Cover 1- The cover of the teenage-looking girl surrounded by all of the grass and other greenery reminds me of multiple things. The girl in the image looks very peaceful, but at the same time, somewhat lost and confused. Her red and black clothing look very out of place and pose a stark contrast to the lush green background. The greenery in the background of the cover remind me almost of the Amazon or like a hidden forest, something very peaceful and secluded. Just by looking at the cover and without using any outside knowledge, I can assume that the novel is about a girl who feels sometimes lost and alone within a seemingly peaceful and perfect atmosphere. I think the reasoning behind this cover is to give the reader a vague context of who they will be reading about but not giving too much away.
Cover 2- The second cover of the boat in the lake can lead to a lot of conclusions on the book. For one, the background of the boat, being the lake, is incredibly eerie and dark looking, as it looks as if there is almost fog in the background. The boat is all by itself on the lake and it is tied up to a pole, possibly alluding to the idea that there is a boat and is ready to function how it needs to, but it will never have the chance because it is tied up. The coloring of the image also reveals a lot about the book, as it is done in sepia tones. The sepia toned image can bring to the idea that the book is not something bright and colorful, but more muted in theme and concepts. The use of the cover does not reveal a huge amount to someone who hasn't read the book, but hints at the ideas of being alone, still, tied up, and having a dark background or secret.
Cover 3- The third cover with the wire is very creepy and dark looking. The wire is very rigid and broken looking. Along with that, the use of barbed wire shows that they are keeping something out and making sure others do not get out, showing how there could be something dark and scary in the depths. There are two images that I see in the wire, being a dress and a baby. These could allude to the reader before starting the novel on possible themes and motifs that will be prominent in the book. The cover of this book makes the reader think that it could be a scary and darker novel and could lead them to make lots of preconceived notions on it.
Cover 4- The cover features a bright background, being a peach color. It is darker on the top and lighter on the bottom, showing a possible fate in light and happiness maybe throughout the book. The cover also features a young child, but is blurry, not showing any distinguishable features. This could be to show how the book centers around the child, but also to show some mystery, as the child is not identifiable through the cover. The reasoning for the cover is to possibly provide a light and almost generic background for an uninformed reader.
When looking closer at both of the covers, I choose to analyze Cover 1 and 4. Both of these covers feature people as the focal points. In Cover 1, it seems as if Kathy during her time in the Cottages is portrayed, as I saw the Cottages as a very lush and green place. Like Kathy felt a lot during her time in the Cottages, Kathy is seen alone and seclude and almost lost in a way. Kathy looks very out of place in comparison to her background. After reading the book, there are many themes that I can identify through the cover such as loneliness, seclusion, paradise, and more. I feel that teenagers and young adults will chose Cover 1 on account of having an image of someone who is in similar age to them, making them feel as if they could possibly identify with the main character. The second cover features a person as well, but in a different way. The child is seen as a blur and is not identifiable in any aspects except for their clothes and hair colors. After reading this novel, the blurred child could allude to how the clones were seen by outsiders, being nameless and just a blur in society. I feel as if adults would want to read the fourth novel more, as they like to see children on the cover, something that they can relate to their own kids. I think as a representation for the book, cover 4 does a better job in capturing what I saw as a reader compared to cover 1 for many reasons. For one, it does a better job and making the main character a mystery, leaving more to the audience's imagination. Another reason why is because it highlights a huge theme in the book, and could show the perspective of a bystander in the novel, as it talks of us as a piece of the book. In conclusion, all four images do a good job in representing the book but cover 4 to me does the best job.
Cover 2- The second cover of the boat in the lake can lead to a lot of conclusions on the book. For one, the background of the boat, being the lake, is incredibly eerie and dark looking, as it looks as if there is almost fog in the background. The boat is all by itself on the lake and it is tied up to a pole, possibly alluding to the idea that there is a boat and is ready to function how it needs to, but it will never have the chance because it is tied up. The coloring of the image also reveals a lot about the book, as it is done in sepia tones. The sepia toned image can bring to the idea that the book is not something bright and colorful, but more muted in theme and concepts. The use of the cover does not reveal a huge amount to someone who hasn't read the book, but hints at the ideas of being alone, still, tied up, and having a dark background or secret.
Cover 3- The third cover with the wire is very creepy and dark looking. The wire is very rigid and broken looking. Along with that, the use of barbed wire shows that they are keeping something out and making sure others do not get out, showing how there could be something dark and scary in the depths. There are two images that I see in the wire, being a dress and a baby. These could allude to the reader before starting the novel on possible themes and motifs that will be prominent in the book. The cover of this book makes the reader think that it could be a scary and darker novel and could lead them to make lots of preconceived notions on it.
Cover 4- The cover features a bright background, being a peach color. It is darker on the top and lighter on the bottom, showing a possible fate in light and happiness maybe throughout the book. The cover also features a young child, but is blurry, not showing any distinguishable features. This could be to show how the book centers around the child, but also to show some mystery, as the child is not identifiable through the cover. The reasoning for the cover is to possibly provide a light and almost generic background for an uninformed reader.
When looking closer at both of the covers, I choose to analyze Cover 1 and 4. Both of these covers feature people as the focal points. In Cover 1, it seems as if Kathy during her time in the Cottages is portrayed, as I saw the Cottages as a very lush and green place. Like Kathy felt a lot during her time in the Cottages, Kathy is seen alone and seclude and almost lost in a way. Kathy looks very out of place in comparison to her background. After reading the book, there are many themes that I can identify through the cover such as loneliness, seclusion, paradise, and more. I feel that teenagers and young adults will chose Cover 1 on account of having an image of someone who is in similar age to them, making them feel as if they could possibly identify with the main character. The second cover features a person as well, but in a different way. The child is seen as a blur and is not identifiable in any aspects except for their clothes and hair colors. After reading this novel, the blurred child could allude to how the clones were seen by outsiders, being nameless and just a blur in society. I feel as if adults would want to read the fourth novel more, as they like to see children on the cover, something that they can relate to their own kids. I think as a representation for the book, cover 4 does a better job in capturing what I saw as a reader compared to cover 1 for many reasons. For one, it does a better job and making the main character a mystery, leaving more to the audience's imagination. Another reason why is because it highlights a huge theme in the book, and could show the perspective of a bystander in the novel, as it talks of us as a piece of the book. In conclusion, all four images do a good job in representing the book but cover 4 to me does the best job.
I truly enjoyed reading your interpretations of these covers. I feel as if though you pointed something out that one may not do intentionally. The idea that one may not chose the cover with the girl in which she is in a blur because she is in a sense unidentifiable and people could not relate to it. I felt as if the blur aspect could show confusion not something that people could not view themselves in.. if that makes sense. I like how you thought of that. I just wish you elaborated a bit more as to why you got that generic vibe? That's all, overall good job!
ReplyDelete