Lots to see this month, including several YA covers (which I know will please some regular readers), some ‘big’ literary fiction, and a couple of confrontational nonfiction covers to round it out. Enjoy!
Aetherial Worlds by Tatyana Tolstaya; design by Stephanie Ross (Knopf / March 2018)
Although it pains me a little to say it, I think Amazon’s ‘book club’ imprint Lake Union are doing an impressive job commissioning appealing covers for their intended market. I would be interested to hear about the process from designers who’ve worked with them.
I like this cover very much–especially the type. The illustration and colour combination remind me of Matt Dorfman’s 2011 cover for The Pyschopath Test by Jon Ronson (Riverhead):
It’s interesting to see the UK publisher go in such a different direction from the US cover (designed and illustrated by Sandra Chiu) which, as I noted back in January, seems very on trend internationally to me.
I felt like this cover might be a little too much when I first saw it online, but I bet it will look absolutely stunning in print and piled up on tables.
For reference, I have a pinboard of contemporary covers that make use of Lydian, the typeface used here. It was designed for American Type Founders by Warren Chappell in 1938, and it’s very distinctive (those ‘R’s!), so it’s interesting to me that it suddenly has this kind of cult popularity.
The pencil shavings are delightful of course, but I did immediately think of Peter Mendelsund‘s covers for Leaving the Sea (2014) and The Flame Alphabet (2012) by Ben Marcus.
Can anyone tell me if there is a term for this kind of semi dust jacket? It seems like more than just a belly band.
The upside-down ‘POLICE’ shield is an interesting decision. It gives the illustration a kind of authenticity (I assume it is based on an actual example), but it also subtly implies something about the contents of the book (as does the not so subtle decision to show a police officer in riot gear rather than more approachable attire!).
She Regrets Nothing by Andrea Dunlop; design by Rachel Willey (Washington Square Books / February 2018)
Sunburn by Laura Lippman; design by Elsie Lyons (William Morrow / February 2018)
I included the cover of Sunburn and Elsie Lyons’s cover for The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn (featured last month) in a recent presentation about the differences between US and UK cover design. UK editions of both books have a much more conventional genre covers. They signal very clearly to readers that they are thrillers.
The US covers on the other hand have a much more literary, sophisticated look. They both have a distinctive, individual appearance (although I suspect we may see covers copying the approach of The Woman in the Window very soon!) that suggest that these are not your average thrillers.
It is not that one approach is necessarily better than the other from a marketing perspective (although I can guess which designers might prefer!), but it is an interesting contrast.
I will admit it was the photo-realistic painting that first drew my eye to this cover, but I also like that the blocky typography echoes the cover of the author’s previous novel California.
Woman No. 17 by Edan Lepucki; design by Michael Morris; illustration by Oliver Wilson (Crown / February 2018)
Since 2010, I’ve posted an annual survey of the year in book covers. The post has expanded and developed over the past 7 years, but essentially it is a collection of the covers published in the previous 12 months that I found interesting or noteworthy in some way. As with the previous couple of years, the 2017 list is organized by covers (alphabetical by title), and by designer so that I can show a greater variety of work, and no one designer or studio dominates.
Thank you to everyone who has supported the blog this year, and special thanks to all the designers, art directors, authors, publishers, and fellow design enthusiasts who have helped me with covers and design credits. My sincere apologies to the designers and publishers not on this year’s list and whose covers I have overlooked in the past 12 months.
A post looking back on the YA covers of 2017 is to follow.
A little later than usual — between one thing and the apocalypse — but there are some great covers out this month, including at least one contender for cover of the year:
The Bear and the Serpent by Adrian Tschaikovsky; design by Neil Lang (Pan Macmillan / February 2017)
The cover for the previous book in the series, The Tiger and the Wolf, was also designed by Neil:
I’m not sure anyone is paying too much attention to book design this week, but if you’re looking for a few minutes diversion from the awfulness of almost everything, here’s this month’s selection of quirky, beautiful, and otherwise interesting book covers…
Back from vacation and back to the grind… August is traditionally a slow month in publishing, but that isn’t to say there aren’t plenty of great covers around at this time of year…
If you follow the Casual Optimist on Twitter, you will know that a couple of weeks ago design studio Aishima asked people to tweet about inspiring women graphic designers using the hashtag #celebratewomen. As today is International Women’s Day, I thought I would follow up my #celebratewomen tweets with a visual list of 52 inspiring women book cover designers (one for every week of the year!) — from influential veterans whose work I’ve admired for years to junior designers that have just appeared on my radar.
The names of all 52 designers can be found at the end of the post. With a few more hours in a day the list could easily have been many times longer, so apologies to anyone I have overlooked. Please let me know who you would’ve included in the comments or on Twitter.
All This Has Nothing To Do With Me; design by Justine Anweiler; illustration Daphne van den Heuvel
Souffles-Anfas edited by Olivia C. Harrison and Teresa Villa-Ignacio; design Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein (Stanford University Press / November 2015)
Capitalism in the Web of Life by Jason W. Moore; design by Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein (Verso / August 2015)
The Woman Who Read Too Much design Anne Jordan & Mitch Goldstein
Oof. Hello, January. This is all rather soon isn’t it? But here we are, a new month, and another selection of new book covers (with a few ‘old’ ones that I missed in the excitement at the end of 2015). Happy New Year…
“The art on this book’s cover is unsigned and was created for a romance novella published in Mexico City in the 1960s that appeared in serial form. This piece was produced using collage and gouache overpainting on illustration board, and the back reads “El Angel No. 64.” The printer of these covers held on to the originals for decades, and the entire collection was recently purchased from his warehouse. Works are available from the Pardee Collection Gallery of Iowa City, and ‘El Angel’ is provided courtesy of Diane Williams and Wolfgang Neumann.”
Gamelife by Michael W. Clune; design by Alex Merto (FSG / September 2015)
The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Andersen, illustrated by Sanna Annukka; cover art by Sanna Annukka (Hutchinson / October 2015)
This looks absolutely beautiful, but I’ve seen very little about it online, much less seen it in person. Apparently Sanna Annukka has also illustrated an edition of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Fir Tree. It looks wonderful too.
Back in 2014, there were signs that book cover design was maybe, just maybe, having a moment. Suzanne Dean was on the BBC. Peter Mendelsund was on… well, everything. But if 2015 has felt a little quiet by comparison, there were still plenty of reasons to be cheerful. This year’s list includes over 120 covers by 60 designers, and there is little doubt in my mind that this really is a golden time for book design.
Thank you to all the art directors, designers, and publicists who have supported the blog this year, and who make posts like this possible. Thanks too, to my local bookstore TYPE for letting me browse their shelves.
A Bad Character by Deepti Kapoor; design by Janet Hansen (Knopf / January 2015)Voices in the Night by Steven Millhauser; design by Janet Hansen (Knopf / April 2015)Empire of the Senses by Alexis Landau; design by Janet Hansen (Pantheon / March 2015)
(Oliver Munday’s cover design for the US edition of the Book of Numbers published by Random House is also great.)
Also designed by Suzanne Dean:
Boo by Neil Smith; design Suzanne Dean; illustration by Stephanie von Reiswitz (William Heinemann / May 2015)Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff; design by Suzanne Dean (William Heinemann / September 2015)Satin Island by Tom McCarthy; design by Suzanne Dean (Jonathan Cape / March 2015)
Consumed by David Cronenberg; design by David A. Gee (Penguin Canada / September 2015)Why the World Does Not Exist by Markus Gabriel; design by David Gee (Polity / June 2015)Economics After Capitalism by Derek Wall; design by David A. Gee (Pluto Press / July 2015)
Unabrow by Una Lamarche; design by Zoe Norvell (Plume / March 2015)Anything You Want by Derek Sivers; design by Zoe Norvell (Portfolio / September 2015)
Karate Chop by Dorthe Nors; design by David Pearson (Pushkin Press / February 2015)Baddeley Brothers by The Gentle Author; design David Pearson (October 2015)Shooting Stars by Stefan Zweig; design by David Pearson (Pushkin Press / February 2015)
The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma; design by Gray318 (Pushkin Press / February 2015)Making Nice by Matt Sumell; design by Gray318 (Henry Holt & Co. / February 2015)Laurus by Eugene Vodolazkin; design Gray318 (Oneworld / October 2015)
Terrified by Christopher A. Bail; design by Amanda Weiss (Princeton University Press / January 2015)The Little Big Number by Dirk Philipsen; design by Amanda Weiss ( Princeton University Press / June 2015)
The Fox and the Star, written, illustrated and designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith (Particular Books / August 2015)
Also designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith:
Seven Brief Lessons on Physics by Carlo Rovelli; design by Coralie Bickford-Smith (Allen Lane / September 2015)Seneca: A Life by Emily Wilson; design by Coralie Bickford-Smith (Allen Lane / March 2015)
Satin Island by Tom McCarthy; design by Peter Mendelsund (Knopf / February 2015)New American Stories edited by Ben Marcus; design by Peter Mendelsund (Vintage / July 2015)Building Art: The Life and Work of Frank Gehry by Paul Goldberger; design by Peter Mendelsund (Knopf / September 2015)
World on a Plate by Mina Holland; design by Nick Misani (Penguin / May 2015)
KL by Nikolaus Wachsmann; design by Alex Merto (Farrar, Straus & Giroux / April 2015)
Also designed by Alex Merto:
Earth by Hubert Krivine; design by Alex Merto (Verso Books / April 2015)The Art of the Publisher by Roberto Calasso; design by Alex Merto (FSG / November 2015)Written in the Blood by Stephen Lloyd Jones; design by Alex Merto (Mulholland Books / May 2015)
A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin; design by Justine Anweiler; photography Jonathan Simpson (Picador UK / September 2015)
Also designed by Justine Anweiler:
All This Has Nothing To Do With Me; design by Justine Anweiler; illustration Daphne van den HeuvelDon’t Let’s Go To the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller; design by Justine Anweiler (Picador / January 2015)
Negroland by Margo Jefferson; design by Oliver Munday (Pantheon / September 2015)American Warlord by Johnny Dwyer; design by Oliver Munday (Knopf / April 2015)The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi; design by Oliver Munday (Knopf / May 2015)
Barbara the Slut by Lauren Holmes; design by Rachel Willey (Riverhead / August 2015)Discontent and its Civilizations by Mohsin Hamid; design by Rachel Willey (Riverhead / February 2015)Witches of America by Alex Mar; design by Rachel Willey (Sarah Crichton Books / Ocotber 2015)
Munich Airport by Greg Baxter; design by Anne Twomey (Twelve Books / January 2015)
This is actually a rather special lenticular cover that imitates the effect of flashing neon.
Also from Rodrigo Corral:
Home is Burning by Dan Marshall; design by Rodrigo Corral (Flatiron / October 2015)Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff; design by Rodrigo Corral and Adalis Martinez (Riverhead / September 2015 )
Of Beards and Men by Christopher Oldstone-Moore; design Isaac Tobin (University of Chicago Press / December 2015)
The Only Street in Paris by Elaine Schiolino; design by Strick&Williams (W.W. Norton / November 2015)
Also from Strick&Williams:
Safekeeping by Jessamyn Hope; design by Strick&Williams (Fig Tree / June 2015)Among the Ten Thousand Things by Julia Pierpoint; design by Strick&Williams (Random House / July 2015)
Ohey! by Darby Larson; design by Alban Fischer (CCM / May 2015)American Meteor by Norman Lock; design by Alban Fischer (Bellevue Literary Press / June 2015)Every Living One by Nathan Haukes; design by Alban Fischer (Horse Less Press / March 2015)
Paulina and Fran by Rachel B. Glaser; illustration Kaethe Butcher; typography Nina LoSchiavo (Harper Perennial / September 2015)
Unbuttoning America by Ardis Cameron; design by Kimberly Glyder; illustration by Al Moore (Cornell University Press / May 2015)Worthy by Denice Turner; design by Kimberly Glyder (University of Nevada Press / April 2015)
A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab; design by Will Staehle (Tor / February 2015)I Am Radar by Reif Larsen; design by Will Staehle (Penguin / February 2015)
Pretty Is by Maggie Mitchell; design by Lucy Kim (Henry Holt / July 2015)
Real Life Rock by Greil Marcus; design by Rich Black (Yale University Press / October 2015)
No Such Thing as a Free Gift by Linsey McGoey; design by James Paul Jones (Verso / October 2015)How Music Got Free by Stephen Witt; design by James Paul Jones (The Bodley Head / June 2015)The Rise of the Novel by Ian Watt; design by James Paul Jones (Vintage / October 2015)
The Sphinx by Anne Garréta; design by Anna Zylicz (Deep Vellum / May 2015)
Also designed by Anna Zylicz:
The Mountain and the Wall by Alisa Ganieva; design by Anna Zylicz (Deep Vellum / June 2015)The Indian by Jón Gnarr ; design by Anna Zylicz (Deep Vellum / May 2015)
Trust Me, PR is Dead by Robert Phillips; design by Jamie Keenan (Unbound / June 2015)Wake Up, Sir! by Jonathan Ames; design by Jamie Keenan (Pushkin Press / May 2015)
Trans by Juliet Jacques; Design and illustration by Joanna Walsh (Verso / September 2015)
Wall Flower by Rita Kuczynski; design by David Drummond (University of Toronto Press / August 2015)Young Babylon by Lu Nei; design by David Drummond (AmazonCrossing / September 2015)
Girl in the Dark by Anna Lyndsey; design by Greg Heinimann (Bloomsbury / February 2015)Thirteen Ways of Looking by Colum McCann; design by Greg Heinimann; photograph by Julio Gamboa (Random House / October 2015)
Souffles-Anfas edited by Olivia C. Harrison and Teresa Villa-Ignacio; design Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein (Stanford University Press / November 2015)Capitalism in the Web of Life by Jason W. Moore; design by Anne Jordan and Mitch Goldstein (Verso / August 2015)
