This week, I couldn’t resist answering Rebecca at Lost In Book’s recent question from her wonderful Book List Meme about the best and worst book covers. (I usually freeze up for this meme and draw a blank, as if I’ve never read a book in my life. But for this question, I was able to review my books covers at LibraryThing to help me out.)
My Nominations for Best Book Covers
The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
Oddly enough, Rebecca erroneously listed this as one of her worst book covers!!! Apparently, she and some hack named Ernest Hemingway thought this was an awful cover. What are they talking about? I’ve always loved this cover. I would buy this cover as a poster and hang it on my wall! So what do you think of this cover? Yay or nay? Please vote in the poll below.
I adore this cover. When I reading this book of essays (by the author of The Corrections), I kept going back and looking at it over and over again. Although some of the essays were pretty good, I think I enjoyed the cover more than I enjoyed the book.
You Suck Christopher Moore
This makes the cut for me because of the bright bold colors, the distinctive “Christopher Moore” font, and the fact that you can read this book and make the people around you wonder if you are sending them a subliminal message!
Into the Wild Jon Krakauer
This cover just grabbed me from the moment I saw it and wouldn’t let me go. As I read the story of Christopher McCandless, I kept coming back to this haunting photo of the bus where he died. And I think the excerpt combined with the photo draw you in to this book more effectively than any other book I’ve seen. Here is what the excerpt says:
In April 1992, a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless. He had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself. Four months later, his decomposed body was found by a moose hunter…
Tell me that doesn’t make you want to immediately pick up and read this book! It is a haunting, fascinating story, by the way. I highly recommend it.
My Nominations for Worst Book Covers
Lord of Chaos: Book 6 of the Wheel of Time Series Robert Jordan
I had a friend who begged and begged me to read this series for two years, but I always put her off because of the horrible cover art (and the insane length of each book). Finally, I caved and started the series. It was terrific! (My only beef is that when I started the series, Jordan was only up to Book 7 or something and I lost track of the story over the years as I waited for him to finish it up. My plan is to read them all from start to finish when it is officially finally done.) So don’t let the cheesy cover art fool you like it did me; this is a top-notch fantasy series. This particular cover is one of my least favorites. First of all, look at the proportions on his shoulders!!! It is ridiculous! And his outfit is like the Puffy Shirt from Seinfeld combined with shiny, polyester pants — and his shirt is tucked in a really unmanly way. Ugh!
Too Fat To Fish Artie Lange
A cover so awful and horrible it counts as two! Tell me this is not the most unattractive book cover you have ever seen! When my husband was reading it, I had to keep flipping it over as I couldn’t stand looking at it. Even my Little One was freaked out by it. And I did end up reading this book; it was just as bad as the cover.
If you want to see a wonderful blog about book cover design, click here for the Book Design Review blog. Although the blog is on indefinite hiatus now, there are tons of wonderful posts about book cover design (like this one about the best book covers of 2009).
24 Responses to Question of the Week: Best and Worst Book Covers
Dawn @ sheIsTooFondOfBooks
04/24/2010 at 6:54 pm
I hadn't yet seen that THE GREAT GATSBY cover, and I love it!
As for Artie Lange … "I don't want to be a pirate!"
I gotta say I'm with Rebecca on The Great Gatsby and I can't say that any of your other best book covers really jump out at me. I like the image on the cover of Into the Wild but am not keen on all the text, particularly. The bad covers, on the other hand, I totally agree with, especially that second one, which definitely counts for two!
I agree with most of your picks. I have to say that I've been turned off by the Robert Jordan book covers too. Which is sad because I have a feeling I would really like the books, but the covers are so cheesy. Like old harlequin romance covers.
This is a pretty fun idea! I am drawn to very girly book covers…I don't like the cover to look too serious because I don't like the book to be too serious…I'm still avoiding anything with too much substance since I've graduated college. It might be time to tip-toe back in, though. I'm going to check out Into the Wild – that's also my favorite cover from the selections you put forth!
I agree with you on that Into the Wild cover. I did the same as you and kept coming back to that picture…it haunted me really. I wanted so much for that picture to be different and for him to come walking out of that wild place after a rough winter!
Covers are SO important! Sometimes that will be the main reason I pick up a book and buy it. ('Infected' – love that triangle iris!)
Seems like the copy of 'Into the Wild' I read had a different cover than the one you have pictured here. I borrowed it from a friend so I can't go back and check. I had mixed feelings about that book…
A great meme, you have certainly had the Petty Witter household debating over our favourite/least favourite covers.
With regard to your choices – sorry but there wasn't a single cover there that I liked. In fact they were all so bad, I wouldn't like to say which one I liked least.
The Franzen is definitely a good cover. It is almost a story in itself. I think most fantasy covers are terrible. Of course, I'm not really one for hand-drawn covers and most of them are …
Well, I'd like to support you because you are tres cool, but I really have never "gotten" that cover for Gatsby. It kinda reminds me of the psychadelic 70's posters my husband got in Poland. And there is no way I would have read The Lord of Chaos, just because of that cover. Ugh!
I was worried for a sec – I thought Lord of Chaos was one of those bodice-ripper romance things…yuck!
I don't really like the cover for Gatsby – I guess I'm too influenced by the movie, I think pastels and beach houses or something – the blue is so bright!
Oh those bad covers are HORRIBLE! I do love Franzen's cover, I've never seen that one before. And the Into the Wild cover hooked me the first time I saw it. It's so stark and lonely and is even more fitting once you read the book.
I have to admit, I agree with Rebecca on this one. In fact, last year I was part of a challenge where I had to read the book on my shelf with the best or worst cover, and this was my choice for worst. (I ended up reading the best cover instead.)
I agree with you on the bad covers too, I don't know what some people are thinking. I also love the Into the Wild cover as well, that is such a good/sad book and I think the cover is very eye-catching.
Totally agree with the bad covers! I like the Franzen best of the good covers. But you know, I'm thinking it's not so bad not to have good covers, because once we shelve them we only see the spines anyway. So what we need are good spines!
The Great Gatsby
The Discomfort Zone
You Suck
Into the Wild
Lord of Chaos: Book 6 of the Wheel of Time Series
Too Fat To Fish
I hadn't yet seen that THE GREAT GATSBY cover, and I love it!
As for Artie Lange … "I don't want to be a pirate!"
I gotta say I'm with Rebecca on The Great Gatsby and I can't say that any of your other best book covers really jump out at me. I like the image on the cover of Into the Wild but am not keen on all the text, particularly. The bad covers, on the other hand, I totally agree with, especially that second one, which definitely counts for two!
I agree with most of your picks. I have to say that I've been turned off by the Robert Jordan book covers too. Which is sad because I have a feeling I would really like the books, but the covers are so cheesy. Like old harlequin romance covers.
Mwahahahaha….people agree with Ernest and I that the Gatsby cover must go! (teeheehee)
But you have truly listed some really scary and sketchy book covers. Artie is just so icky, isn't he? Blech!
You are right about those bad covers, LOL….they're HORRID!
But funny to look at!
You and I have the same odd cover attraction; I like all of these especially The Great Gatsby.
i have never been a fan of the gatsby cover–sorry! my students moan and groan when i hand out the books…
the artie lange cover is horrid–just awful.
nat@book, line, and sinker
Love this post
Love a camp book cover occasionally 
I am actually named after Robert Jordan, never knew how tacky and fabulous his books look
That Artie Lange cover is pretty horrible. It looks like something I would make in photoshop! Uhg is right.
Totally agree – that Artie Lange cover is awful.
This is a pretty fun idea! I am drawn to very girly book covers…I don't like the cover to look too serious because I don't like the book to be too serious…I'm still avoiding anything with too much substance since I've graduated college. It might be time to tip-toe back in, though. I'm going to check out Into the Wild – that's also my favorite cover from the selections you put forth!
I agree with you on that Into the Wild cover. I did the same as you and kept coming back to that picture…it haunted me really. I wanted so much for that picture to be different and for him to come walking out of that wild place after a rough winter!
I admit, I am a shallow person and often choose a book by its cover…and I would never have read Gatsby with that one. Creepy..
But then I also admit I tend to like rather stark, what-others-might-consider-depressing covers.
Covers are SO important! Sometimes that will be the main reason I pick up a book and buy it. ('Infected' – love that triangle iris!)
Seems like the copy of 'Into the Wild' I read had a different cover than the one you have pictured here. I borrowed it from a friend so I can't go back and check. I had mixed feelings about that book…
A great meme, you have certainly had the Petty Witter household debating over our favourite/least favourite covers.
With regard to your choices – sorry but there wasn't a single cover there that I liked. In fact they were all so bad, I wouldn't like to say which one I liked least.
The Franzen is definitely a good cover. It is almost a story in itself. I think most fantasy covers are terrible. Of course, I'm not really one for hand-drawn covers and most of them are …
puffy shirt … snicker …
Into the wild has a great cover and I really need to get reading this book that has sat on my shelf for years and I still have not read it.
Well, I'd like to support you because you are tres cool, but I really have never "gotten" that cover for Gatsby. It kinda reminds me of the psychadelic 70's posters my husband got in Poland. And there is no way I would have read The Lord of Chaos, just because of that cover. Ugh!
I was worried for a sec – I thought Lord of Chaos was one of those bodice-ripper romance things…yuck!
I don't really like the cover for Gatsby – I guess I'm too influenced by the movie, I think pastels and beach houses or something – the blue is so bright!
Oh those bad covers are HORRIBLE! I do love Franzen's cover, I've never seen that one before. And the Into the Wild cover hooked me the first time I saw it. It's so stark and lonely and is even more fitting once you read the book.
Lord of Chaos gave me a good laugh and at first glance I thought … Jenners did not actually read that book did she? I love it! Happy Monday.
I have to admit, I agree with Rebecca on this one. In fact, last year I was part of a challenge where I had to read the book on my shelf with the best or worst cover, and this was my choice for worst. (I ended up reading the best cover instead.)
I agree with you on the bad covers too, I don't know what some people are thinking. I also love the Into the Wild cover as well, that is such a good/sad book and I think the cover is very eye-catching.
Totally agree with the bad covers! I like the Franzen best of the good covers. But you know, I'm thinking it's not so bad not to have good covers, because once we shelve them we only see the spines anyway. So what we need are good spines!