Judging a book by the cover

Architecture in Sweden: Function, Design and Aesthetic through the Ages (Arkitekturmuseet, 2007)

This modest little book published by the Swedish Architecture Museum has one rather striking feature. The cover has a pop-out section that can be folded to create a 3D model of a building, which looks to be a traditional Scandinavian house with a steeply pitched roof. A unique feature such as this can broaden the appeal of a book that is, by way of its subject matter, targeted at a specialist interest group. The book just might, for instance, be purchased as a tourist souvenir.

Ways of Seeing – John Berger (BBC and Penguin, 2008)

This book is a reissue by the BBC and Penguin Books of a book originally published in 1972 as an accompaniment to a BBC television series. The book, which is based on the scripts Berger wrote for the TV series, is comprised of seven essays and has been used extensively as a text in academic institutions. The challenges Berger poses to traditional Western art criticism in this book are reflected in challenges to book design conventions in its execution.

The cover is interesting because it is in fact the first page of the text. The reader starts here and upon opening the book simply continues reading on the first page.

I may discuss this book more than once because it's rather intriguing. It seems to me that the purpose of flaunting convention in this book is to embody the nature of its content and to challenge the reader to rethink the process of reading. In that sense it is successful.

The Endless City (Phaidon, 2007)

Phaidon makes statistics look cool in bold black type on a neon orange background. It's busy, but it works because of the regularity of shapes and contrasting white accents.


The Summer Without Men – Siri Hustvedt (Sceptre, 2011)

This is a very nicely designed cover. It's simple and uncluttered, but has an enticing subtlety about it. The minimalism is reminiscent of poetry book design, yet this is a literary novel. It has a lightness to it that belies its subject matter. The use of blank space on the cover suggests that this is a novel where those things left unrepresented are as important as what is directly conveyed. The woman's skin and hair, for example, is rendered boldly in black and red, yet her dress and her body are merely suggested through the negative space. It requires the reader's interpretation – as does the text.


The cover is made from a matt board and has generous flaps. It seems odd that the quality of the cover has not been carried through to the internals of the book. It is printed on recycled stock, which is very thin and quite coarse. The text of subsequent pages is visible, as can be seen here, which might affect its readability and does feel a bit cheap. However, the book is actually quite pleasingly light in weight.

Housekeeping – Marilynne Robinson (Faber & Faber, 2005)

I had to find a way to incorporate this book into this exercise somehow. Given that on the whole the edition I own is not exactly a stunning example of book design, it fell to the cover to make a statement. It's a quiet sort of statement. One that says something to the effect of 'if you'd like to read an introspective and rather melancholy story, this is the book for you'.

A dark, empty railway track trails towards a foreboding mist into which the text is sinking. The monochromatic palette of the image is set off by the fuschia pink title. This works nicely to highlight the opposition between the exteriority of the image and the domesticity of the title.

The review material doesn't overwhelm. The Guardian review quote sits comfortably within the image and the Observer mention at the top does its job tidily against the neutral background.

This is starting to sound a bit far-fetched – a good stopping point I think ...

It's in the fine imprint

Designing children's books really must be a fun job. Certainly the best examples of designers going a bit wild with the imprint page of all things were in kids' books, such as:

The Three Fishing Brothers Gruff – Ben Galbraith (Hodder Children's Books, 2006)

Here the text has been shaped to look like splashes and bubbles of water in keeping with the story. A page containing publication information wouldn't normally be of interest to young readers, but this page is effectively a visual extension of the story.

The Video Shop Sparrow – Joy Cowley & Gavin Bishop (Mallinson Rendell, 2000)

This book similarly incorporates the imprint page as an illustration element. The information is placed within a box on the front of a building as if it is part of the signage.

For all that fun, however, when it comes to 'grown up' books, there's much to be said for achieving a simple sense of proportion and balance in the display of this information on the page. I admire the two following examples:


Atlas of Remote Islands: Fifty Islands I have not visited and never will – Judith Schalansky (Particular Books, 2010)

Ghost Colonies: Failed utopias, forgotten exiles and abandoned outposts of empire – Ed Wright (Pier 9, 2009)

This book contains ...

The Endless City (Phaidon, 2007)

This contents page runs over a two-page spread. It has clear divisions between sections and the colour-coding for the different country chapters has a nice visual effect. The amount of space between the columns of information – chapter heading, author and page – is manageable for the eye. On the verso page, the page numbers perhaps run a little close to the gutter, but it's readable. Overall a pleasing, orderly layout with a bold aesthetic that's in keeping with the rest of the book.

Atlas of Remote Islands: Fifty Islands that I have not visited and never will – Judith Schalansky (Particular Books, 2010)

This contents page has a rather unusual layout in that one reads across the line from entry to entry under the section headings, rather than down the page as in the example above. The use of differing fonts – title case, caps, italics – and colours clearly distinguish the various information, however, so it is not difficult to follow. It has a delightful symmetry about it. The oval shape formed by the information on this page complements the hourglass shape of the imprint information on the verso of this spread.

A noble title

Title pages and half-title pages often follow the typographical design elements of the cover. A designer might try something a bit different, however, where the cover is more image focused for instance, in order to best communicate the information. There will usually be some commonality between a half-title page, where it exists, and the title page that follows it.

Ways of Seeing – John Berger (BBC & Penguin, 2008)

This title page is located at page 155 of the book, after the entire text. As noted earlier, this book plays with conventions of book design as a reflection of the challenges it poses to traditional modes of art criticism. This is a typographical page with no other elements than the text. Clean and functional even though its traditional function has been turned on its head.

Woe is I: The Grammarphobe's Guide to Better English in Plain English – Patricia T. O'Connor (Riverhead Trade, 2nd edition, 2004)

This is one example where following the typographical style of the cover really would have been the better choice. The style of the title page (which sets the typographical style of the rest of the book) bears no relationship to the cover and, in my view, little relationship to the book's content. It looks as if it's introducing tween fiction for girls! Thankfully, the current third edition is has eliminated all sign of spangles and wacky type.

Super Natural Cooking – Heidi Swanson (Celestial Arts, 2007)

This half-title page retains the typographical elements of both the cover and the title page. The text placement is a little unconventional, however, being slightly below the mid-point of the the page. The white type contrasts with the photograph, but not vividly. These factors might suggest that the text is secondary to the image on the page. It is appropriate that the title page that follows gives greater emphasis to the text, as this is where the any sub-title and the author's name are to be found.

Endless City (Phaidon, 2007)

Finally, a double-page chapter title. You may recall the contents page of this book was discussed earlier. On that page a colour coding system was used to identify the different city chapters. That system is implemented in the chapter titles for each city. Here, purple Shanghai. There's nothing terribly remarkable about this chapter title, but it does draw on the general typographical style – bold caps, underlining – of the cover and headings.

Odds and ends

Specifically, decorative end papers. For me, it's the little features like these that quell the notion that 'print is dead'. For books at least. It's a small thing that can add greatly to the perceived value of a book. Obviously it doesn't suit some books, but it works well in a coffee table-type book where design is a strong element. Here are some nice examples.

Classic: The Revival of Classic Boating in New Zealand – Ivor Wilkins (Godwit, 2010)

I do love a hand-drawn diagram, boats and all. This is but one of this beautiful book's beautiful features.

Atlas of Remote Islands: Fifty Islands I have not visited and never will – Judith Schalansky (Particular Books, 2010)

Old-timey maps are also among my fancies. The orange is unexpected and fantastic.

The Great New Zealand Songbook (Thom Music, 2009)

The design of this book overall isn't really my cup of tea – it's got a bit too much going on. I do think though that housing a CD (of recordings of the songs in the book) within a library card pocket on the end papers is quite nifty. It's done twice, at the beginning and the end of the book. Certainly more appealing than a plastic sleeve.