Kids/Teens Book Club discussion
Questions & Debate
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Can you judge a book by its cover?
Yeah, I think you can. I mean, if I see a book that looks like this:
I can tell what it is about, and because I know what kind of books I like, I can say, "Nooooooo!"
I would have to say definitely no. Some books *cough* Halo *cough* have nice enough covers and when you actually read them, the contents make you want to vomit.
Way-chan (Aspiring Author) wrote: "Yeah, I think you can. I mean, if I see a book that looks like this:
I can tell what it is about, and because I know what kind of books I like, I can say, "Nooooooo!""But take out the writing, and this cover isn't very different. And the books are.
I don't judge a book on it's cover, but it does play a part in whether I pick up the book to read the description. Of course, you all need to keep in mind that models are used for very different books- but in the same poses- normally reversed. Take Evermore and North of Beautiful for example:
Mod
The story inside may not live up to its cover (or vise versa), but the simple fact is it helps to choose what you should/shouldn't buy.
I read a lot of fantasy and I can always tell a good fantasy book by how bad the cover is (they have shocking covers the worst covers usually hide the best books)
however if I see a cover that is pretty I'll always pick it up to read the blurb....I think authors by now should know that image does mean a lot even if it I shouldn't.
but I do love book covers even if I dont like the actual book I have a collection of pictures of some on my computer
however if I see a cover that is pretty I'll always pick it up to read the blurb....I think authors by now should know that image does mean a lot even if it I shouldn't.
but I do love book covers even if I dont like the actual book I have a collection of pictures of some on my computer
John: OFFENSIVE COMMENT *because I LOVE the book Halo* but okay, I can understand why some people would hate that book. Rebekah Faith*StarGleek*Potterhead* Nice examples!
Melanie: Good way to test out books!
It depends. The cover usually does catch my eye, though. If the cover looks old, with yellowing pages, (for example: the Boxcar Children) then no, I probably won't even take a second look. But, Matched was HORRID. I hated it. The color looked so new, and interesting, but it was horrid! I mean, what person doesn't know what pie is? Super-weird. AND, she goes ON and ON about her grandpa dying. I know she's melancholy, but gosh, she doesn't need to drown on about it.
Books are kind of like people. Even though you know what really counts is what's on the inside, you're more likely to check out one who's easy on the eyes (or matches your bookmark!) rather than a dull-looking one. XD
кαяι wrote: "John: OFFENSIVE COMMENT *because I LOVE the book Halo* but okay, I can understand why some people would hate that book. Rebekah Faith*StarGleek*Potterhead* Nice examples!
Melanie: Good way to t..."
Sorry :( didn't mean to offend. While I didn't care for the book I have a lot of friends that enjoyed it. And Ms. Aly does have some nice prose in parts, so I too can see how others may have enjoyed it. :)
Swiftfire wrote: "Books are kind of like people. Even though you know what really counts is what's on the inside, you're more likely to check out one who's easy on the eyes (or matches your bookmark!) rather than a..."
So true!
кαяι wrote: "Us readers often judge a book by its cover. But can we actually do that?My thoughts: No. Just because the cover is a picture of people walking around in 1800s outfits doesn't mean the book is bor..."
the book is, most of the time better
well yeah I guess the first thing that attracts me is probably the cover. But some books don't have the best cover and they are awesome and sometimes vice-versa. Which is why they made something called the back of the book with a short synopsis.
I am quite opinionated on the kind of plots I like. There are some that I can't stand, and some that I love. Usually, I can tell a lot about a book by its cover and I do kind of judge it. Personally, I think that's why books have covers. The covers for certain books are to attract a certain audience and in you aren't in that audience, chances are you won't be interested in that certain book whereas you might be interested in a different book of an entirely different plot type. I think that all these things come across through the cover.
☮Ḱαяℓї♬ wrote: "It depends. The cover usually does catch my eye, though. If the cover looks old, with yellowing pages, (for example: the Boxcar Children) then no, I probably won't even take a second look. But, [bo..."Interesting. For me, old books are the ones that do catch my eye. I love the smell and feel of an old book.
I think that's the point of the cover, Way, but I don't think they succeed. Often, they end up attracting people who don't like that type of book and driving away the people who do.
☮Ḱαяℓї♬ wrote: "It depends. The cover usually does catch my eye, though. If the cover looks old, with yellowing pages, (for example: the Boxcar Children) then no, I probably won't even take a second look. But, [bo..."I wanna make a comment about your "Matched" comment. Ally Condie's Matched is a dystopian style novel- the futuristic society they live in is SUPPOSED to be perfect, but it's really not. And she doesn't know what pie is because food is one of the things that gets regulated so that no one eats too much (in the opinion of that gov't) or is spoiled. And then she just loved her grandfather- it's realistic in the way that it's talked about for several pages. I mean, wouldn't you be sad for days/weeks/months/years if someone you loved SO very much died?
кαяι- thanks! In actuality while I HAVE read both books, I had to google 'books with the same covers' because I couldn't think of them off the top of my head.
Swifty- That's so very true. And I'm going to amend my first statement (in my first comment), I do judge books based on their covers- it has to catch my eye if I'm going to pick it up- but it doesn't have to be pretty and nice looking. All a cover needs is something that intrigues me and makes me think that the book might be worth picking up.
Yeah, if I'm walking around a bookstore and see an interesting looking cover on a book, I'll probably pick it up and see what it's about. I also agree with what others said before about being able to tell the genre of a book by its cover. If there were a ton of angels or vampires on the front I wouldn't give it a second glance, because I'm mostly not into those sorts of books. But then again, some covers can be misleading.
Not only do I judge a book by it's color but also by it's title. If it sounds and looks interesting I am more likey to want to know what the actual content of the book is. If you don't judge a book, you end up reading some pretty wacked books.
Alexa wrote: "Not only do I judge a book by it's color but also by it's title. If it sounds and looks interesting I am more likey to want to know what the actual content of the book is. If you don't judge a book..."Exactly! I applaud your wonderful explanation, Alexa.
Well, I definitely want to read a book with a cover and title that stands out, right?
Ok, what about ebooks? It's easy to go around a physical bookstore and take down books to check out covers. Do you do something similar with ebooks? (Maybe I should first ask fi anyone on this thread read ebooks?!)
I read Ebooks and I do the same things with covers that I do in real life. I hate to say it, but most of the time I will not pick up a book because it has a blah cover (boy and girl holding hands, people laying in the grass, etc.), or I won't pick it up because the cover is to extreme (Fires, explosions, demons, etc.). I know you're not supposed to prejudice against books...but I kinda am. :(
A books cover gives you a preview of the quality of the illustrations (if any) inside of the book. I use it mainly for Children's Picture Books to see if it's worth buying or would be of interest to my children. Sometimes the book's cover is all that you get before making a decision, so it's important that authors and publishers put in every effort to make a good book cover.
Baillie wrote: "I read Ebooks and I do the same things with covers that I do in real life. I hate to say it, but most of the time I will not pick up a book because it has a blah cover (boy and girl holding hands, ..."That's exactly like me, Baillie. I think it's normal, so don't worry about it.
I do!! I'm not judging the quality of the work, I'm judging my ablity to appreciate it. That's very book I've read and posted on this site is 4-5 stars. The only reason I rate 4s is because some books aren't in the same category as others. I judge my eBooks the same way.
Can one judge a book by its cover? Yes and no (haha aren't I being difficult?)
Yes, because snazzy-designed book covers often attract people's attention. How do you even pick up a book to check out the synopsis if you don't notice it first? I know for a fact that I was drawn to The Lightning Thief, Twilight, the Heir Chronicles and Ship Breaker because of their cover designs.
That being said, some of my favorite books have what I would call butt-ugly covers: basically anything by Juliet Marillier comes to mind. I LOVE Marillier's books and now I'd read them regardless of what the cover looks like, but I think all the cover designs on her books missed the pretty/snazzy mark. And yet I love them. Same with The Hollow Kingdom and the Wondrous Strange books...
I have to add to my arguement.....you can judge a book by it's cover. You're just setting an expectation for the story and running the risk that you will be disappionted, proved correct, or have your expectations exceeded.
Valencia wrote: "I have to add to my arguement.....you can judge a book by it's cover. You're just setting an expectation for the story and running the risk that you will be disappionted, proved correct, or have yo..."True, in which I try to not judge a book by its cover.
yes i mean if a books front cover looks stupid than it most likely will be stupid. when i look for a book i always look at the cover first and its worked for me so far
NOOOOO!!!!! So many books have such beautiful covers but they only conceal the poison within (Cough*Fallen,Twilight,Hush Hush*Cough)! I believe that a cover is by no means a accurate measure of a book's contents. Sometimes a pretty cover conceals a great book (i.e. Stargirl, one of my favourite books and covers), and sometimes not. Anyway, with most books, there are lots of different editions in print, all with different covers.
I had no idea what to expect when my editor and team designed the cover for my first MG novel. At first I wasn't sure I liked it, but then it really grew on me. My editor said a lot of thought and planning goes into designing a cover. It's not just the editor, but also sales and marketing gets involved.
in theory it makes sense not to, but in reality we see a pretty cover and pick it up to read the blurb...or at least I do..
I don't mean to, but I do. I can't help it!
I do it all the time. Why is it bad? It's not like I have any other way to decide if a book is good or not before I actually read it.
What about the blurb or a review? How does an illustration tell you about the quality of a piece of writing done by a different person?
i do it too i do go for covers i dislike aswell but brand is everything nowadsays
you should never judge a book by its cover. I always look it up on goodreads to get opinion or I read the summery that is on the book.
You totally can judge a book by its cover. Like if it has a crappy pastel cartoon on the front, it probably isn't good unless it's a classic.
Let's be honest. The cover is what is going to make your eye stop on that particular book when you're scanning shelves. Covers are the ultimate first impressions. The authors know that, publishing houses know that, the readers know that. That's why they try to make covers look interesting and they try to target their audience with the cover. Yes, covers can be very misleading and sometimes they set the readers up for disappointment once they've finished it. But once you turn the first page on that book, the covers have done their jobs- they've caught your attention. The rest is up to the author's creation- the characters, the plot, etc- to convince and to make the reader fall in love with the world inside the book.
i agree tthat he book is the part that draws your attention, but the back cover (on paperback) is the part that really draws your interest. If you see a catchy cover, yeah, It'll make you look at the book, but then you read the back to see if you'd like it, right?
John wrote: "I would have to say definitely no. Some books *cough* Halo *cough* have nice enough covers and when you actually read them, the contents make you want to vomit."I was going to use that exact same book as my example. I bought it because the cover looked so beautiful. It showed me that the book was a romance, but it wasn't any indication of how wet it was.
That was the last time I bought a book based on how well I liked the cover. I thought the blurb sounded ok as well. After that, I always read lots of reviews first.
As for my own books - I maintain that they should give the flavour of the book, a sense of what it's about, not just be a pretty picture like many of them are. One popular YA book (forgotten the name now) had a stunning cover of a girl with lots of make up on and the heroine in the story made a big thing about not wearing make up! That's false advertising.
What does this cover say to you?
I would say no you cant but i tend to steer clear of books that have a photograph of the characters in them because i like to make up my own version of them in my head.
Ok, heres what i think..... No! NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER! (; because... Just because the artists got bad taste LOL! Doesnt mean than the author did a horrible job at writing the novel! And that the author has horrible story line and ideas. However, it is always good to have an outstanding cover because, those covers are eye catching when you go into bookstores! I personally look @ the cover b4 everything else most of the time. And i know i shouldnt! But.... Thats me
I judge books by there cover and i have only really been wrong once. A cover is a books Personality
Since I can't read all intro's at the backs, I pick the books with an interesting Title and Cover first. Judging by cover is only natural I think, it's the first impresssion which has to capture a readers attention to that particular book between all the other books.
I don't think people mean to judge a book by its cover, but I do think it plays a big part on weither you will read it or not.
Definitely not, before I started reading Harry Potter I thought I hated it, then I read it and now it is my favorite book
The cover definitely helps determine whether I will pick up the book or not, but it does not determine how much I will like the book. Depending on how flashy or eye-catching the cover is, I will either pick it off the shelf or walk past it.
The title helps too. If the title has quality adjectives or whatever in it, I will notice that the author has enough creativity to create that title, so that will also help determine.
But no, my opinion of the cover (or the title) does not make my rating of the book higher or lower.
The title helps too. If the title has quality adjectives or whatever in it, I will notice that the author has enough creativity to create that title, so that will also help determine.
But no, my opinion of the cover (or the title) does not make my rating of the book higher or lower.
Kids/Teens Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die (other topics)The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die (other topics)
Famous Last Words (other topics)
The Knife of Never Letting Go (other topics)
The Iron King (other topics)
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My thoughts: No. Just because the cover is a picture of people walking around in 1800s outfits doesn't mean the book is boring. It just means that that book is probably historical fiction.
What do you guys think?