There is such a particular beauty to old covers. Not to say there aren’t absolutely stunning covers now-a-days, I just enjoy and miss the aesthetic of hand-painted artworks crafted for a cover you might only spend a total of twenty seconds looking at.
Abstract covers can be beautiful, for sure, but not every story, or genre, requires ambiguity in its packaging. I think a wonderful romp through this particular style of cover is the nonfiction book Paperbacks from Hell by Grady Hendrix. (Whose fiction I am currently binging) The added benefit, I feel, of this book is the attention it draws to the artists behind these covers! There is a huge industry of massively talented artists out there who created these memorable and breathtaking pieces. Personal opinion, it’d be great if not just the authors got to become names known by the public. Wouldn’t it be cool if all the folks who had a direct hand in shaping the final product of the book, artists, editors, etc. could be more openly credited? Yes, yes, names often appear inside the book… in small text… on the copyright page. I’m thinking more prominently than that though. Like credits on a film.
Some of my favorite covers are those that capture your attention, arresting you in your book shopping, and demand that you take a peak, see what lies inside. Then, of course, about six hours of reading in, you realize the cover has bloody all to do with the book you’re actually reading. Some of the reprintings of H.P. Lovecraft’s works or some older sci-fi will have this strange occurrence. Where it almost feels as though the artist was given the title of the work, and nothing else to work off.
Then there are the others which come straight out and tell you exactly what’s about to happen and only upon finishing the book do you realize how many spoilers were right there in the cover art. Ballsy.
