Bonnie’s answer to “Am I the only one who was furious about the pink chick-lit, rom-com cover on this book? It belittle…” > Likes and Comments
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The UK cover is wonderful! That one with the stenciled edges is gorgeous.
The German cover is great! Anyway, I'm so glad I read this despite my serious misgivings and biases based on the cover. xo
I have a lot of respect for Doubleday's opinions and experience--they've been doing this a lot longer than I have. But as already mentioned, I didn't agree with their choice on this. I think there's a perception that authors choose their covers; we don't. I was really lucky to be consulted and they did listen to my concerns. But publishing is very complicated; it's very important to be humble and open and listen. They've developed wonderful covers for many of their books. This particular cover doesn't speak to me, but I guarantee you, there was no evil intent behind it! It's okay to disagree. It's also okay to make mistakes. That's how we grow.
I prefer the UK version but when I zoomed in to look a bit closer I did think the pencil in her hair was a nice touch, so it has that going for it at least!
The cover also put me off reading it but following recommendations from friends, I read and loved it. Definitely one of my favourite books (of 24 read) this year. I’m looking forward to your next book!
I'm sorry to say that I put off reading this for a LONG time because of the cover. It is splendid and I am enjoying it tremendously. Looking forward to your future work!
I like the German cover, and it's a best seller there. I am listening to it in German
Your response says so much about your character!! Not only are you an amazing writer, you are a stand up human being. Thank you for the gift of this incredible story!
Great book and I appreciate your comments Bonnie. Your book was more serious than its cover. ;)
The cover was the main reason why I didnt read the book initially. I picked it as my BOTM choice when it was a finalist for book of the year. But having just finished the book, I am so glad I looked past the cover. It does not tell the story at all. Thank you, Bonnie, for your excellent writing!
I picked this up initially because I was so drawn to the UK edition with the periodic table sprayed on the side. If it had been the pink version in the UK I would have steered well clear unless I was hoping for a trashy beach read to take on holiday ...
I think the cover matches the book because the character was "judged by her cover" instead of people respecting her intelligence and inner person. Her career, her relationship, her motherhood was constantly criticized for not "looking like everyone else." This cover is perfect!
Agree totally, Michele! It presents visually the precise point, that people invariably make judgments based upon their own upbringing, the times in which they live, and the hodgepodge of biases that all this produces. How better to prove the point and sell the book? It appeals to those who may still harbor the idea that women are inherently deficient, as well as to those who know better and simply chuckle knowingly at the irony.
No. I agree with the author, and hope something more serious and deserving of real fiction appears for the paperback edition.
I was engrossed in your book. As for this little discussion about the cover, I almost didn’t read it due to the cover. Any book that has that type of art for the cover screams chick-lit. So happy I looked past it to be able to read such a beautiful, sad and smart book. Thank you for the courage and love your story gave the reader.
The cover was misleading. I did not want to read something like the cover suggested. I am very glad I finally read it. This is my favorite book of the last few years. I am a "big reader" as my book club friends like to tease. This book is now on our "to read" list of books for our book club. We will have serious forthright discussions.
But that’s the whole thing the publishers got wrong! Because it looked like a chick lit, I kept overlooking it even though I saw it everywhere. But on a whim, decided to at least read the sample and I was hooked from the beginning.
The first thing I thought when I saw this book's cover was "Beach Blanket Bingo!! Glad I overlooked the cover and read this book in spite of first impressions!
I like the UK cover, but the German cover is IT for me.
So interesting! I just picked it up… and did so mostly bc of the cover. I guess we’ll see what I get 😉
Thanks for your comment. I hope the paperback changes
Totally agree. I kept passing it up because of the cover.
Finally I decided to give it a try and I’m glad I did.
I wasn't going to read the book because of the cover. But then so many people suggested it!
I almost didn't read this book because of the cover. But I read it because of a comment from someone who usually likes books I like.
The deeper I got into the story I came to realize how ironic the US cover really is. I picked up the UK version in paperback before The Book Depository closed. I really liked the characters in this story and would love to see more of them.
Completely agree about the cover. The only reason I tried it was a very happy recent accident— depleted my books near the end of a long trip through Indonesia and Malaysia. Found it at the hotel library in Borneo with few English choices. Absolutely delighted it was not as expected from the cover, I devoured this book.
I actually came looking for a beach read, and while the cover tells a very different story I enjoyed it (after working through my rage in the early part of the story). After some reflection I kind of don't want to give the publishers credit, but the cover makes sense: another example of a brilliant woman reduced down to her beauty and palatability. Kind of a parallel process with Elizabeth Zott's entire struggle. Interesting choice, anyway.
I didn’t read this until just now because from the cover it looked like chick- lit. I saw the trailer for Apple’s series on this and that is what made me read the book. I absolutely loved it and will now be recommending it to everyone!
Oh my word, the Taiwan cover is stunning!
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Lori
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Jun 10, 2022 07:12AM
The UK cover is wonderful! That one with the stenciled edges is gorgeous.
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The German cover is great! Anyway, I'm so glad I read this despite my serious misgivings and biases based on the cover. xo
I have a lot of respect for Doubleday's opinions and experience--they've been doing this a lot longer than I have. But as already mentioned, I didn't agree with their choice on this. I think there's a perception that authors choose their covers; we don't. I was really lucky to be consulted and they did listen to my concerns. But publishing is very complicated; it's very important to be humble and open and listen. They've developed wonderful covers for many of their books. This particular cover doesn't speak to me, but I guarantee you, there was no evil intent behind it! It's okay to disagree. It's also okay to make mistakes. That's how we grow.
I prefer the UK version but when I zoomed in to look a bit closer I did think the pencil in her hair was a nice touch, so it has that going for it at least!
The cover also put me off reading it but following recommendations from friends, I read and loved it. Definitely one of my favourite books (of 24 read) this year. I’m looking forward to your next book!
I'm sorry to say that I put off reading this for a LONG time because of the cover. It is splendid and I am enjoying it tremendously. Looking forward to your future work!
I like the German cover, and it's a best seller there. I am listening to it in German
Your response says so much about your character!! Not only are you an amazing writer, you are a stand up human being. Thank you for the gift of this incredible story!
Great book and I appreciate your comments Bonnie. Your book was more serious than its cover. ;)
The cover was the main reason why I didnt read the book initially. I picked it as my BOTM choice when it was a finalist for book of the year. But having just finished the book, I am so glad I looked past the cover. It does not tell the story at all. Thank you, Bonnie, for your excellent writing!
I picked this up initially because I was so drawn to the UK edition with the periodic table sprayed on the side. If it had been the pink version in the UK I would have steered well clear unless I was hoping for a trashy beach read to take on holiday ...
I think the cover matches the book because the character was "judged by her cover" instead of people respecting her intelligence and inner person. Her career, her relationship, her motherhood was constantly criticized for not "looking like everyone else." This cover is perfect!
Agree totally, Michele! It presents visually the precise point, that people invariably make judgments based upon their own upbringing, the times in which they live, and the hodgepodge of biases that all this produces. How better to prove the point and sell the book? It appeals to those who may still harbor the idea that women are inherently deficient, as well as to those who know better and simply chuckle knowingly at the irony.
No. I agree with the author, and hope something more serious and deserving of real fiction appears for the paperback edition.
I was engrossed in your book. As for this little discussion about the cover, I almost didn’t read it due to the cover. Any book that has that type of art for the cover screams chick-lit. So happy I looked past it to be able to read such a beautiful, sad and smart book. Thank you for the courage and love your story gave the reader.
The cover was misleading. I did not want to read something like the cover suggested. I am very glad I finally read it. This is my favorite book of the last few years. I am a "big reader" as my book club friends like to tease. This book is now on our "to read" list of books for our book club. We will have serious forthright discussions.
But that’s the whole thing the publishers got wrong! Because it looked like a chick lit, I kept overlooking it even though I saw it everywhere. But on a whim, decided to at least read the sample and I was hooked from the beginning.
The first thing I thought when I saw this book's cover was "Beach Blanket Bingo!! Glad I overlooked the cover and read this book in spite of first impressions!
I like the UK cover, but the German cover is IT for me.
So interesting! I just picked it up… and did so mostly bc of the cover. I guess we’ll see what I get 😉
Thanks for your comment. I hope the paperback changes
Totally agree. I kept passing it up because of the cover.Finally I decided to give it a try and I’m glad I did.
I wasn't going to read the book because of the cover. But then so many people suggested it!
I almost didn't read this book because of the cover. But I read it because of a comment from someone who usually likes books I like.
The deeper I got into the story I came to realize how ironic the US cover really is. I picked up the UK version in paperback before The Book Depository closed. I really liked the characters in this story and would love to see more of them.
Completely agree about the cover. The only reason I tried it was a very happy recent accident— depleted my books near the end of a long trip through Indonesia and Malaysia. Found it at the hotel library in Borneo with few English choices. Absolutely delighted it was not as expected from the cover, I devoured this book.
I actually came looking for a beach read, and while the cover tells a very different story I enjoyed it (after working through my rage in the early part of the story). After some reflection I kind of don't want to give the publishers credit, but the cover makes sense: another example of a brilliant woman reduced down to her beauty and palatability. Kind of a parallel process with Elizabeth Zott's entire struggle. Interesting choice, anyway.
I didn’t read this until just now because from the cover it looked like chick- lit. I saw the trailer for Apple’s series on this and that is what made me read the book. I absolutely loved it and will now be recommending it to everyone!
Oh my word, the Taiwan cover is stunning!
