Do You Judge Books by their Covers?

They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover… but apparently book publishers aren’t taking that sentiment to heart.

Last month, The New York Times published an article about publishers giving print books a “makeover” as they seek to compete with e-books. According to the article, publishers have decided that “print books need to be about physical beauty and the pleasures of owning, not just reading.”

The article included a mention for “The Song of Achilles,” the forthcoming book by 2012 featured author Madeline Miller, the cover of which will feature an embossed helmet sculpted with punctures, cracks and texture, giving the image a 3-D effect.

UPDATE: We just saw a link on Twitter from the Milton S. Eisenhower Library of the Sheridan Libraries at Johns Hopkins University (@mselibrary) to a piece on 3D written portrait books. The books themselves are in the shape of heads. Crazy!

What’s your favorite book cover? (And no, it doesn’t have to be fancy like the one mentioned above to deserve a mention.) Sound off in the comments below.