“Never judge a book by its cover,” advises the popular proverb. Yet nobody seems to follow this advice, at least when selecting books. Cover art plays a key role in captivating potential readers’ attention, and studies show that the average person spends roughly eight seconds looking at a book before moving on. But when books are shelved, it’s the spine that must do the heavy lifting. So while the cover art is important, the spine’s design is arguably more crucial.
It’s often said that books stare at us, begging to be read. In the case of Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson, An Abundance of Katherines by John Green, and The Diviners by Libba Bray, this metaphor becomes literal, with each spine gazing out with its own distinctive eye. If eyes are the windows to the soul, these designs hint at the stories that await within.
Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
In this compelling historical novel, fourteen-year-old Mattie dreams of nothing more than finishing her chores and someday running her mother’s coffee shop. But when a devastating yellow fever outbreak sweeps through Philadelphia in 1793, claiming lives and forcing Mattie from her riverside home, such modest aspirations suddenly seem impossible.
Anderson chronicles Mattie’s transformation from an ordinary teenager into a survivor in this coming-of-age story. The book’s spine features a haunting yellow-tinged eye—a clever allusion to the fever’s telltale symptoms and Mattie’s evolving worldview. Meticulously researched and movingly rendered, Fever 1793 offers an eye-opening portrait of resilience in the face of catastrophe.
An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
In this bestselling young adult novel, child prodigy Colin Singleton and his best friend Hassan Harbish embark on an unforgettable summer. Colin’s quirk of only dating girls named Katherine comes to a crisis after Katherine XIX dumps him. To lift his friend’s spirits, Hassan proposes a cross-country road trip. They’ll see some famous landmarks, meet cool people, and Colin will forget all about his latest heartbreak. What unfolds is a humorous tale about friendship, belonging, and the mathematics of love.
The book’s cover features a cohort of Katherines staring at the reader, while a single eye adorns its spine, suggesting the unique lens through which Colin views relationships. Though the story follows a straightforward journey, Green peppers each page with mathematical formulas and arcane trivia, transforming this road trip into a compelling meditation on what it means to matter in the world.
The Diviners by Libba Bray
A piercing human eye on this book’s spine suggests both the secrets and supernatural powers of protagonist Evie O’Neill. In this creepy thriller set in 1920s New York during Prohibition, rebellious flapper Evie is sent to live with her uncle, curator of the Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult. What begins as punishment transforms into adventure as she finds herself drawn into investigating a series of horrific killings.
Bray weaves together multiple perspectives to create a compelling tapestry of Jazz Age New York, where speakeasies pulse with energy and dark forces lurk in the shadows. Her prose shimmers with period detail while delivering heart-pounding suspense, and like the watchful eye on its spine, the story looks unflinchingly at humanity’s failings while illuminating the power of the supernatural.
Perhaps we should judge books by their spines after all. The watchful gaze of these three novels not only captures our attention but carries a promise: within these pages, we’ll experience the world through different eyes, whether those of a survivor in plague-ravaged Philadelphia, a heartbroken mathematical prodigy, or a supernatural sleuth in Prohibition-era New York.