Judging a Book By Its Cover

Even though I have a copy of many of the Penguin Classics that will be re-released this fall, the new embroidered covers by Jillian Tamaki are too amazingly beautiful to not have a prominant place on my shelf. This statement attests to the power that a book's cover has on the reading audience.

Having worked at a publishing house, I can tell you first hand that choosing the cover image for a book is an incredibly daunting task. Many parties have to approve a design, from the author to the editors to the sales reps, that the whole process becomes a game of persuasions and concessions. What authors think best visually represents their books and what a sales rep thinks they can pitch best to the big bookstore chains are more often than not extreme opposites.

Plus there is the added pressure that a bad book jacket cover can end up costing sales. A recent example of this effect is "The Madonnas of Echo Park" by Brando Skyhorse. Despite numerous favorible reviews and recently receiving the 2011 PEN/Hemingway award (placing him among previous winners Joshua Ferris and Jhumpa Lahiri) sales have been lackluster at best, according to an article in the WSJ, and the publisher is blaming the cover:

     "Various parties—including the author, the sales department and chain buyers—couldn't agree on an image. In an effort to please everybody, the jacket went through 41 versions. The final design was intended to appeal to the broadest possible readership, says publisher Martha Levin, whose imprint is a unit of CBS Corp.'s Simon & Schuster Inc. But as a result of all the compromising, she believes, "we may not have reached any constituency." "I saw this as a book directed at women," she says, but a respected colleague argued that "there would be a big male audience who would feel excluded by a jacket that was too female oriented."

I find the whole idea of marketing a book based on gender insulting. How about using material on the cover that actually represents the contents of the pages in between and let the reader make the decision? I found this to be the case with the recently released Madame Tussaud. While the US cover definitely borders on gawdy, the UK paperback cover (as seen here on Amazon.co.uk) completely misrepresents the novel with a tag line change and relies on female stereotypes usually reserved for cheap historical romances. I wouldn't think alienating would-be readers with such a cover would drive sales either, but what do I know?

Now, I will openly admit to being persuaded by a book's cover when I'm browsing shelf after shelf of potential buys. There are so many books and only so much time to peruse that an attractive cover will draw my attention. However, this does go both ways, and I am equally likely to be turned off by a bad or offensive cover.

Although, with the decline of brick and morter bookstores and libraries and the rise of e-readers is a cover even necessary? The NY Times did a story about a year ago called "In E-Book Era, You Can't Even Judge A Cover" addressing such an issue. One solution has been the upcycling of covers from older, bound for the trash books into e-reader cases. I've seen many on Etsy, including the awesome ones by Rookcase.

Even with such beautiful cases, the questions still remains: Can those wonderful, organic connections made through finding a like-minded bibliophile exist anymore with e-readers? Have you ever started a conversation with a stranger just by seeing the cover of the book in their hands?

Review: Madame Tussaud by Michelle Moran

Title: Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution
Author: Michelle Moran
Pages: 446
Genre: Historical Fiction
Release Date: February 15th, 2011
Publisher: Crown
Source: ARC - Read It Forward program

Needless to say, without the wonderful Read It Forward program offered by Crown Publishing, this insightful and engaging novel might have slipped past my radar. Before finishing this book I don't think I would have classified Madame Tussaud as an historical figure I wanted to research further, but now she's at the top of my list!




Summary

After moving from Switzerland with her mother at a young age, Marie Grosholtz quickly begins learning the art of wax modeling from Philippe Curtis, a man she affectionately refers to as uncle. Working tirelessly day and night, Marie's main focus in life is to keep her family's wax museum, the Salon de Cire, relevant and up-to-date with the latest news in France. Following a visit from the Royal family, Marie receives a request to move to Versailles and teach sculpting to King Louis XVI's younger sister Elisabeth. During Marie's time at home and on the palace grounds she meets some of the most influential figures in the French Revolution. As the Reign of Terror quickly decends on the citizens of France, Marie and her family must straddle the line between the revolutionaries and the aristocracy in order to survive.


Review:

There really wasn't much I didn't love about this book! Madame Tussaud starts out with a slow and engaging introduction filled with illustrative descriptions of the sites and sounds of Paris in the late 1700s. Throughout the novel we are introduced to all the major players in the French revolution, including Robespierre, Marquis de La Fayette, Duc d'Orleans, and the Marquis de Sade. Moran masterfully conveys the heavy atmosphere that decends on a city rife with unrest. The visuals she provides in the first part of the book really help prepare the reader to better understand and feel like a part of this woman's life.
    
I enjoyed reading about such a strong, independent woman who was definitely ahead of her time. Many people criticize her for failing to pursue a romantic relationship with Henri early on, but Marie maintained a practical outlook during her life, which I think kept her focused on her work and family. Moran succeeds in keeping the story from devolving into the typical historical romance novel by choosing not to play up their mutual affinity for one another and keeping the focus on the revolution occuring outside their doors.

One thing I do applaud Moran on is her open acknowledgement that her work does take some liberties with the facts, as stated in a "Historical Note" at the conclusion of the story. It must be remembered that this is historical FICTION and, while sticking to the major events in history, should never overwhelm the reader with page after page of facts. I enjoyed Madame Tussaud precisely because I was learning about a difficult period in time without feeling like I was reading a textbook. Readable narratives such as Moran's defintely pique my interest in the subject and uncover an urge to complete further research.

There were only a few aspects of the story that I felt could have been improved upon, but these are very slight. At times I felt Moran could have done a better job at showing some of the action instead of using a minor character to mearly report the news to Marie. Also, the ending, while thrilling and fast-paced, felt a little hurried. I would have loved a little more focus on Marie's new life in London with Henri and her children.

Overall, there is very little to complain about with Madame Tussaud. Moran penned a definite winner and I am happy to call this book one of the better new releases this year.


Rating: 4.5/5

Review: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Title: The Book Thief
Author: Markus Zusak
Pages: 552
Genre: Historical Young Adult
Publication Date: March 14th, 2006
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Source: Personal Copy


When I found a used copy of this highly acclaimed young adult novel at my local Goodwill, I decided to take the plunge (seeing as how the page count clocks in at about 550 pages) and see what all the fuss was about. After turning the last page I was left somewhat confused in my opinion of the book. The characters and overall plot were wonderful, yet the narration and the writing felt like the author was trying way too hard to create a literary masterpiece. Even though I enjoyed the book, Zusak’s work may have become a victim of over-hyping.

Summary:
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak weaves the tale of Liesel Meminger and her life as a young German foster child growing up during the beginnings of Adolf Hitler's ascension to power and the reign of the Nazi party. Through all the trials and tribulations she endures, Liesel finds solace in the written word and attempts to heal not only herself but those who live in her small town of Molching.





Review:
On the surface this book was fantastic! The emotional roller coaster I was thrust upon while reading each page left me drained and exhausted. Just thinking about such a horrific period in world history is upsetting, but add to those feelings the viewpoint of a young child and BAM...tearjerker. Many exquisite elements of this novel are the relationship Liesel builds during her lifetime. Those connections help her not only survive her loses but also help her lead the semblance of a normal childhood.





Deceiving appearances is one recurring theme that impacts all the characters, from Rosa Hubermann to the Mayor's wife to Hitler himself. For me, this was a major element in helping the story's progression. By the end of the novel each person was revealed as something different than the reader was made to believe, whether for better or for worse. Liesel's family must deceive an entire town to protect the life of Max, the young Jewish man who occupies the basement. Rosa's initial characterization as the evil foster mother slightly fades and reveals a caring and sympathetic woman who has been hardened by poverty. Even Hitler presents himself as a simple orator spewing propaganda but evolves into one of the most heinous criminals in history. Zusak's use of this overarching theme to examine how the difficulties people face during a war help uncover true natures and motivations.





However, there is a definite flip side to all these positives, and that lies in the writing. For a book that's main point is the power and importance of words, the overall writing should have been greatly improved. The metaphors and descriptions left a lot to be desired. Examples:





It smelled like friendship
The breakfast colored sun
He crawled to a disfigured figure
Oh, how the clouds stumbled in and assembled stupidly in the sky. Great obese clouds.

Every time I encountered such nonsense, my respect for the book decreased. I also felt that Zusak's writing style led to the oversimplification of such a tragic event. Most of the Germans in the story are characterized as "good" and the notion of antisemitism among the "average" citizen was greatly glossed over. Moreover, Liesel's assertion that Hitler would be nothing without words really bothered me. I'm not saying words didn't play a huge part in Hitler's rise to power, but there were definitely other factors that helped along the way (e.g. his charisma, the fear and xenophobia of a people, a powerful army.) Reducing the Holocaust to such a statement just seems absurd.





Also, I felt the ending, while tragic and a definite tear inducer, was too neat and tidy and read as if the author just gave up. The basic premise of Death as the narrator was working fine until he shows favoritism for this young girl's story over all of the victims of the Holocaust. Keeping Death as a neutral omniscent narrator would have been acceptable, but adding in such biases took away his credibility and began feeling like a gimmick.





Overall, The Book Thief was a decent attempt at a very complicated topic. I must reiterate that I did enjoy this book and do not regret having read it. A lot of the problems I found are admittedly picky and thus did not completely ruin the reading experience.


With that being said, one question still remains. Is it possible to love a book's characters and enjoy the plot, while simultaneously disliking the writing style and finding certain elements gimmicky? Can the two even be separated, or does the former depend so much on the latter, rendering a severance impossible?



Rating 4/5

In-Between Moments

Love the moment. Flowers grow out of dark moments. Therefore, each moment is vital. It affects the whole. Life is a succession of such moments and to live each, is to succeed.
- Corita Kent

When one looks back on life, what will be remembered? Usually the most exhilarating or momentous events stand at the forefront, but what about the time spent between such occasions? Over time, those daily activities that consume our lives fade, and when asked what we've done (during the past week for example) we find ourselves drawing a blank and desperately wondering where our time was spent.

This is my attempt to prevent that from happening as I navigate through the world with a great book and my camera. I want to remember all the printed and bound words that keep me up until the early morning hours or hit the wall as I hurl them in frustration, the baking adventures taking place in my small kitchen and my trials and errors as I enter the exciting world of digital photography.

I truly believe that each of these small moments help to define me as a person, and I hope to find others who are as passionate about their in-between moments as me.