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Honestly, I’m a little picky about how blurbs and the first few pages of a tale are written and what is or isn’t included in them, but book covers themselves aren’t as important to me. There are many different styles I like or even love and only a few that would deter me from giving something a try.
My favourite types of covers are the ones that are just a little jarring or surprising in a good way for the viewer. That is to say, you glance at them and wonder what the heck in going on in that scene.
Here are some examples of what I mean:
The Handmaid’s Tale (The Handmaid’s Tale, #1) by Margaret Atwood
I knew absolutely nothing about this story when I picked it up, but the cover made me feel nervous about their strange clothing and curious about where they were going.
Howl’s Moving Castle (Howl’s Moving Castle, #1) by Diana Wynne Jones
This book has been on my TBR list for ages, so all I can go by is the oddly ambulatory castle on the cover that utterly fascinates me.
A Dirty Job (Grim Reaper, #1) by Christopher Moore
While I haven’t read this one and it is not currently on my TBR list, it has such an eye-catching cover. I’d never think to draw a baby grim reaper (if that is, indeed who he or she is).
Little Bee by Chris Cleave
There is subtle foreshadowing on this cover that I found delightful after finishing the last chapter and realizing what hints were shared immediately. (It was an excellent read, too!) If only I could go into more detail without spoiling things. Just know that everything in this image matters.
Madeleine Is Sleeping by Sarah Shun-lien Bynum
Here’s another book I haven’t read that has such an intriguing cover. I’m guessing these girls were playing dress up, but why is a cured leopard pelt part of their games?
The Deep by Rivers Solomon
Once again, this cover has excellent clues about the storyline embedded in it. I appreciated the fact that it lets the reader know immediately that this is about mermaids without giving away the many important differences between Yetu and, say, Ariel from The Little Mermaid. The mythology of and backstory in this tale are of utmost importance, but one also doesn’t want new fans to know too far ahead of time exactly what to expect for spoiler reasons. Hollywood, please hurry up and turn this into a film. The source material has so many little moments in it that would look amazing on the big screen.
The cover for The Deep is very intriguing. Especially for someone who enjoys mermaid stories. And I get just what you mean about The Handmaid’s Tale.
Thanks, George! I’m glad you get it.
Most of Christopher Moore’s books have solid covers!
Oh, good to know!
I absolutely love the cover for The Deep and have put Madeline is Sleeping on my TBR list just because it’s an intriguing cover. It gives me vibes of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.
I hope you like it! Yes, it does have those vibes. I’m thinking I should read it, too.
Fabulous choices that connect with how you approach covers, Lydia. The cover for A Dirty Job is great. Thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome, Cheryl. Thank you for your kind words.
I was attracted to “The Handmaid’s Tale” by reviews, but it does have interesting cover art.
An odd little memory: Most of my life, I’ve paid little attention to the pictures in books (except as guides, in craft books). Most of my life, also, I’ve lived in beautiful places and spent time looking at landscapes. One winter I lived in a visually boring place and I spent a whole Saturday in a library making a list of books with covers or illustrations I would have liked to have had as wall art.
So interesting!