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Yes, I judge books by their covers, and here’s why.
In this day and age a lot goes into a book cover. The marketing team, agents, graphic designer and/or photographer have presumably all read the book, and are trying to match the vibe when they create or give their approval of the cover. They know the genre and are trying to attract that audience. And they know you’re judging and are keeping that in mind
A book cover is trying to communicate both the genre and vibe of a book. I’m not going to ignore that effort! Sure, they might get it slightly wrong, but chances are they’re somewhat close. Maybe many decades ago it was different, with less behind the marketing. So this is less relevant for older books with bland, bleak covers
Personally, I tend to go for more introspective literary fiction, memoirs or slightly dystopian novels. I’ve made some assumptions about which covers to go for (with exceptions of course). You can draw your own assumptions from novels you’ve read and liked. What were their covers? Start to notice patterns and keep track.
If you have similar taste to mine, here are some assumptions I’ve made to judge book covers.
- Avoid intricate detailing or illustrations, those are usually fantasy.
- Avoid shiny or metallic details, usually fantasy as well.
- Avoid books where the author’s name is displayed bigger than the book title (that means they think the author’s popularity is more of a draw than the book itself). The author’s name is usually in all caps as well.
- Avoid cartoon, brightly illustrated covers (this is usually a sign the book is more of a lighthearted, easy read—I prefer a book that gets me thinking and feeling deeply). However be careful about this one. For example, the book Writers & Lovers has two different covers. I loved the book and never would have read it if I had seen it with the cartoon cover.
Book covers I go for:
- Artistic covers.
- Covers with faces, either painted or realistic.
- Interesting colors.
- Anything unique.
Like these, for example.
I’d love to hear what assumptions you’ve made, or even if you judge books by their covers at all. Let me know in the comments below.
Also, I have reviews up for Nightbitch, Motherthing and Cleopatra and Frankenstein if you’d like to check them out.
Read more:
Reading Ideas for Lit Fic Lovers
Watch or Skip? Let Go on Netflix
