Do! Judge A Book By Its Cover–Issue Thirty-Two: Graphic Novels (Part 1)

“Do! Judge A Book By Its Cover” is a regular feature on Pop! Goes The Reader in which I pay tribute to some of the best and brightest the publishing world has to offer in the way of book cover design. This feature is inspired by Katie’s feature Cover Love on her blog One Page At A Time. The idea is being used with her gracious permission.

I think we’re all familiar with the age-old adage “Don’t judge a book by its cover”. And you know what I have to say about that? Rubbish! Covers are an invaluable part of a book’s package. A truly great cover can tell you a lot about the novel contained within its pages. Book covers can also catch your attention and attract you to a novel you might otherwise ignore. So go ahead, judge a book by its cover – We all do it!

I can think of few times in recent memory that I’ve been as excited about a new edition of Do! Judge A Book By Its Cover as I am right now. You see, today I’ve decided to step as far outside of my comfort zone as I could possibly get. The result? Graphic novels! Admittedly, my personal experience with this genre is almost non-existent. Apart from a single class in university which required me to read Craig Thompson’s Blankets, which was the first and only graphic novel I’ve read, I know very little about the genre and the books that populate it. That said, as I was looking for beautiful covers to celebrate in future editions of this feature, I couldn’t help but be struck by all of the strange, weird and wonderful covers I encountered amongst the graphic novel genre. They were vivid. They were colourful. They were brilliant. But you don’t have to take my word for it – Just look at the small selection of covers I’ve highlighted below! Some of my favourite covers this week include Sex Criminals by Matt Fraction & Chip Zdarsky, American Vampire by Scott Snyder, Stephen King & Rafael Albuquerque, Hildafolk by Luke Pearson, Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis & Brooke Allen, Americus by M.K. Reed & Jonathan Hill, Sailor Twain by Mark Siegel, This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki & Jillian Tamaki and Defiance by Carla Jablonski & Leland Purvis.

Sex Criminals by Matt Fraction & Chip Zdarsky ● Liar’s Kiss by Eric Skillman & Jhomar Soriano ● American Vampire by Scott Snyder, Stephen King & Rafael Albuquerque

Hildafolk by Luke Pearson ● Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis & Brooke Allen ● The Nao Of Brown by Glyn Dillon

Everything We Miss by Luke Pearson ● The Tale Of Sand by Jim Henson & Jerry Juhl ● Americus by M.K. Reed & Jonathan Hill

Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis & Brooke Allen ● Sailor Twain by Mark Siegel ● Friends With Boys by Faith Erin Hicks

French Milk by Lucy Knisley ● Blankets by Craig Thompson ● Cat Burglar Black by Richard Sala

Same Difference by Derek Kirk Kim ● Julio’s Day by Gilbert Hernández ● Empire State by Jason Shiga

Brain Camp by Susan Kim, Laurence Klavan & Faith Erin Hicks ● Ghostopolis by Doug TenNapel ● This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki & Jillian Tamaki

Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol ● It’s A Good Life, If You Don’t Weaken by Seth, Chester Brown & Maggie Mortimer ● Defiance by Carla Jablonski & Leland Purvis

Now it’s your turn! What are some of your favourite graphic novels covers? Did I list one of your favourites here or is there one I forgot that just has to be included? Let me know in the comments!