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Judge a book by its cover


Michelle

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I usually read reviews of books online or in magazines. If it is an author I recognise, and I liked their previous book, I will buy the book just by the author. Otherwise I usually get recommendations and hand-me-downs of my mam who likes similar books to me.

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I'm definitely attracted by nice covers. But if the blurb on the back doesn't appeal to me, then I won't get the book.

 

That is one way I usually pick a book as well unless I find a book by an author I know. But for example, if I were in the mood for a romantic story I am more apt to pick the book with the pretty cover than the book with a plain cover. Of course the synopsis must appeal to me or neither one is a go.

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  • 4 months later...

I love the author Carol O'Connell, and the first of her books that I bought was

Flight of The Stone Angel, from a charity shop.

 

The cover had a gothic style picture of an ornate grave stone, and that combined

with the blurb on the back, made me buy it....

 

The young stranger came to town just past twelve noon.

within an hour the idiot had been assaulted, hands bloodied and broken;

Deputy Travis suffered a massive stroke at the wheel of his patrol car;

and Babe Laurie was found murdered.

The young stranger who had preceded all of these events was sitting in a jail cell....

Edited by Chrissy
pressed submit too soon!
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however one thing I will try to avoid at all costs if I can is a book with pictures from the movie on the cover :D

 

I'm the same. I don't think I've ever bought a book with characters from the movie on the front. I like to imagine my own versions of the characters :lol:

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  • 2 months later...

Apart from our obvious mutual love of books, do the covers often do it for you too. I love the Medieval drawings or calligraphy on the covers which often sway me and even the old style Penguin Books with the two red stripes down the side are very tempting.

 

When they are beautifully designed and in pristine condition they are like treasures that you hesitate to open.

Edited by Michelle
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I will pick a book for any one of a number of reasons however one thing I will try to avoid at all costs if I can is a book with pictures from the movie on the cover :yes:

 

I agree, me too, I would only buy it if it was the only version I could get my hands on but I wouldn't like it as much as another version, for the same reason as bookbee, I don't want preconceived ideas of the characters.

 

I would normally pick up every book Tess Gerritsen did no matter what the book cover looked like or the content for that matter (although I haven't tried any of her romance yet tho, no real urge to try that). I don't really have another author that I would buy regardless of content and book cover yet but I do want to buy all of Haruki Murakamis books but am stalled at the moment due to lack of funds......roll on May.

 

When browsing books the cover definitely plays a big part in attracting me for the first time, but once I know the author is brilliant the cover won't play a big part, I will actively search them out not paying much attention to the cover, or so i think.

 

I am attracted to quirky book covers such as John Connollys book of lost things and death and the penguin by Andrey Kurkov, both drew me in and made me read the blurb and some pages of the story inside.

Online I am attracted less by the cover and more by what is recommended as similar to what I have previously read or am interested in, an interesting cover is just a bonus.

 

I do love dark, gothic looking books so alot of fantasy, horror and some crime books fit the bill, so I normally read those type of books.

I should look at bright coloured books more such as pink coloured books but I tend to skip over and assume they are romance or chicklit which isn't always right I know.

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I will choose a book by recommendations and there are few authors that i will read anything by them.

I also read a lot of work related stuff and books on topics that interest me. So In that case i will choose a topic that i am interested in.

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what about a cover with: author's name and title?

I like them much.

I don't choose. I let books drive me in a particular direction. Libraries grow as living beings, in this I agree with Borges. I wander in a path which every new book ses in front of me.

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what about a cover with: author's name and title?

I like them much.

I don't choose. I let books drive me in a particular direction. Libraries grow as living beings, in this I agree with Borges. I wander in a path which every new book ses in front of me.

 

 

Thats a kind of cool way of seeing it. I guess that will mean that you will eventually read on a lot of various topics .

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Thats a kind of cool way of seeing it. I guess that will mean that you will eventually read on a lot of various topics .

 

I do. It's like, just remaining in the same metaphor, going further in a new direction and finding detours for places you already knew or for other you don't know yet. It's how it works for me. I can just guess a couple of book I will be reading in the near future, but then who knows where they can lead me. It's not always so fashinating. Sometimes you and up in a dead way or in a boring place. But that's too part of the game :yes:

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I find cover art extremely important when choosing a possible read. I'm just the type of person who gets very drawn in by the cover art of a book, to me, they can be very powerful in reflecting the book's intent and idk tone? Doesn't make sense but does to me.

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There are authors I like enough to buy blindly, i.e. Jasper Fforde - but I would never even have heard of Jasper Fforde if it wasn't for the snazzy cover of "Something Rotten" (fourth in the series, didn't understand a word because the plot was too far gone by then, but that's Waterstone's fault for not having the whole series on the shelf). Neil Gaiman is another now favourite writer discovered at an airport because of the dazzling sky-blue cover of "Anansi Boys", and the list goes on. So: judging books by their cover usually works for me.

 

There's authors I'll trust implicitly - to a point; for example I plan to catch up with all of Stephen King's classic catalogue, but steer clear of the newer stuff, which (after a few attempts) I've classified as not up to the same standard Stevie got me used to in my youth.

 

Amazon is very useful, not so much for the reviews (so many people on there can't even string a sentence together... I read a negative review a few days ago which read, and I quote verbatim, "In Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick, the author uses themes and characters to write the book. I hated the book because I hate reading. (...) In Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrinck, the author uses themes and characters to write the book. I used his characters to write this book review."), but rather for the cross-referencing possibilities: the "people who bought this item also bought" and "listmania!" features have directed me towards many a good book.

Edited by BookJumper
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I've started paying a lot more attention to cover art recently. I really love a book with a good cover and I'll check out different editions to see which I like most.

 

At the bookfair I recently went too, I rejected several books because they had the movie covers, which I hate on a book. I'd rather wait a little longer to get a decent cover on the book. :haha:

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At the bookfair I recently went too, I rejected several books because they had the movie covers, which I hate on a book

 

I feel you... I've been dabbling with the idea of buying Cornelia Funke's "Inheart" for some time now but all bookshops seem to stop is the movie tie-in, which is something I abhor... the enormous, shiny hardcover is what I'm after, will probably have to get it used on Amazon or something!

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Usually I buy or read books from authors I like or have heard good words about. I don't really pay attention to the cover, unless it's really nice, but generally I read the synopsis first. Besides, the covers can be misleading, a nice cover doesn't necessary means a good book (I have proof!:haha:)

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