Judging Books By Their Covers Via Me in The Lineup

I am on the record, multiple times, telling you all that you can judge books by their covers, at least when it comes to judging the appeal of a book. You can click here to see the many times I have written about covers and using them as a RA Tool.

My most read "covers" posts are here and here. That second one, refers to Lynne Hansen, the top Horror cover artists out there. After writing that post in 2020, I had the idea to do something more in depth about Horror cover artists. Flash forward 3 years to last week when my third (of four) columns for The Lineup this year posted and is all about Horror illustrators.

While my posts here on the blog about covers are geared toward library workers, this piece in The Lineup is written to readers directly.

Below is the intro and a link to the article. You can click through here or in the link after the intro to read the entire article for free.

Please note, while this is specifically about Horror (with perfect timing for your Halloween displays), you can still use it as a guide for any genre. Just physically telling readers that you judge books by their covers is a great conversation starter. It seems illicit and will break the ice as you drive to have conversations about what they want to read and why. Trust me, I do it all the time. It works. Asking a patron what their favorite book cover is, rather than favorite book, gets their attention immediately. It is unexpected and will signal that you actually want to talk about reading experiences.

And a "Judge a Book By It's Cover" display is an awesome idea, just make sure you are double checking that the books you choose for their good cover are also a great read for a wide audience. The whole, "judging a book by its cover" is not as much of a free for all as it sounds. It is a great entry point, but you still need to do the work and make sure the books should be on display for your patrons. \

Here is the article. I chose independent press titles because a lot of the major presses use in house designers. And true to the paragraph above this one, all of the books are a great read for a general audience. I trust the publishers and the content of these books to be added to your collections.

A Librarian Wants You to Judge These Horror Books by Their Covers

Psst…. I have a dark, dirty library secret for all of you. I think we have been doing this column long enough that I can trust you enough to share it with you. Here it is…

I judge books by their covers.

I will give you all a moment to recover from shock, but it is 100% true. And not only do I judge books by their covers, but I train library workers all over the world to do the very same thing.

Now I know all of you probably heard from a librarian or teacher at some point in your childhood, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” and I am sure some of you have taken this as fact and carried it into your own adult reading life, even passing it on to new generations of readers. Well, I am here to tell you to forget it.

Why?

Well let’s start with this actual fact: Publishers want their books to have a cover that sells the book to its best reader. They need the cover to do the heavy lifting of attracting readers as they walk by...

But they also want them to be the right readers, ones who if they are attracted by the cover, stop and read the back and then decide to buy the book.

If publishers are putting that much effort, money, and thought into the covers of their books, why aren’t we using the covers to help readers find the best book for them as well? It actually seems irresponsible for me, someone whose job it is to match books with their best readers, to NOT consider the covers. A cover can never tell you exactly what will happen in the book, but those covers created by the very best artists can absolutely tell you quite a bit about the feel of the book to follow, setting the tone for the story that follows.

Which leads us all to this column. Today, I am going to present six of today’s best Horror book illustrators with two example books, titles that you can 100% judge by the superior art gracing their covers. I have spoken to numerous illustrators, authors, and publishers to make sure I have found artists who are both talented and trustworthy.

However, the one disappointment I have encountered throughout this process is the overwhelmingly white and male representation in today’s horror cover art world. In fact, those I spoke to know it is a problem and many have been seeking out more marginalized artists to highlight and support as well. 

Therefore, this article serves two purposes. One: to help you break the taboo and get out there to judge a book by its cover. It’s fun and slightly illicit, and since I have vetted the titles for you, I can promise you that the books will be worth your time. And two: to serve as a call to action for horror artists from marginalized perspectives to reach out, leave a comment, and let us know who you are so the community can help lift you up. Then, as people encounter this article, they can explore your art as well.

Click here to read the full column.

And click here to read all RA for All posts tagged "covers"