Book Covers Reading and Video Responses - Grace

BOOK COVERS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Selling Books by Their Guilded Covers

    

    As an avid reader of physical books myself, I very much agree with the sentiments expressed in this article. With the rise of e-books and their enticingly low prices, it is getting more and more difficult to find other bookworms who have an extensive physical collection, so innovation is needed on the publishers' part in order to entice readers back into the realm of print media. Publishers have responded to this issue by aestheticizing book covers in order to attract readers to print media. I always love to visit the bookstore and scan the covers for my next read, and this new movement to improve book covers is something that I am currently enjoying immensely. I eat up this new generation of book covers and believe that they contribute to the reading experience in a positive way. However, I do see a downside to this aestheticization of books: the price. For someone who hasn't heard of a particular work, a pleasant aesthetic alone may still not be enough to justify a hefty price tag. For example, many classics such as Dracula, are available for only $0.99 on Kindle. However, my copy of Dracula (pictured above), which places heavy emphasis on making the book look pretty, cost me $20. For those who aren't heavily invested in a particular work would most likely just choose the cheaper option. In addition to the Kindle version being cheaper, once the consumer clicks "Buy Now", the consumer has instant access to the book. Meanwhile, the reader who opts for the physical copy has to locate the book, potentially pay for shipping, and then wait for the book to arrive/wait till they get home in order to read the book. So, while aestheticizing books has the potential to attract a larger audience of readers, they are also in and of themselves luxury items in comparison to e-books.

The Hilarious Art of Book Design

    This TedTalk explored what goes into designing book covers. Through his talk, Chip Kidd draws upon his 20+ years of experience as a book cover designer to hammer home the central mission of book cover design: What do the stories look like? This is a question that I, as a reader and not a designer, had never thought about until now. However, now that I have watched his talk, I wholeheartedly agree with this mission and have begun to notice this idea when I briefly glanced over at the cover of a book that I am currently reading. In addition, It was fascinating to learn about the different techniques employed by graphic designers in order to design book covers that attract readers whilst conveying the overarching message of the work. For example, when designing the cover for Michael Crichton's iconic novel Jurassic Park, Kidd incorporated the design of signs common throughout wildlife preserves and national parks in order to reflect the animal park setting of the novel. Kidd's design has now become a pop-culture icon  worldwide. After watching Kidd's talk, I have gained a newfound appreciation for the work of book cover designers and how much hard work they must put in to their work.