Read it or Weep

Most readers are aware of the allure of cover art and how it entices the reader to explore. Publishers and authors know the value of a good cover shouts, “Pick me!” The cover of Away, by Amy Bloom, literally reeled me in from across the room. It wasn’t quite that dramatic, but that’s how I remember it. I just felt pulled towards that book. I not only wanted to read it, thanks to the cover, I wanted to love this book and I did. It’s possible I would have missed this novel altogether without the gorgeous cover.

Sometimes a cover perfectly represents a book’s contents. Darkly Dreaming Dexter, by Jeffry P. Lindsay, features a drop of blood on a microscope slide. If you look at the blood, you’ll notice that it has a smiley face within the drop of blood. This jewel of a book is about a lovable serial killer who works as a blood splatter technician. The smiley face tells us that there is humor involved in telling this story. Twisted, dark humor – but humor!

When I see In the Woods, by Tana French, I see a creepy cover. It’s a reflection of its contents that attempts to warn the reader. When reading this book I don’t expect to find sunshine, lollipops and cute puppies between the covers. I haven’t read it yet, but I’ll let you know if I was right.

In 1998 Toyer, by Gardner McKay, was published. Toyer is a Los Angeles lunatic who harmed many people before he was caught. Before I read this book I was curious about the variety of people pictured on the different covers. After reading Toyer, I learned each unique headshot represented one of his victims. This may have felt like a bold, stylistic choice for the publisher, but it ratcheted things up to a new level of uncomfortable for me.

Last week, while displaying the new non-fiction books, I saw a book with a photograph of a guinea pig front and center on a plain white background. The guinea pig was adorable. It reminded me of the guinea pig that was our family pet. We truly loved that little guinea pig and his antics. When I checked the shelf this morning so I could take a closer look at the subject of the book, it was gone! I bet that cutey-cute (Stacey’s phrase) photograph grabbed someone else’s attention, too. I selected two books based on their intriguing titles while searching for the guinea pig, so all is not lost. Thank goodness for intriguing titles and even better covers.

—Janet

Regardless of how a book comes into my life, I am always hopeful and excited when I open it. Will I like the book? If I don’t immediately, how long should I stay with it? The answer to this question varies by person. It’s always interesting to find out how other readers answer this question. As Donna confessed in an earlier posting, she always reads the ending first, to see if it has a happy ending. Another reader that I know reads the first 100 pages of a book before she decides to continue or stop. I have also heard of people reading just the first page or two before deciding whether to continue. I have to admit that sometimes that person is me. Most of the time I will stick with a new book for about two chapters. When quitting a book early I always run the risk of missing out on a great read. My best example of this is my first attempt to read The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. I couldn’t get into it, so I stopped. My good friend, Sharon, a former English teacher, admonished me a year later to try again. I did try again and needless to say, it blew me away. How had I almost missed this experience? After that, I realized I needed not to judge a book too quickly.

This summer I picked up The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen because I had enjoyed her first book, Garden Spells. The first chapter was a little strange but thank goodness I stayed with it because I loved it!

The next book I picked up was America, America by Ethan Canin. This book had me from the first page. The focus is on families and politics during the Nixon Era and the present time. It was such a thrill to love this story right from the start. I wish every book made my decision this easy. Whatever your personal barometer or formula for choosing a book, be willing to try a different approach. You just might find a treasure.

─Janet