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  Judging a Book by Its Cover

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  Judging a Book by Its Cover
  
  I came across a website about book cover art this morning
  ( http://bookcoverarchive.com ) and it got me thinking...
  
  What features do you find attractive in a book cover? Or find horrible?
  
  Have you ever bought (or checked out from a library) a book mainly because you were attracted to its cover?
  
  For those of you with e-readers, do covers still matter?

  StoryHeart started this discussion 10 months ago. ( reply | permalink )

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  Rina (edited)

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  Yes, I have bought a book for its cover. In DTB I like the covers with the half flaps. It's a built-in book marker. I also like pages that look torn not straight cut. The iPad has great resolution. The book cover art is alive and well on the smart devices. Not so much the kindle itself. The artwork on the ereader version of THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF K & C was very nice.

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    StoryHeart 

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    I like the half flap covers too..all the Europa editions seem to have them and they are very civilized.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Rina (edited)

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    On day I passed a table of books in B&N and there was a brown book that caught my eye because it looked like it had been thrown in a fire and then pulled back out again. All the pages looked this way. The book: MISTER B. GOOD by Clive Barker
    I posted this once before, but can't find it anywhere!

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  BooknBlues 

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  As I've said before, I love covers in black and white or brown and white. I am not attracted at all to covers with just words or avant-garde art.

  Of the covers shown, I like:
  Three Delays
  Wall Street
  Triangular Road
  Your Presence is Requested at Suvanto
  A Mad Desire to Dance
  The Place of Justice
  The Cruel Radiance
  An Experiment in Love

  I like Triangular Road and Your Presence is Requested at Suvanto so much that I will have to check them out and if they sound good will put on my wishlist.

  I dislike:
  Palo Alto
  Parrot and Olivier in America
  About a Mountain(the yellow one)
  Ugly Man
  You Think It's Bad
  The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet
  Super Sad True Love Story
  Everything Matters
  Uncommon Sense

  A few of those, I'd like to read but believe that perhaps I've been avoiding them because of the cover.

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    StoryHeart 

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    Have we already had this discussion? Oops....I did search the index first but didn't see it there. Sorry for my bad memory :-(

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    I think we have talked about it in talk, talk, talk. But I like this discussion and looking over the covers.

    I know when I'm in a bookstore that there are some books I won't pick up just because the cover puts me off and then, there are some which I pick up just for the cover.

    I think before the internet, that I bought books much more for their covers. I used to keep a list of favorite authors, who were reliable.

    Way back when I used to buy books very cheaply with their covers torn off. I think they used to send the covers back to get reimbursed, but of course it was illegal to sell these books, they made it to flea markets all the same. I used to buy them for 10 cents a piece. Then I would read the back cover and first paragraph to see if I would like the book. It provided a very diverse reading selection.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Rina 

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    Yes, the covers are sent back for reimbursiment. I used to get free book that way when I worked at Waldens.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    That is very cool!

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  Patsy 

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  A few years ago, I was in a store on St. Simons Island, GA, and there was a table of used books. The cover of one caught my eye: it had a sepia photo of a ruggedly handsome man shaping a pottery bowl. Because I love ceramic pieces, I was immediately curious. The book was DREAMING IN CLAY ON THE COAST OF MISSISSIPPI by Christopher Maurer and Maria Estrella Iglesias--a history of Shearwater Pottery, begun by the artistic Anderson family at Ocean Springs, MS, in 1918. The adventures, trials, tribulations, mental breakdowns, and great love stories in this family could provide plots for several novels. [http://www.dreaminginclay.com/]

  After I finished that history, I went on to read all I could about the three Anderson brothers and their smart, talented, long-suffering wives.
  One of my favorite titles is APPROACHING THE MAGIC HOUR, the poignant memoir that Agnes "Sissy" Grinstead Anderson wrote about her marriage to the brilliant-but-mentally-unstable Walter "Bob" Anderson.

  On ebay, I found giclee prints of some of the art work of Mac Anderson and exchanged some messages with his daughter. Sadly, much of the family's work and some of their homes and work buildings were destroyed by hurricane Katrina.

  Sorry for the long post--but being lured by that cover sent me on the most interesting journey. I hope one day to run across a piece of Shearwater Pottery that I can afford!

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    Patsy, I love that story.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Rina 

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    How much does the pottery run?

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Patsy 

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    It's available in a wide range of prices, but the arty pieces from the 30's and 40's can go for several thousand dollars.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Rina 

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    Ah, yes. The good stuff always costs so much more

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  BookBum 

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  We did have this conversation, Story, but it's fun enough to have again and we always have new people joining so reruns aren't a waste.
  I thought I didn't buy a book for it's cover but realized I bought some books by Michael Chabon because the covers made the books look really lighthearted and fun. I haven't read any of them yet though.
  I love when all the books by the same author were published in the same cover style and wish my real bookshelves were like our shelfari shelf where the whole cover is displayed.
  I have become very tolerant of ratty or unappealing covers since I adopt abandoned and unloved books. I bought Patrich White 4 books for under $16 free shipping, the covers awful but the story is the same.
  It used to be considered tacky to leave jacket covers on books after purchase, that's why libraries in older photos have bookshelves that look like rainbows.
  I think we still that link to the art of book cover design video somewhere here...

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Patsy 

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    BB-- the two most recent books I've read by Chabon are THE YIDDISH POLICEMEN'S UNION (brilliant) and MANHOOD FOR AMATEURS (self-deprecating and touching), and I love the covers of both--especially how the same font is used for MC's name on both.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BookBum 

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    I have The Yiddish Policemen's Union. I think I'll read it soon now. Thanks!

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  BookBum 

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  that's a really interesting site! I don't know what it is that makes the cover appeal to me...I was going to say I don't like just words, but I do like the McCarthy covers so....

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    StoryHeart (edited)

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    I actually found most of the covers on the first 3 pages of that book cover website very unattractive. I liked the Milk one and the Cormac McCarthys and most of the ones in the Penguin Great Ideas series.

    One thing I notice is how often I find the American cover of a book less attractive than the Canadian or British cover. I wonder how they decide what's appropriate for each country's audience? Am I just reacting in a culturally stereotypical way?

    Let's do a poll.... Which one do you prefer?

    US edition:
    http://www.amazon.com/Home-Woefield-Novel-Susan-Juby/dp/0061995193/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344305186&sr=8-1&keywords=susan+juby

    OR
    Canadian edition:
    http://www.amazon.com/Woefield-Poultry-Collective-Paperback-Susan/dp/1554687446/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1344305186&sr=8-2&keywords=susan+juby

    
    

    US edition:
    http://www.amazon.com/Cure-Death-Lightning-Novel/dp/0385720475/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344305255&sr=1-1&keywords=cure+for+death+by+lightning

    OR

    Canadian edition:
    http://www.amazon.ca/Cure-Death-Lightning-Gail-Anderson-Dargatz/dp/0394281802/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344305299&sr=8-1

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    Interesting...I definitely like the US version of The Cure for Death by lightning....it is less busy.

    The Home to Woefield...I'm divided on.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BookBum (edited)

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    Woulfield Poultry Collective and the yellow Cure for Death by Lightening are the two I prefer.

    I had this dilemma with the 2nd of the Ibis trilogy, River of Smoke was released with a cover that matched Sea of Poppies in the US, but the European copy had a much more beautiful cover. I went with the matching cover.

    It bugs me that there copies of Pearl Buck's books that have beautiful silk kimono looking covers, except my favorite, The Good Earth.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    WordsArtMusic 

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    I like the Canadian covers of both much better. It would be interesting to find out why they chose the covers they did.

    That's one reason I like Shelfari - I can choose the cover I like for my shelf rather than the one that was available for me to buy.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Deborah B 

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    I preferred the US versions, but not by much. I would have looked at either version of the book. I have often wondered why names of movies were changed between countries at times....even candy bar names are changed.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  Bev 

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  I love covers.

  This is one reason the e reader has less appeal for me.

  I definitely stop and look at a book with an interesting cover.
  I may or may not take it to read.

  I'll always investigate the book with a romantic WW2 cover or a woman wearing a cloche hat

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Patsy 

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    I love you how you are so specific about your preferences, Bev!

    Actually, A WOMAN WEARING A CLOCHE HAT would be an excellent title for--a mystery?

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    StoryHeart 

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    I'll investigate anything with birds on the cover. In fact, I like most animal imagery as long as it is relatively realistic. Twee kittens in scarves: NO; Elephants walking across a plain: YES.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Patsy 

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    Story--I also love cover images with birds. One of my favorites is a book of essays by Jake Page called SONGS TO BIRDS. The cover art and interior illustrations were done by Canadian wood engraver and artist extraordinaire Wesley Bates
    [http://www.wesleybates.com/index.aspx].

    I love floral designs, too, and am looking forward to reading THE PAPER GARDEN: AN ARTIST BEGINS HER LIFE'S WORK AT 72 by Molly Peacock. Amazon blurb: "In 1772, upon the death of her second husband, Mary Delany arose from her grief, picked up a pair of scissors, and, at the age of seventy-two, created a new art form: mixed-media collage. Over the next decade, Mrs. Delany produced an astonishing 985 botanically correct, breathtaking cut-paper flowers, now housed in the British Museum and referred to as the Flora Delanica. As she tracks the extraordinary life of Delany—friend of George Frideric Handel and Jonathan Swift—internationally acclaimed poet Molly Peacock weaves in delicate parallels in her own life and, in doing so, creates a profound and beautiful examination of the nature of creativity and art. This gorgeously designed book, featuring thirty-five full-color illustrations, is to be devoured as voraciously as one of the court dinners it describes."

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  Michael E 

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  Story: I didn't care for 99% of those covers. I guess I like simple stylish designs, like those Nabokov and DeLillo ones, the Achebe, Didion's "Year of Magical Thinking", and Zadie Smith's "White Teeth". Or an evocative photo like the John McPhee landscape and O'Neill's "At Swim, Two Boys".

  I like Canadian and Brit covers for their more subtle design. Familiarity of design is a compfort, like BB notes with respect to series. When covers didn't have much art, one relied on a common style to signify quality of the publisher's series--think Penguin Books or Modern Library editions. When I was wending my way through a couple of dozen Patrick O'Brians, I just homed in on the distinctive covers of tall ships at battle. Look at the set laid on on my shelf: http://www.shelfari.com/o1514377291/shelf#firstBook=485&list=0&sort=dateadded

  Covers are incredibly important for science fiction. For fun check the allure of a woman in uniform in David Weber's Honor Harrington series:
  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images/1439134510/ref=dp_image_text_z_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books

  Love this cover of "The Windup Girl":
  http://www.amazon.com/Windup-Girl-Paolo-Bacigalupi/dp/1597801585/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344342892&sr=1-1&keywords=windup+girl#reader_1597801585

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    StoryHeart 

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    Yes to the elephant on the cover of the Windup Girl! I liked the Patrick O'Brian ones a lot but not the SciFi ones. And I loved the old traditional Penguin covers.

    When adding books to your Shelfari shelf do you click on 'choose your cover' to search the list of other available editions? I do that all the time as the Canadian edition is never the one they offer up as the first choice.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    I probably bought that book for the cover, as I haven't read it yet.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  StoryHeart 

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  Another series of covers I love is from the No. 1 Ladies' Detective books.
  There are a lot of different covers out there but I've been collecting these ones:
  http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51i7lOp2pcL._SL500_SS500_.jpg

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    I quite like that style. I recently saw another book using the same style and almost bought it just because of the good feeling which those books give me.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BookBum 

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    I agree, Story. I'm reading the first Number 1 Ladies'... but I'm not moving quickly because I saw all the shows. I want to finish it and get on withnthe rest, but since I know how the mysteries end I read my other book first.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Michael E 

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    Love those covers. The title and cover for "Tears of a Giraffe" are unresistable, and certainly clinched my purchase.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BookBum (edited)

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    I bought them because someone here said how good they are.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  Deborah B 

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  I checked out the website

  I like:
  Spring, Heat, Rains
  An Experiment in Love
  The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet
  A Mad Desire to Dance
  Milk
  Wall Street

  I didn't like:
  Who Will Run the Frog Hospital
  Smothered in Hugs
  Ugly Man
  Once Before Time

  If there is going to be art on the cover, I want it to convey something about the story between the covers. I don't like anything that seems too avant garde (not sure if this is the right term), as I usually find books with covers like that to be "weird." Examples of this would be Smothered in Hugs and Ugly Man.

  In terms of e-readers, I still view the covers on Amazon, which does influence whether I read the synopsis or not. I'm finding that I am increasingly relying on recommendations from Shelfari members and friends.

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  StoryHeart 

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  My favourite cover designs are always the special series that Penguin puts out a few times a year such as:

  The Great Journeys series
  http://www.penguincatalogue.co.uk/hi/press/imprint.html?imprintId=360&catalogueId=211

  Great Ideas series
  http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/minisites/greatideas/index_1.html

  Penguin Threads
  http://blog.jilliantamaki.com/2011/03/penguin-threads-deluxe-classics/

  I often will buy one or two even when I have no interest in reading them just because they are so gorgeous.

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Deborah B 

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    Wow, the Penguin Threads are beautiful! What talent!

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  bookkaddict (edited)

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  I just bought Beautiful Ruins for its cover. Well, not totally...also for its reported storyline, but hey, the cover definitely pushed me over that line of browsing to purchasing.

  posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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    StoryHeart 

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    It's a gorgeous cover, isn't it. I kept pausing in my reading just to admire it.

    posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

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  BooknBlues 

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  I found a fascinating comparison on Zoe Ferraris web page where she displayed her books and the different covers by country: http://zoeferraris.com/covers-from-many-lands.php

  Check it out!

  posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    StoryHeart 

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    They're all quite lovely.

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    It is really interesting to see the different books which have been produced. I didn't choose the same country for any of the three.

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Deborah B 

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    I thought they were all beautiful--and I noticed that sometimes the title had changed between countries. I really wonder how they decide what images are more appropriate for each country.

    It's funny, when companies are coming up for names for medicines or other chemicals, they have a program that puts together different syllables describing what the drug does, or part of it's chemical name or whatever. Then they have to screen all the results for unpronounceable things, or words that may have bad connotations in other languages. A company I worked for produced a crop chemical they named "Pantera." They had to change the name in Latin America, because it basically means "prostitute." Perhaps the title changes are something like that, or the English title doesn't translate well.

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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  StoryHeart (edited)

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  Today's Guardian has an article explaining the psychology behind book cover design:
  http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2012/aug/16/book-cover-theories-edinburgh-festival

  I'd say the association theory, encapsulation theory, combination theory, obfuscation and fluffy kitten theories work best for me (though I prefer birds and wild animals to kittens.)

  And you?

  posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    I like the ju jitzu, obfuscation, the unfortunately named turd and of course the fluffy kitten. They didn't have my favorite monochrome...I like those more than any others and because there are a number of books that use them, I'd assume others do as well.

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Bev 

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    I need a bit of time to sort thru these.

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BookBum 

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    I have no idea what draws me to a book cover. I just know what I like when I see it. I am certain I would not buy a book with a kitten on the cover, I would however, buy the kitten!

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    BooknBlues 

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    It doesn't have to be a kitty, but a cute animal. Obviously, I can't resist as I'm reading this book now http://www.shelfari.com/books/15230246/The-Great-White-Bear

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    WordsArtMusic 

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    I am attracted by the "Type as Image" covers. Beautiful typography always catches my eye.

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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    Rina 

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    Encapsulation and molecular for me

    posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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