Do you ever judge a book by it's cover?

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Videl222
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Re: Do you judge a book by its cover?

Post by Videl222 »

I do judge a book by its cover. I look at the art on the cover and read the synopsis on the back or inside flaps before deciding if I think it's worth the read. If I decide it is, I give a stand-alone novel at least 5 chapters before giving up on it, however most times I read all the way through. For a series, I will read the first book in its entirety and then at least 5 chapters in the second book. I do this to give the series a chance as the first book usually has much more background information and explanation than the other books in the series, which can sometimes make it less interesting.
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Frank Kuyala Wabwile
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Post by Frank Kuyala Wabwile »

It's quite impossible to judge a book by its cover because the cover may lightly talk about what the book contains.
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Heich
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Post by Heich »

Do you judge a book by it's cover?
That's a logical question,considering the sayin"don't judge a book by it's cover ".
Rules For Reading
1.Read with aim of understanding.
2.Read with aim of gaining the message in the book.
3.Read to reflect to real life happening to profer solution to problems.
Do I judge a book by it's cover?
My answer is No.
One have to read the book,before drawing any conclusion.
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atacker_86
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Post by atacker_86 »

Not the cover itself but I do find it hard when I read the descrpition and it just doesnt appeal. There was many times I've gritted my teeth and tried to do what you did, but just cant get passed the first chapter because I already know the outline " kinda" and that irritates me. Makes me feel like im back in school..
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anwidmer
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Post by anwidmer »

Videl222 wrote: 22 Jun 2018, 14:50 I do judge a book by its cover. I look at the art on the cover and read the synopsis on the back or inside flaps before deciding if I think it's worth the read. If I decide it is, I give a stand-alone novel at least 5 chapters before giving up on it, however most times I read all the way through. For a series, I will read the first book in its entirety and then at least 5 chapters in the second book. I do this to give the series a chance as the first book usually has much more background information and explanation than the other books in the series, which can sometimes make it less interesting.

I agree with you, or rather my actions mirror yours, i do judge the cover and then give it 4-5 chapters. My rule is at least 4 to get my attention before deciding its not for me.
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anwidmer
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Post by anwidmer »

atacker_86 wrote: 22 Jun 2018, 23:39 Not the cover itself but I do find it hard when I read the descrpition and it just doesnt appeal. There was many times I've gritted my teeth and tried to do what you did, but just cant get passed the first chapter because I already know the outline " kinda" and that irritates me. Makes me feel like im back in school..
Yea i will admit that there have been some books that despite my 4 chapter rule i just couldnt do it. I agree it makes it feel like a chore and i want my read to be enthralling and enjoyable.
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anwidmer
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Post by anwidmer »

Heich wrote: 22 Jun 2018, 16:06 Do you judge a book by it's cover?
That's a logical question,considering the sayin"don't judge a book by it's cover ".
Rules For Reading
1.Read with aim of understanding.
2.Read with aim of gaining the message in the book.
3.Read to reflect to real life happening to profer solution to problems.
Do I judge a book by it's cover?
My answer is No.
One have to read the book,before drawing any conclusion.
I enjoyed this, i think these are good rules to follow, however i still feel like sometimes a cover can be so offputting that i just pass it by, i do try to adhere to the rules youve set above when reading i just cant get past a offtopic cover and a slow start in a book though.
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MatthewSteele
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Post by MatthewSteele »

With so much out there to sift through, I generally judge a book by it's title. (Especially when scanning book shelves.) As that is the first thing I see. If the title catches my attention then I'll take a look at the cover and possible read the cover story. I wish I had more time to actually sit down and go through the first chapter of all the books that could possibly be interesting haha.
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MsLisa
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Post by MsLisa »

I always judge books by their cover and I'll keep doing it because it usually works out fine for me. The art on the cover is supposed to give you an idea of the tone of the book and might even give away some major themes. I usually pick up books based on their cover but I don't dismiss books based on their cover. The summary of the book in the back is usually the deciding factor.
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bclayton13
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Post by bclayton13 »

I hate to admit it... but I do. If the book's cover looks interesting, I'm more likely to pick it up than any other.
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anwidmer
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Post by anwidmer »

MatthewSteele wrote: 23 Jun 2018, 10:08 With so much out there to sift through, I generally judge a book by it's title. (Especially when scanning book shelves.) As that is the first thing I see. If the title catches my attention then I'll take a look at the cover and possible read the cover story. I wish I had more time to actually sit down and go through the first chapter of all the books that could possibly be interesting haha.
Thats basically my process as well, and yup if only there were more time in the day!
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anwidmer
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Post by anwidmer »

MsLisa wrote: 23 Jun 2018, 11:10 I always judge books by their cover and I'll keep doing it because it usually works out fine for me. The art on the cover is supposed to give you an idea of the tone of the book and might even give away some major themes. I usually pick up books based on their cover but I don't dismiss books based on their cover. The summary of the book in the back is usually the deciding factor.
I agree completely. If a illustrator does not catch my attention i pass more times then not. And the synopsis is usually the deciding factor for me as well. In short I dont dismiss books simply for their cover but it does have a sway in my decision for sure.
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anwidmer
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Post by anwidmer »

bclayton13 wrote: 24 Jun 2018, 01:11 I hate to admit it... but I do. If the book's cover looks interesting, I'm more likely to pick it up than any other.
Well i think thats kind of the point right? I guess thats why i posed the question to begin with. People say don't do it but how can you not? When searching for a new book you need it to grab you, short of reading the first few chapters what more do you have to go on as you sift through millions of books on the shelfs both in person and virtually
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anwidmer
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Post by anwidmer »

Lil Reads wrote: 22 Jun 2018, 11:08 I think sometimes a cover can indicate how much effort the publishers put into producing the book. If the cover doesn't match the description on the back, I wonder about the marketing - are they baiting the audience or did they just publish it because they had to?

For example, I remember seeing a book with a row of chairs on the cover, one chair was a different color than the others so your eyes were drawn to that. I remember thinking, "Ok, so a fish out of water or oddball protagonist story."

What was the book you ask?

Pride and Prejudice!

Yes, a classic Regency era novel had a cover with modern chairs you would see in high school classrooms!

Since then I tend to just open to a page at random and skim it; too many grammatical errors and it goes back on the shelf no matter what.
I love this! Very true that some covers do not match their content. In those cases im either pleasently surprised or left feeling duped if i in fact judged the book by its cover to begin with. Thank you for participating in my discussion! =)
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Alice Thokchom
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Post by Alice Thokchom »

Partly, I judge a book by its cover because it's the first thing we notice in a book. And, after this, I consider the content and synopsis. For me, these all are the factors that determine the selection of a book.
A joke is to entertain people. If it fails to do so, it's something else!
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