I have a love-hate relationship with book covers. I know a book is supposed to have a good cover. As a broke graphic design school dropout, I design what I think are passable covers for my books. I'm sure actual book cover artists would disagree.
However, we aren't here to talk about my questionable book cover design skills.
Back in December, I published a post featuring some of my favorite old-fashioned book covers. If you'd like to revisit that post, here's the link.
https://sweetnsexydivas.blogspot.com/2024/12/the-art-of-old-fashioned-book-covers.html
Today, I'd like to share a few more gems from the golden age of publishing.
I really do have a thing for classic book covers, and while I am not one to judge a book by its cover, this cover screams "quality." The red lettering and embellishments on the muted golden-brown background is classy and classical. An angel is telling us this book would be a divine read. What's not to like?
As for the cons, this cover does nothing to hint at the contents of the book. Still, it's undeniably an impressive piece of artwork.
This little skeleton is marvelously freaky. I love it! I'm assuming this is a journal or diary. However, it would make an excellent cover for a collection of macabre poetry.
This cover is a masterpiece! The way the snake threads through the skull's eyes, the bat holding the skull in its claws, the bright golden stars on the gray background; all the elements come together in fantastical, macabre beauty. This is the sort of book that I would put in a glass case and not let anyone touch it.
Wrapping things up on a less eerie note, these charming golden frogs on a rusty background with green leaves and little white bell-shaped flowers draw the eye to the center of the image. This cover is a delightful work of art.
I hope you've enjoyed this little diversion. I know these covers wouldn't work for today's market, except perhaps with a poetry collection. However, I always appreciate their true artistic quality and the hard work that went into designing and creating them.
2 comments:
Fascinating post, Cara. I LOVE old book covers. When I was in grade school I used to go to a used book store in the neighborhood just to look at the old books. Those covers, wow.
Love the one with the little skeleton. That would certainly entice me to pick up the book and see what it's about. :)
These are magnificent, Cara. I especially like the natural history cover.
Do you actually own these books?
Anyway, thank you for a wonderfully original post!
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