I get annoyed by all the copycat book covers out there. Publishers seem to want every book to look like a knockoff of the latest hit. I realize it’s helpful for bookstores to have clear indicators of where to shelve a book, and for people to easily find the latest book that’s just like the last one they read. But for me, these book covers that all look the same are more likely to turn me away from a book.
Similarly, I hate book titles that are so nondescript I have to look them up even after I’ve read the book. Examples are See What I Have Done, How Beautiful We Were, The End of the Day, The Beauty of Your Face, The World That We Knew, What We Lose, All You Can Ever Know. From that list, could you tell me who wrote that book and what it was about?
This week’s Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, is the top ten books with titles or covers that made you want to read the book.
Here are 12 books with interesting, eye-catching titles and covers. I chose only books I loved – in other words, books that lived up to their presentation.
- The Secret History of Wonder Woman by Jill Lepore
- Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart
- Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
- The Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
Here are a few more of my favorite book titles:
- Tell the Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt
- Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman by Lindy West
- How the One Armed Sister Sweeps Her House by Cherie Jones
- Know My Name by Chanel Miller
- Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson
And here are a few books with covers that really drew my attention:
- Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout
- Sadie by Courtney Summers
- My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
- Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
Finally a shout out to one of my favorite series, the Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs. These covers by Dan dos Santos are beautiful and keep getting better.
I’d love to hear some of your favorite covers and titles. Happy Tuesday!
