Hello dear newsletter people, I thought I’d share some thoughts about book covers today, but first, their spines. As a student, having occasionally been crushed to realise I’d spent my book budget on the wrong novel, I got into the strange habit of shopping by publisher, after noticing the books I loved most consistently at that time were put out by Bloomsbury or 4th Estate. My browsing technique consisted of scanning half an inch above shelf-level for their logos and from there it was a bit like a chameleon whipping out its tongue to snaffle a fly, but with a hand and a book. It ended up being an unexpectedly reliable formula during those years, although thankfully, the advent of online reviews has meant my reading has since extended beyond two publishers.
I'm drawn to a beautiful book cover especially if it shows some needlework, sewing paraphernalia or fabric, or if it has a sewing/textile related. I am trying to break this habit and expand my choices. As others have said, it's not the best way to choose a book. Recommendations are always good which is why I like your newsletter. It helps me expand my outlook and perhaps read something I wouldn't normally choose. One book that was recommended to me many years ago is "We need to talk about Kevin" by Lionel Schriver. I would never have picked up it up in a book shop but, despite the harrowing story, it's one of the books that has stayed with me. I think that's the barometer of a good book, if you can recall the story and it still has an effect on you.
When I was younger and visiting the library I used to choose books because of their cover. I soon realised it wasn’t the best way and started to read the blurb-even then you don’t always get what you expect and I don’t know whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing. I have read many Persephone books because their synopsis of the stories a really useful in helping me decide. Thanks for the link to the Tate Gallery exhibition there-I enjoyed reading some of the immigrants stories and yes, Margaret Fleishman’s work did blow me away!
Thanks for another fascinating read. Have you ever joyously grabbed a new book by a favourite author from the bookshop shelf only to get it home and discover it's actually an old book with a different cover?😏
Thank you for another delightful newsletter full of links to take one travelling and losing all sense of time! I started my journey through the delightful books of Henry James simply because having been mesmerised by an enormous portrait of a lady in Rome's Modern Art Gallery many years ago, I discovered the portrait on the spine of one of his books in the shop on the way out and I just had to have it. I have been known to buy a book simply for it's cover and then been very disappointed, but the books remain with just cos I love the art. I am a great fan of Persephone books, such a classic look and the endpapers always relate to the story in some way. Have a good week.
Thanks for going down this rabbit hole. I recently went down this one when researching Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead for my book club and discovered the world of book cover designers. I’m also a big fan of reading dedications and acknowledgments 😊
Loved Drive Your Plow both as an audiobook and a conventional book. Highly recommended if you are into quirky narrators.
I'm drawn to a beautiful book cover especially if it shows some needlework, sewing paraphernalia or fabric, or if it has a sewing/textile related. I am trying to break this habit and expand my choices. As others have said, it's not the best way to choose a book. Recommendations are always good which is why I like your newsletter. It helps me expand my outlook and perhaps read something I wouldn't normally choose. One book that was recommended to me many years ago is "We need to talk about Kevin" by Lionel Schriver. I would never have picked up it up in a book shop but, despite the harrowing story, it's one of the books that has stayed with me. I think that's the barometer of a good book, if you can recall the story and it still has an effect on you.
When I was younger and visiting the library I used to choose books because of their cover. I soon realised it wasn’t the best way and started to read the blurb-even then you don’t always get what you expect and I don’t know whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing. I have read many Persephone books because their synopsis of the stories a really useful in helping me decide. Thanks for the link to the Tate Gallery exhibition there-I enjoyed reading some of the immigrants stories and yes, Margaret Fleishman’s work did blow me away!
Thanks for another fascinating read. Have you ever joyously grabbed a new book by a favourite author from the bookshop shelf only to get it home and discover it's actually an old book with a different cover?😏
Thank you for another delightful newsletter full of links to take one travelling and losing all sense of time! I started my journey through the delightful books of Henry James simply because having been mesmerised by an enormous portrait of a lady in Rome's Modern Art Gallery many years ago, I discovered the portrait on the spine of one of his books in the shop on the way out and I just had to have it. I have been known to buy a book simply for it's cover and then been very disappointed, but the books remain with just cos I love the art. I am a great fan of Persephone books, such a classic look and the endpapers always relate to the story in some way. Have a good week.
Thanks for going down this rabbit hole. I recently went down this one when researching Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead for my book club and discovered the world of book cover designers. I’m also a big fan of reading dedications and acknowledgments 😊