I love looking at book covers, especially when they change from hardcover to paperback. I think the cover evolution and marketing directions books take is interesting! Here are some recent changes I've seen:
Hardcover
-Simple, yet it gets the story across-I like it
Paperback:
-This one is much more simple, but it works and I really like it. I also think it adds an element of humor the first cover is missing.
Hardcover:
-I don't know what I think of this cover. I like how she's coming through the book and entering the story, which gets the plot across,but it just looks a bit odd at the same time-not sure why.
Paperback:
-I really like the look of this cover, but at the same time it feels a bit historical.
Hardcover:
-It's simple, but I like it. I also like how the girl doesn't look too nerdy.
Paperback:
-This one changes the look of the book to a romance Sarah Dessen-esque cover. I like the cover, just not for this book.
Hardcover:
-I thought I had talked about this one before, I guess not. I love this cover-so cute, I love the text and the Eiffel Tower in the back.
Paperback:
-This is an OK cover, but it feels like the book is trying to become "new adult" and being marketed to adults more than teens. It also looks a bit more serious to me than the original cover.
-I really like this cover-simple and just the right amount of scary. It flies off my library shelves.
Paperback:
-I really like the paperback version too. It's a different take than the hardcover, but I think it still manages to get across the mystery of the book. I do think the cover model looks a bit like Kristen Stewart in that photo and I wonder if that will turn off readers thinking this is a Twilight readalike.
I really like the other two covers in the series:
What covers do you like and dislike?
Sometimes paperback covers can be for the better and sometimes they can be for the worse. Here are some recent cover changes I've seen:
First up, Code Name Verity, a book that is near and dear to my heart.
That shiny sticker looks so pretty, doesn't it? I like this cover, but the paperback is really growing on me:
I'll admit at first I hated it, but the more I look at it the more I like it. There's just something so beautiful about this cover.
Here's another one I really like. The hardcover for The Catastrophic History of You and Me makes sense with the book, but I just don't like the way it looks as a whole and I'm not sure why. I think it's the fact that I don't like the dress.
But I really like this paperback cover, even if it does look a bit like other covers. It's just simple and beautiful
Here's one I really dislike. I love the hardcover for Keeping the Castle:
But the paperback looks so childish!
It really looks more like a middle grade novel now and the main character looks so young and a bit Disney character-ish. It's a cute cover, just not for this book.
Here's another cover change I'm not a huge fan of. I really liked the hardcover for Throne of Glass:
It looks like it's got a cool kick butt girl on the cover.
And now here's the new paperback:
I guess she still looks pretty kick butt, but she looks like a cross between Lara Croft and an anime character. I almost expect the content inside to be a graphic novel.
Ok, let's talk about the evolution of a cover over the years. What My Mother Doesn't Know was one of the first books I read when I started reading YA lit and it remains one of my favorites. Here's the original cover from 2001 that I checked out from my library:
The cover got a makeover in 2003 in paperback:
And here's the latest cover makeover for 2013:
I have to say I like all three covers, even if the last one does look a bit like all the other contemporary YA covers that are coming out right now. I do like how it looks with the sequel, What My Girlfriend Doesn't Know:
Now for a book that's new but that has still undergone a complete makeover. Here's the original hardcover for Gilt:
Now, the paperback that was supposed to be:
But that paperback isn't happening and it's had yet another makeover. Here's the newest paperback cover:
Author Katherine Longshore has a great blog post about the evolution of her covers and why they changed.I think all three covers are great and really like the new paperback look.
So what do you think of these cover changes? Good or bad?
While I was at ALA, I heard rumors of a horrible Anne of Green Gables covers that was making Anne fans angry all over the internet. And then I found it:
Anne of Green Gables is one of my favorite books and this cover might be the worst cover in the world. Everyone knows that Anne is a redhead NOT blonde. And what's with the "Hey, Gilbert, I'm suddenly sexy farm girl Anne" look that she has going on? Plus it's way too modern looking! I'm sorry-Anne would not wear that shirt. She wants puff sleeves!!
Anyway, as I was fuming over the horrible Anne cover, it got me thinking about recovering classics. Some work well and others not so much.
Matilda is getting an anniversary reissue this year and I have to say I like the new cover:
It reminds me of A Wrinkle In Time anniversary reissue which I also liked:
Another anniversary occuring this year is Amelia Bedelia. While she doesn't have a cover reissue exactly, she has a spinoff chapter book series that takes a new approach to the covers:
It's cute and updated but still feels like the original Amelia I grew up with.
Another childhood favorite of mine, Pippi Longstocking, is getting a new cover this year:
I'm not sure what I think of this one. It's cute but almost seems a bit too understated for Pippi.
What do you think of these reissues? Any other classic recoverings you've seen recently? Are they good or bad?
I'm not sure when it was I first heard about Lindsey Leavitt's new novel, Going Vintage, but I was sold on the premise: A girl is brokenhearted after her boyfriend cheats on her with an online girlfriend. So she decides to give up modern technology and live by a list of goals written by her grandmother in 1962.
If I could, I would totally be a mod 60s girl (too bad being fashionably vintage is also terribly expensive!) So the next best thing is to read about it, right? And when I saw the cover release for Going Vintage I knew I had to share! Who else shares my affinity for 60s culture? And isn't this the greatest cover ever??
The first thing I thought with the Wake recovers was "wow, that girl looks like Kristen Stewart!" Like you, I can see that helping or hindering the new covers. I personally liked the old ones. They were a bit obscure.
Do not like the Smart Girls recover at all. It's a fun book and now it just looks like all smart girls want is boys which is true but yet, there was a bit more to the story than that.
I think I may have said it on your blog before, but I HATE what they've done with the new edition paperbacks of Life As We Knew It. They have instantly made it a "girl book" with their new cover, and that book is GREAT for boys. I'm so angry about it. I make sure to show the old cover whenever I booktalk it. Harumph!
Absolutely true! That new Smart Girls cover does not work for what the book is actually about...sigh. I hate the new Perkins covers, too...I really liked the originals. :/
I thought the exact same thing. The new Smart Girls cover implies that smart girls get the BOYS they want. It's really too bad.
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Exactly! It's a fun book, but now it looks all about romance.
I just looked it up-it is a more girly cover. I hate when that happens!
I'm still not sure about the new Wake trilogy covers. They're interesting, but I don't know if they'd grab my attention enough to read them if I were new to the trilogy. I like the new Stephanie Perkins covers, but I wish Penguin would stop changing them mid-series like they keep doing. I've received mixed reactions from my students about them. Many like the new ones b/c they appear more adult, and others like the original covers because they let you know a little more about the characters.
I hate mid-series changes too. I bugs me because then the series covers don't match on my library shelves. I also get annoyed because the teens will see one cover online or in the store and then come to the library and not realize the hardcover is actually the same paperback they saw-just a different cover.