“Do! Judge A Book By Its Cover” is a regular feature on Pop! Goes The Reader in which I pay tribute to some of the best and brightest the publishing world has to offer in the way of book cover design. This feature is inspired by Katie’s feature Cover Love on her blog One Page At A Time. The idea is being used with her gracious permission.
I think we’re all familiar with the age-old adage “Don’t judge a book by its cover”. And you know what I have to say about that? Rubbish! Covers are an invaluable part of a book’s package. A truly great cover can tell you a lot about the novel contained within its pages. Book covers can also catch your attention and attract you to a novel you might otherwise ignore. So go ahead, judge a book by its cover – We all do it!
Given that it’s been close to three months since I last touched on my favourite genre in this particular feature, for the twenty-third edition of Do! Judge A Book By Its Cover I thought it was time I re-visited the Contemporary genre and I couldn’t be happier with the result! I’m particularly pleased that this week’s covers are an interesting combination of both real and illustrated subject matter, and for once I actually like the use of both mediums equally. The use of colour in this week’s selection of covers is fantastic as is the variety of font treatments which range from the simple (As in the case of The Half Life of Molly Pierce and One Moment) to the extraordinary (As in the case of Completion, Everything Leads To You, and This Side of Salvation), each of which I think are equally effective in their own right. Some of my favourite covers this week include This One Summer by Jillian Tamaki & Mariko Tamaki, When You Were Here by Daisy Whitney, Reality Boy by A.S. King, Landline by Rainbow Rowell, She Is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick and My Last Kiss by Bethany Neal.
Completion by Tim Walker ● This One Summer by Jillian Tamaki & Mariko Tamaki ● When You Were Here by Daisy Whitney
Boys and Girls by Joseph Connolly ● Em and the Big Hoom by Jerry Pinto ● Burn For Burn by Jenny Han
Everything Leads To You by Nina LaCour ● Don’t Call Me Baby by Gwendolyn Heasley ● Even In Paradise by Chelsey Philpot
Ask The Passengers by A.S. King ● Reality Boy by A.S. King ● Landline by Rainbow Rowell
This Side of Salvation by Jeri Smith-Ready ● Smart by Kim Slater ● A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
The Half Life of Molly Pierce by Katrina Leno ● She Is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick ● Trouble by Non Pratt
How To Tell Toledo From The Night Sky by Lydia Netzer ● Like No Other by Una LaMarche ● My Last Kiss by Bethany Neal
One Moment by Kristina McBride ● Martin Harbottle’s Appreciation of Time by Dominic Utton ● Paper Towns by John Green
Now it’s your turn! What are some of your favourite contemporary covers? Did I list one of your favourites here or is there one I forgot that just has to be included? Let me know in the comments!
8 Responses
You have some absolutely beautiful covers here! I really like the simple, yet vibrant feel of This One Summer. Definitely jumps out at me with all the indigo and violet. I also really like Landline, Smart, How to Tell Toledo From the Night Sky, Like No Other, and Martin Harbottle’s Appreciation of Time.
I just found this feature but I absolutely love it! Whoever says they don’t judge a book by its cover clearly never saw any of these covers 😉
Chloe @ YA Booklover Blog recently posted…Looking for a Blog Contributor
Thank you! This week’s selection was particularly fun to sort through and definitely features some my favourite covers to-date. This One Summer immediately caught my attention as well. I’ve always loved illustrated covers and I love the periwinkle colour palette!
Whoever says they don’t judge a book by its cover clearly never saw any of these covers.
I couldn’t have said it any better myself, Chloe 😉 Thanks for stopping by!
Jen @ Pop! Goes The Reader recently posted…Waiting On…Damsel Distressed by Kelsey Macke
My eyes cannot handle all the pretties! Really love these contemporary covers! My favorite out of all these has to Everything Leads To You- that is seriously a gorgeous cover! I thought it was just me but when I saw the Smart cover around Goodreads, I really liked it! So glad to find out you did too. Great roundup of covers as always, Jen! <3
Hazel @ Stay Bookish recently posted…Novel Portraits: Behind The Lens #2 – Georgie of What She Reads
Me too, Hazel! They’re definitely my favourite covers across any genre. The variety of subject matter, font treatment, colour, etc alone is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Everything Leads To You is definitely one of my favourites as well 🙂
Jen @ Pop! Goes The Reader recently posted…Waiting On…Damsel Distressed by Kelsey Macke
Open Road Summer, Since You’ve Been Gone and Twenty Boy Summer are three of my favorite contemporary book covers. I love the simplicity of Twenty Boy Summer, the summer roadtrip feel of Open Road Summer and the best friend vibe of Since You’ve Been Gone. They are all eye catching in some way and books I would probably read in public with the cover showing away.
Andi recently posted…Review: Better Off Friends – Elizabeth Eulberg
I love the former two covers, and I think I’ve featured both in prior editions of Do! Judge A Book By Its Cover 😀 I particularly love the font treatment on Since You’ve Been Gone!
Jen @ Pop! Goes The Reader recently posted…Waiting On…Damsel Distressed by Kelsey Macke
It is disturbing how many books I add to my TBR list because of this series you have.
Frasier recently posted…Sorrow’s Knot by Erin Bow
I think this is the very definition of #SorryNotSorry.
But seriously. Sorry. Because I know how overwhelming my own to-be-read list is. Now I feel a little guilty. Plus, apologizing is my way.
Jen @ Pop! Goes The Reader recently posted…Waiting On…Damsel Distressed by Kelsey Macke