Don't judge a book by its cover

We often say 'don't judge a book by its cover' and while I completely agree with that, I cannot deny that first impression are important. While the phrase is often used for people, I am talking about books.

The characters, the plot, the world building and the writing are the aspects what make a book good. These are the things that are discussed in reviews and often talked about when someone gives you a recommendation. When you go to a book store, either off or online, to browse books, the first thing you will notice is or the spine with the title on it, or the cover with the title on it.  This makes the exterior of a book very important.

Often I heard that people have bought a book only because the cover was so beautiful.Sometimes they don't even know what's it about. While I never buy a book without reading the blurb, I must admit that beautiful covers attract my attention as well. They make me curious and I want to know what it's about which results that I will pick the book up and read the blurb. Besides covers I am also attracted to titles and designs on the spine.

As an aspiring author, I am well aware that a striking, beautiful cover and an interesting title is very important. It makes your book stand out from among all the others. To who it stands out, depends. Beauty is subjective. I cover I love or a title I might think is very mysterious, might nor appeal to someone else. The difference between professional designs and amateur designs is very striking.

Out of my collection of books, these are my favourite covers:

Percy Jackson and the Olympians (source: google images)

The art represents a scene out of the book (that was the case of the first one). I love how they work with one specific colour for the whole images. I like the style a lot and the simple font fits the whole of the book perfectly. 
cover design: Christine Kettner; illustration: John Rocco

source: google images

 This the the Dutch/Flemish cover of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The Dutch covers are a lot nice than the English ones, though the new American covers seem to be pretty awesome as well. The book's design looks actually quite a lot like those of Percy Jackson and the Olympian, thought it works less with one general colour. I read somewhere that J.K. Rowling liked the Dutch covers the best, but I am not entirely sure if this is true. What makes these books even more beautiful is the spine design. The Order of the Phoenix has phoenix feathers on the spine while The Goblet of Fire has weeds (from the underwater sequence) on the spine.
cover design: Anne Kammers; illustration: Ien van Laanen

The Inheritance Cycle (source: google images)

I love the art of these dragons and the simplicity of the covers. The only downside is that the third book isn't over al yellow/golden like the dragon. But I suppose they didn't want to change the font colour.
Illustrations: John Jude Palencar