...was a novel by the American writer Patricia Highsmith enjoying high renown and large following among European readers up to the present day.

A German society of bibliophiles (Büchergilde Gutenberg) published a translation in 2012 (ISBN 978-3-7632-6458-2) commissioning an artist, Ms Alexandra Rügler, to furnish 32 whole- and douple-page anaglyph drawings.

These gloomy and sometimes drastically cruel images are quite remarkable in their expressiveness. From the stereographic view there is a certain amount of ghosting in a few instances; I hardly care about that phenomenon but a purist might be put off. In general there is little depth. A number of drawings has the 3D effect extended only to part of the image, while the foreground is in 3D the background is not ? or the other way round. In such cases the effects may be justifiable for artistic reasons.

Printed books in 3D are quite rare nowadays. Most of the copies in my library are pieces of 19^th century information (in journals) or juvenile subjects (dinosaurs!) or female beauty or technical instruction (a manual on the military use of stereographical aerial photography). The German Ripley book is my first example of literary 3D illustration.

If you don't know the book here is THE PLOT: A young American good-for-nothing is so bitterly disappointed at not gaining access to the friendship of a painter that at the whim of a second he kills him while sailing with him in the Mediterranean. To avoid being detected but to his own dismay he then has to kill another man. Trying to cover up his crimes he assumes the identity of his first victim but then changes back to his own life. In the end he gets away with his schemes, successfully forges his first victim's last will and becomes well-to-do. The action takes place in France and Italy mostly.

J. V.