Mark's Top 10 Book Covers
Book design is a big deal for me. It’s also a big deal for the staff here at Brazos; on any given day you may hear us discussing (or arguing) over the pros and cons of this or that specific book cover. To me, one of the most vital aspects of a book is its cover. Think about it: it’s the sole visual cue a reader is given when reading--there’s nothing else. If you’re reading Don Quixote or War and Peace or Beloved, you’re given one single image for the book: the cover.
My criteria for what makes a great book design is arbitrary. Sometimes I’m not sure why I like a particular book cover and design, it just works. I do know what I don’t like: I don’t like covers which are too literal. I dislike covers that follow trends or are beholden to the zeitgeist, including what’s popular in graphic design. A lot of bestselling books these days look like bags of Skittles, fractured colors or shards of stained glass, all with the same big font. If you buy books or spent time around books, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
In any case, below are my favorite book covers of the past year.
I saw this cover months before the book was published and was in awe. I thought there was no way the novel itself could equal the design. I was wrong. A dark, visceral, masterpiece about youth, trauma, ritual, and horror. The cover speaks for the book without giving anything away.
Strange, abstract, colorful, like all of Cesar Aira’s fantastical and philosophical stories. The cover perfectly encapsulates the story in unspoken ways. I also love the vibrant colors.
This cover of this slim Latin American classic (in English for the first time) is dazzling in its simplicity. The cover art references a scene in the book and I’ll leave it at that. Strange, eye-catching, and seemingly effortless.
I have not yet read this book, however the cover is stunning. The right half encroached by darkness, symbolizing a plague, is clever and effective. A striking and original cover.
There’s a reference to the cover image in Amina Cain’s wonderful book, a quiet, profound love letter to reading, writing and books. Much like the cover, there’s something thoughtful, timeless, and reassuring about the design. Lovely and a bit mysterious.
Like the stories in Fernando’s collection, there’s an abstract and surreal game at play. I love this cover and all the imagery that feels akin to a work by Salvador Dali replete with a smirk.
I love the blend of old photos or artwork with contemporary fonts. The coloring of the letters stands in lovely contrast to the painting.
I mean what a cover! Great title, great design and marvelous novel.
It’s a given that any book by Rivera Garza will be incredible; this one covers decades of her short stories, the reader invited into an exciting and vibrant range of a singular talent. The cover is absolutely stunning. A photograph with an explosion of red from a scarf or a sheet.
I’m an enormous fan of Lina Wolff and her new book is no exception. Dark, literary, and a psychological page-turner. The cover alludes to the story without giving anything away.