Jonathan Lethem has always been a bit of a cult author in the United Kingdom as opposed to the United States, where he is a more of a mainstream literary star. The brief for this job was very open-ended, so I read the book and took its themes as my lead. The aim was to appeal to existing Lethem fans and new readers. His readership is mostly a younger demographic. This group’s interests in art and design allowed me to take a more graphic approach than is sometimes possible with other cover briefs.

The tiger that haunts the city in Lethem’s tale, here, is the city itself—its manic energy and fierce countenance.