Judging a Book by the Cover

First of all, as I said that I was going to review the books I read, but don't feel like doing a full review...I read Don't Look Down by Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer (Crusie? Shocker, right?). I really enjoyed it, though it definitely wasn't anything that I would rave about or probably read again. I liked the two main characters a lot and I liked the main little girl in the story and the plot itself was fun...but it just didn't really click with me. There just seemed to be a lot going on and the ending seemed very thrown together. It was Crusie & Mayer's first co-write, so I have high hopes for their other books. I liked it, but I probably won't recommend it as much as some of her other books.

And now for the topic at hand...Book Covers! I may have written about this before, but I don't really remember doing so...so I'm going to do it now. I judge books by their covers. That is right...a librarian...judging books...on their covers. There is even a nifty saying about not doing it. But seriously, you can tell a lot from a book cover. And I don't come by this by accident...I believe it is inherited as my mom does the same thing.

Romance novels are some of the best books to judge by their covers. If the cover has pictures of flowers, trees, a meadow, some sort of inspirational looking light...probably going to be a rather chaste, inspirational type romance novel with flowery descriptive language. If the cover has a half-naked man (preferably in a kilt), a woman with her dress trying to fall off and any sort of head thrown back in ecstasy...probably my sort of romance novel. As I said...romances are easy. The trashier and more explicit the cover, the trashier and more explicit the book for the most part. The only big exception I know of are Patricia Cabot (aka Meg Cabot) romances. They have lovely scenery on the covers, but super fun and trashy plots and are classic bodice-rippers (one of her books actually has a bodice being ripped...awesome!).

Chick lit books are a bit more difficult to suss out. I find that a lot of it has to do with the title, the font, and the colors on the cover. If the font is cursive and swirly, I'm probably not going to pick up that book (and neither is my mom). Any sort of pastel color is also not going to be my thing, unless paired with something awesome. If the font is hot pink and in bubble letters, you are starting to speak my language. If the picture on the cover is a hot dress, a dog, fun shoes, a hot car, or alcohol, I'm interested. Pair any of those with hot pink, lime green, bright blue and I am reading the back. Make the title something awesome (Big Boned, Undomesticated Goddess, Fast Women) and put it in a fun font,I don't even need to read the inside cover. If the cover looks fun and the title sounds cool, I'm going to try it. So far, this hasn't really backfired on me.

The last main category is mysteries. My mom is the one who can really do a great job of choosing awesome mystery books based on the cover. I'm not even sure what the real criteria is for a mystery cover that I'm going to like. I know that my mom picked The Spellman Files (a large pair of eyes with binoculars) and the Charlaine Harris books (have you seen the illustrations on the original paperback covers? They are freaking fantastic) based solely on the covers.

My suggestion to you, dear readers (all three of you), is to judge a book by its cover. If the cover looks boring or stupid or insipid or lame or trashy or just not your style, skip it. Sure, you might miss a book you would really like, but you might also waste time on a book that is boring, stupid, insipid, etc. And if a book cover looks interesting and you've never heard of it or the author, grab it anyway. I have found some super awesome books by random chance.

And lastly...what I'm currently reading. The Science of Doctor Who by Paul Parsons. I'm letting my geek flag fly. And reading nonfiction, which is rare for me. I am planning on starting a new book tonight, but I'm not sure what book yet. I'll update when I figure it out.