Ok, folks – Harper Lee’s new book hits book store shelves in less than a month, on July 14th. You can pre-order all of the internet or your local bookstore. It’s been fun seeing how awareness of the book has developed. And it all started with the origin of the manuscript and all the questions surrounding that.
Now the covers are out. As with just about any book published today, it’s fun to compare the U.S. cover with the British cover. First, we have the U.S. cover, which seems to be purposefully designed to match the vintage To Kill a Mockingbird cover.
Go Set a Watchman is set 20 years after the end of TKAM, but the cover certainly lets you know you’re in the same place. Here’s the original 1st edition cover:
While over across the pond they seem to have gone a little more modern noir feel I think, but the type is period.
Most of the time I usually prefer the U.K. counterparts to U.S. covers, but this time I’m non-plussed. The fact that the author’s name is set the same as the title feels weird. It’s as if the marketing and design teams could not come to an agreement so they just threw their hands up and said “Make it all the same size” or something.
Though I do like the way they shadowed in the words To Kill a Mockingbird. It’s a bit literal for me, but it’s ok.
Both covers have an October harvest vibe as well. Maybe that figures in heavily to the story? We’ll have to wait and find out! It will be interesting to keep up with the reviews once they start rolling out when the book is released on July 14th. And to watch sales numbers. I know some folks took a step back when Harper Lee’s letters didn’t fetch a reserve price at a recent auction, but the crowd that buys million dollar scribbles is a totally different crowd than those waiting to see what Harper Lee has to say about Scout and Atticus.
What do you think of the covers? Have you pre-ordered the book or are you tired of the hype?
