Do you judge a book by its cover?
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Re: Do you judge a book by its cover?
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On the one hand, if we are talking about a well-known book, or a book recommended by someone I trust, or a book referenced by another book then the cover makes little difference. I would shop around for the best cover I could get, if a book has multiple editions though.
On the other hand, if we are talking about just browsing a selection of random unfamiliar books in-person or online, then yes the cover does play a significant role in filtering my attention. The overall quality and tastefulness of the cover often correlates (in my experience) to the quality of the material within. A cover also ideally communicates the genre and themes, or perhaps the atmosphere of the book.
Specifically regarding Nimue: Freeing Merlin, the cover has the right idea. I like the design idea, and it avoids the mistakes of gaudier covers. It also does a good job of conveying the idea of a story in the fantasy genre, with an emphasis on Celtic inspiration.
However, I think the execution is still a bit lacking. Someone needed to take the current design and just put a few finishing touches that would make it feel less like a basic Photoshop or 3D render job.
That said, I would probably give it at least a second look, based on the current cover, so it does its job.
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Seetha E wrote: ↑09 Sep 2023, 02:24 Although the book's title, writing style, and cover art do tempt me to check it out, I make it a point to read the description before deciding whether or not to take it up. If the description of the book meets all of my criteria, I will still choose it despite the unattractive cover, but not the other way around.
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Yes, I normally choose books based on the cover and synopsis. I would say that 99% of the time I have been right. I judge books by the cover almost always.
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Do I judge books by their covers? Of course, don’t we all do it? It’s human nature to keep things we find visually appealing and pass up the rest. Aye, but we have been admonished against this very habit, though sneaky it may sometimes be.
So, what does that mean, after all?
Beauty is only skin deep.
All that glitters is not gold.
Occam’s razor situates itself cleanly between the adages, which tell us to look at more than the exterior. That’s really benevolent when it comes to people or furry little animals; but books, not so much.
Tangible books present an array of colors, textures, and artwork. If a book has glaring colors outside the scope of my Crayola 64 and no more, it might stay on the shelf without a peep from me. If the artwork is emotionally offensive, the book is going nowhere.
I prefer books without artwork, since that can distract and detract from the array of words between the book covers. It’s more fun to “unwrap” the gift of an author’s talent by reading the foreword or sampling the table of contents. Any given book has at least a 50/50 chance of going home with me this way, and no cover judgements interfere.
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In the case of Book covers and how it affects Nimue. I'm of the opinion that the somber and dark cover does not do justice to the vibrant and captivating contents within its pages.
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