While I was in England, of course I had to visit bookstores. I took notice of two very popular books:
The Help and
The Hunger Games. I had to take pictures. As you can see, their covers are very different than what is offered in the American version. Let's examine
The Help first.
I'll say one thing for the British. They certainly keep it real! I haven't read
The Help, but when you look at the British cover, it leaves no doubt what kind of "help" the book is talking about. I love it. It's raw and in your face. Bam! Now look at the American cover. If the book wasn't so popular, you would have no idea what the novel is about in my opinion. The cover is innocuous and neutral, telling you nothing of what the story entails. Like I said, I haven't read it, so perhaps those birds on a wire, are indicative of what lies within, but you certainly wouldn't know it details black maids working in Mississippi in the sixties.
What do you think? Is the British cover too much? Is it too real for American sensibilities and consumption? I've heard it said that
The Help would not have been as big a hit and gotten the publicity it did, if a black author had penned it. What do you think about this? Do you think such a belief is credible? Food for thought. I'm a therapist, one of my many titles, and I like to know what people are thinking and why.
Moving on to
The Hunger Games. I haven't read this book either, though I bought it recently and it's waiting on my shelf for me to get some down time to dig into it. Once again, the American cover has no people, but look, there's a bird again! I don't know if the bird is symbolic of anything in the story, but the popularity of the book surpasses the cover art at this point and even I, who haven't read it know the story premise. I assume the girl in the UK version is Katniss and the boy on the over cover must be Peeta. Does the British version capture the image of the characters as you envision them in your imagination? I was surprised to see the UK covers look so cartoonish. I would have thought them to be more edgy, darker, considering the subject matter.
Hope you enjoyed the covers and the discussion. Until the next time...
Toodles!
While in England, I visited the Princess of Wales Conservatory in Kew Botanical Gardens. It is filled with butterflies. They flew and swooped all around me as I walked through the glass enclosure. There are little stations of fruit that they alight on to eat and get nourishment. I couldn't resist snapping some shots.
I'll say one thing for the British. They certainly keep it real! I haven't read The Help, but when you look at the British cover, it leaves no doubt what kind of "help" the book is talking about. I love it. It's raw and in your face. Bam! Now look at the American cover. If the book wasn't so popular, you would have no idea what the novel is about in my opinion. The cover is innocuous and neutral, telling you nothing of what the story entails. Like I said, I haven't read it, so perhaps those birds on a wire, are indicative of what lies within, but you certainly wouldn't know it details black maids working in Mississippi in the sixties.
Moving on to The Hunger Games. I haven't read this book either, though I bought it recently and it's waiting on my shelf for me to get some down time to dig into it. Once again, the American cover has no people, but look, there's a bird again! I don't know if the bird is symbolic of anything in the story, but the popularity of the book surpasses the cover art at this point and even I, who haven't read it know the story premise. I assume the girl in the UK version is Katniss and the boy on the over cover must be Peeta. Does the British version capture the image of the characters as you envision them in your imagination? I was surprised to see the UK covers look so cartoonish. I would have thought them to be more edgy, darker, considering the subject matter.
In my first attempt to write a novel, I set the story in England. I've always loved the sense of history there and the beautiful geography. I love to watch Pride and Prejudice as much for the scenery as for the story. When I went to England this summer, one of the main things I wanted to do was check out some of the sites I utilized in my story. I didn't get nearly as much done as I planned because I was just plain exhausted. There's a 5 hour time difference and it took about 3-4 days just to get on British time and not want to fall asleep during the day!
This is their view on the upper walkway at the top of the staircase. Awesome isn't it?
