# The world's most annoying book cover **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 23, 2011, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693 "2011-01-23T20:59:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/61 "2011-01-26T17:08:22Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Book covers are marketing. They announce what the book is like, so people can tell immediately. You can tell immediately if a book is science fiction, fantasy, literary fiction, best selling fiction, chick lit, or whatever. It’s like decaf coffee always using green on the box. Coffee comes in BOXES? ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/62 "2011-01-26T17:24:33Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Pics or there’s no such thing. [Ta-da!](http://millionwordyear.com/megaword2010/?p=2210) ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/63 "2011-01-26T17:30:43Z")
HA! Thank you for that. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/64 "2011-01-26T18:21:33Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Pics or there’s no such thing. [Gorge yourself.](http://www.honeybaked.com/) Though I admit the image found by Larry Mudd is more … compelling. But anyway you slice it, you’re talking meat flaps here! ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/65 "2011-01-26T18:30:41Z")
[QUOTE=Exapno Mapcase] Back on subject, it’s always fun when the art department tries to use sex to sell sf. It goes back forever too. [Charles Eric Maine’s World Without Men](http://people.uncw.edu/smithms/Ace%20singles/sD-series/D-274.jpg) from Ace is a hoot. Love the lipstick. And if anyone can figure out how the bra on the background woman stays up without an anti-gravity device… [/QUOTE] She’s not wearing a bra. That’s all shadow. (Note shadow on left arm, but not on the right arm.) ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/66 "2011-01-26T19:37:57Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > For instance, _Flatlander_ shows Gil and his “imaginary arm”, except that the imaginary arm is coming out of a real sleeve, and he doesn’t have his real arm on that side. He started manifesting the “imaginary arm” after losing his original one and before getting a real replacement arm (in fact, he was surprised that the imaginary arm was still able to manifest separately after he got the transplant). One I remember is from [Charles Sheffield’s _My Brother’s Keeper_](http://www.amazon.com/My-Brothers-Keeper-Charles-Sheffield/dp/0671578731). ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/67 "2011-01-26T19:53:11Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > He started manifesting the “imaginary arm” after losing his original one and before getting a real replacement arm (in fact, he was surprised that the imaginary arm was still able to manifest separately after he got the transplant). > > One I remember is from [Charles Sheffield’s _My Brother’s Keeper_](http://www.amazon.com/My-Brothers-Keeper-Charles-Sheffield/dp/0671578731). Ripped-shirt Fabio kind guy … exploding helicopter … woman’s face … snake … electronic thigmajig … numbers … mosque … Obviously, the snake ate the electronic thigamajig, causing the helicopter to crash into a mosque, ripping up his shirt real bad and spilling a lot of numbers all over the place, causing the woman to be concerned. What’s the problem? ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/68 "2011-01-26T20:12:09Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > One I remember is from [Charles Sheffield’s _My Brother’s Keeper_](http://www.amazon.com/My-Brothers-Keeper-Charles-Sheffield/dp/0671578731). _looks at logo_ _looks at probable hero_ SOMEONE’s seen a few too many Doc Savage covers… ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/69 "2011-01-26T20:44:33Z")
I’m surprised no one has suggested [this one](http://www.amazon.com/Arguing-Idiots-Small-Minds-Government/dp/B002Q1IUPI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1296074440&sr=8-2) yet, and I hope it’s only because it’s so difficult to decide which of his book covers to nominate. ---
**Author:** ![emmaliminal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7bcc69/32.png) [@emmaliminal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emmaliminal)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2011, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/70 "2011-01-26T21:06:17Z")
These are also-rans, but worth mentioning, I guess. I love [Octavia Butler](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octavia_E._Butler)’s books; _[Dawn](http://www.amazon.com/Dawn-Xenogenesis-Bk-Octavia-Butler/dp/0446603775/)_ famously came out with some random white lady on the cover the [first time out in paperback](http://www.amazon.com/Dawn-Octavia-Butler/dp/0445205164/). Unlike in the Ursula LeGuin books, where the protagonist’s skin color is mentioned but not relevant to the plot (IIRC, it being unimportant in that world was sort of LeGuin’s point), _Dawn_’s protagonist’s blackness is an issue, and racism is a theme in the series. I can’t look at the cover of _[Foreigner](http://www.amazon.com/Foreigner-Anniversary-C-J-Cherryh/dp/0756402514/)_ without feeling like it’s time for Sweatin’ to the Oldies. The weird thing is the book is copyright 1994. Who was even still wearing headbands and massive shoulder pads in 1994? Never have been able to get into reading it. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2011, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/71 "2011-01-27T01:22:18Z")
I should mention this website by a librarian who regularly mocks bad covers [http://judgeabook.blogspot.com/](http://judgeabook.blogspot.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_A.Robrin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sam_a.robrin/32/14497_2.png) [@Sam\_A.Robrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_A.Robrin)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2011, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/72 "2011-01-29T01:52:50Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Not a mistake – you didn’t read carefully enough. To quote from that very page: Sorry about that, Chief… ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2011, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693/73 "2011-01-29T16:19:06Z")
> [@emmaliminal](#): > > These are also-rans, but worth mentioning, I guess. > > I love [Octavia Butler](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octavia_E._Butler)’s books; _[Dawn](http://www.amazon.com/Dawn-Xenogenesis-Bk-Octavia-Butler/dp/0446603775/)_ famously came out with some random white lady on the cover the [first time out in paperback](http://www.amazon.com/Dawn-Octavia-Butler/dp/0445205164/). Unlike in the Ursula LeGuin books, where the protagonist’s skin color is mentioned but not relevant to the plot (IIRC, it being unimportant in that world was sort of LeGuin’s point), _Dawn_’s protagonist’s blackness is an issue, and racism is a theme in the series. > > I can’t look at the cover of _[Foreigner](http://www.amazon.com/Foreigner-Anniversary-C-J-Cherryh/dp/0756402514/)_ without feeling like it’s time for Sweatin’ to the Oldies. The weird thing is the book is copyright 1994. Who was even still wearing headbands and massive shoulder pads in 1994? Never have been able to get into reading it. Space aliens in the far future? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-worlds-most-annoying-book-cover/568693.md?page=3)