buying books

[cellio]

A friend wrote (in a locked entry, so I won't further identify) about judging books by their covers. (I'm talking about literal books here; this is not metaphor.) I described how I do the initial evaluation of books in bookstores, and thought I'd share my reply here.

There are two orientations for a book in a bookstore: cover facing out, and spine facing out.

When covers are facing out I definitely judge books by them. I can't articulate the parameters, but certain styles and contents send strong "not interesting" vibes (certain styles of fantasy and anything that looks romancy, among others).

If the spine is facing out (which is true for most books), then the font -- size and clarity -- is the first thing that matters. With my vision, perusing a shelf of paperbacks is kind of slow and tedious, so unless I know I'm in a subsection that I really want to investigate, I sample. I don't read every title; I don't have time or patience. If it's small or ornate or poor-contrast colors, I skip right on by. If I read a title and it (and/or the author) grab me as potentially interesting I pull the book out and look at the cover, but I'm a little less dismissive than for the facing-out covers. I've already gone to the trouble to pick up the book; I'll usually look at the blurb. (And from there, perhaps a sampling of the contents.)

So the "display" books (covers facing out) have more opportunities both to quickly grab me and to quickly turn me off. I'm more likely to miss a good book in conventional orientation, but I'm also a little less likely to dismiss it just based on a stupid cover.

Comments

[starmessenger.livejournal.com]

Turns out there are books about book cover design:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1568984979/026-4397995-1435617?v=glance&n=266239

I remember the first time I realized that a book cover was a manipulating me -- in effect *I* was being judged by *it* as a target demographic. It was maybe the mid or early 1990s and I'd just bought the Vintage International re-release of __Pale Fire__:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0679723420/sr=8-1/qid=1152592224/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-7167172-7674342?ie=UTF8

I realized that it shared some DNA with the Vintage Contemporary series:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0394726413/qid=1152592312/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/104-7167172-7674342?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

The covers were obviously part of a coordinated marketing plan, but they were pitched to completely different audiences. It's not a big difference, but I remember thinking that the Contemporary covers looked childish compared to the International series, and that feeling seemed to carry through into my experience of the books themselves. There was another big difference: the International series covers were matte, the Contemporaries glossy. I still prefer the powdered feel of a matte cover. I don't think I've bought a book with a glossy cover in years.

When I look at them now, both the Vintage and Contemporary covers seem dated and stale compared to this:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BZ9A3W/qid=1152592757/sr=2-3/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_3/104-7167172-7674342?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

Maybe it's the contrast of the image and the title, but __Demonology__ is probably my all-time favorite cover. (Sadly, the book itself didn't live up to its cover; it certainly can't hold a candle to __Pale Fire__.) __Black Hole__ by Charles Burns is a close second:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/037542380X/qid=1152594564/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/104-7167172-7674342?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

Looks like I favor a strong singular image and a centered title without any junk or flair around the edges (the unremovable Somebody's Book Club badges are a real turn-off). Other general rules: I won't buy the smaller-format trade paperback bestsellers or anything with big puffy gold lettering, I avoid titles written in a script-style font, and if it has a picture of a shoe, a shopping bag, a vampire or a man and woman with their backs turned to each other, it's right out.

[cellio]

Turns out there are books about book cover design:

That makes sense. It is (depending on whom you ask) a marketing tool or an artistic expression; either way, I'd expect to find books full of advice.

(the unremovable Somebody's Book Club badges are a real turn-off).

Same here.

[mabfan.livejournal.com]

FYI: Publishers sometimes pay bookstores for the right to have certain books turned cover-forward instead of spine-forward.

[cellio]

I'd been wondering if that placement could be bought. Obviously in principle; I was wondering about the logistics. Does an entire chain place the target book cover-out because HQ made a deal, or do the individual stores have to somehow get involved? (That seems unmanagable.) And does that mean that a cover-out book in a small independent bookstore is more likely to represent the opinion of the store owner than publishers?

I know that grocery stores sell shelf placement (that is, who gets the good eye-level slots); this seems similar.

[estherchaya.livejournal.com]

oh, it was only locked because it was an email post and my email posts default to locked. I shall now go and unlock the post. :)