Judging Books by Their Covers: U.S. Vs. U.K.

Joe found this fantastic article by C. Max Magee at www.themillions.com. We are sharing it with permission.


Last year we had fun comparing the U.S. and U.K. book cover designs of a sample of the Rooster contenders, so I decided to do it again with this year’s batch. There are all sorts of marketing considerations behind these designs, and it’s interesting to see how designing for these two similar markets can result in very different looks. (The American covers are on the top, the U.K.'s are below them here on the blog)

I love the U.S. version here. The line drawing is exquisite and it draws the reader up to the tightrope walker and into the book. In fact, the design is a wonderful visual representation of McCann’s book, which revolves around the story of Philippe Petit’s tightrope walk but is not really about it. I don’t understand the U.K. design at all. McCann’s book is soulful and serious; the U.K. cover says “silly and strange.”


The American cover wins again here. The cartoonish, half cut-off head draws you in, while the U.K. version feels more like a movie poster. Although, the illusion of movement in the U.K. design is nice and something you don’t often see on the cover of a work of literary fiction.


This time I prefer the U.K. cover. There’s something weirdly sleepy about the U.S. cover. I love the red title script on the U.K. cover.

These are both very nice for totally different reasons. The American design is bold, intriguing and eye-catching. The U.K. cover is intricate and I like how the “K” in Kingsolver bleeds off the left edge.

This is really a case study in the “exotic,” no? I’m not sure I like either of these much at all.


The American version doesn’t do much for me – a little too coy. I love the U.K. version here. I like the idea that you might paint your book cover on the side of a barn.

These are both nice and bold, but for different reasons. The U.K. cover gets the nod, though, for the string, for the wavy, watery stencil, and for those horses; for all of it, really.

If you’ve read this book, you’ll know that the American cover is ridiculous. The U.K. cover, meanwhile, is close to perfect.

There's more...we just couldn't fit them all here. Check out the original article, and all the reader comments to it, at : http://www.themillions.com/2010/03/judging-books-by-their-covers-u-s-vs-u-k.html