Petty Bickering and Fist Fights: A Cover for a Book That Vanished

Some books are bestsellers. Others become cult classics.

And some… never get the chance.

This is the story of a design I created for a book that only made it to print, very briefly — Petty Bickering and Fist Fights, a surreal comedy set in a small town where bowling is more important than literacy, and clone cats hold more sway than diplomas. The book was wild, weird, and wonderful. But like many creative projects, it disappeared before it could find its readers.

Cover by Rolling Rook Studio

📖 The Book

“You can never have enough bowling lanes. At least not in Dinky. A place where books are used as doorstops. Pledging out loud, and fistfights are used to settle disputes. Bean and Franks is the main food staple and bowling and beer rule have replaced college diplomas. Regional bowling championships are in two weeks and the wait for a bowling lane is three. Plato, Dura, George and a clone cat called Mr. Buttons are trying to prevent the seizing of the library for more bowling lanes. Unfortunately, the ninety-nine year old lease runs out at midnight. The city council is ready and waiting with demolition teams on stand-by. Clone cat or no clone cat, the fistfight for possession of the library is on.” - Good Reads

It’s the kind of plot that could’ve lived forever in the hearts of Terry Pratchett or Christopher Moore fans. A riot of small-town absurdity with a bite of satire and a sprinkle of sci-fi oddity.

🎨 The Design

When I set out to create the cover, I didn’t want to go dark or overly dramatic. I wanted something funny, bizarre, and deceptively cheerful—just like the book itself. I wanted the cover to make you curious enough to pick it up and take a look.

So I leaned into bright, clean vector art. I dropped in a retro-styled “Pink Creamery” stand straight from the text, and had old-school boxers facing off in the middle of town, as if a brawl were the most civilized way to settle zoning disputes. The library burns quietly in the background—just another day in Dinky.

There’s absurdity in the symmetry. Humor in the contrast. And something quietly tragic in that little lick of fire.

Cover was designed by me. The book was written by the author. But this amazing story is now lost.

🪦 The Ghost of a Book

The author moved on. The book was published briefly on Amazon then disappeared. It exists now only as a spectral GoodReads listing (with the cover another artist designed) and what little I can remember of it in my head.

But design is memory. This cover is proof that Petty Bickering and Fist Fights once had a heartbeat. And honestly? I’m proud of this piece. It’s a little ridiculous, a little thoughtful, and totally unique—just like the story it represents.