Under the bottom shelf of my bookcase, I keep a secret stack of old hardcover book sleeves. It’s a precautionary nature for the sake of my reputation. Whether you embrace this hard truth or pretend you’re above it, everyone judges books by their covers.
This cover stash becomes useful when a “can’t put down” read has a horribly embarrassing cover that I’m ashamed to present to the public. I’ve had teachers inquire about my novels as they pass me reading in the hallway; I can’t say I’m reading “A Thousand Boy Kisses,” so it’s a good thing I have my “Sense and Sensibility” cover sleeve on the book.
The cover of a book isn’t necessarily a deal breaker when scouting my next read, it is just a contributing factor. There are plenty of well-done covers with thoughtless plots and plenty of unappealing covers with beautiful storylines.
“Don’t judge a book by its cover” is the reading world’s patent rule, or maybe it’s not, and it’s just a metaphor for life. Still, humans seem to have a psychological need to judge physical appearances. When you meet someone new, you always, whether subconsciously or consciously, assess their looks to decide if they seem cool, subsequently making your conclusion after further investigation. A book’s cover has to pass the initial screening test, just as everyone you meet does.
Personally, I get way too overstimulated at bookstores with all the variety of options, and it’s exhausting to read blurb after blurb to no avail, so the covers provide an easy process of elimination. With that being said, some books deserve a second chance beyond the surface. So, I present to you my top books that unfortunately happen to have displeasing covers.
Firstly, a book I’ve wanted to talk about for a while,”Emma of 83rd Street,” is marked by a classic cringey rom-com cover that was left to rot on my bookshelf long before I gave it a chance. I am pleased to share that the plot of this book was a lot stronger than I’d anticipated. It’s a fluffy, modern twist on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, so the cover set low expectations, but the contents were a pleasant surprise. Bonnie Garmus’ “Lessons in Chemistry” also has a rather unfortunate cover, but the book itself was a solid read. It was even popular enough to be adapted into a well-liked TV series.
The underlying similarity of most upsetting covers is their use of people. Posed photos of random people or even a drawing of a person on a cover are typically an immediate no in my book. See what I did there? Anyhow, as someone who develops specific perceptions of novels and envisions each character quite vividly, cover models just kill the creativity of being a reader.
The potential exception to this rule is when the book is adapted for screening purposes and the sales team republishes the cover as the promoted poster for the adaptation. In most cases, I still prefer my original mental movie to the Hollywood version, but I find it more acceptable to have people on the cover when it’s for the purpose of adaptation.
However, looks can be deceiving. Perhaps this is controversial, but after I was originally enticed by the dynamic cover display of Rebecca Sterele’s “In Five Years,” upon reading, I felt the story moved too quickly for the book’s five-year time span. “The Beginning of Everything’s” rollercoaster graphic made it seem like a fun read, however, it turned out to just be a correlation to the redundant metaphor, “Life’s like a rollercoaster.”
To end on a positive note, I’ll leave you with my three favorite covers that truthfully hold equally compelling narratives. “Last Night at the Telegraph Club” is a young adult historical novel that weaves history with a teenage exploration of self, sexuality and life. The beautifully composed “Writers & Lovers” by Lily King shadows aspiring writer Casey Peabody as she navigates the balance between grief and job. Finally, if you didn’t know this about me, the book that got me into reading in the first place is Jennifer Niven’s “All the Bright Places.” The color scheme and creative use of negative space on the cover caught my attention, and what followed beyond was just as enjoyable. Though I am biased and emotionally attached to it, I objectively believe this story about mental health does its creative, colorful cover justice.
Judging books by their cover is simply human nature. However, the beauty of reading lies in the story’s ability to surprise and challenge those first impressions. Whether a cover dazzles or disappoints, it’s merely the gateway to the story inside.
