've read everything he's written. His work is witty, hilarious, smart, and fast-paced, and Shades of Grey is no exception. As with the Thursday Next series and the Nursery Crimes series, Shades of Grey takes place in a sort of alternate reality; the world is ours, but the society is not, and we never really find out what happened to our society other than it is gone.  This new society is all based on color:  people are born being able to see varying levels of only one natural color--or sometimes no color at all, in the case of the Greys--and how much of their color they can see gives them social standing, decides who they can marry and what jobs they can hold, etc.  On the surface it all seems like a pleasant place to live, but of course, all is not as it seems, and both intrigue and hijinks ensue.

All of the images below are inspired by parts of Shades of Grey.  Because the whole book is about color, there was a ton of visual inspiration; it was really hard to choose just a few things!

{top row from left:  Pantone Mugs, available from Pop Deluxe;  Round Color Stickers from SilvermintSupplies on Etsy;  Lapis Lazuli necklace from PoleStar on Etsy;  Baby Giraffe No. 3 by Sharon Montrose, available from The Animal Print Shop;  Risk by Parker Brothers Games}

{top row from left:  Superior Servers from Ladies & Gentlemen;  The Milkmaid by Jan Vermeer;  Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island, BC;  cute rabbit;  Elderflower Cordial}