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Find your new favourite book or recommend one on our Book forum.

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Original poster

Favourite book covers of all time.

57 replies

FeliciaFancybottom · 02/08/2026 15:28

I thought it might be fun to share our most favourite book covers of all time.
My first one is The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw. It's absolutely stunning in real life, though possibly not to everyone's taste.

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OP posts:

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NoCowardSoulisMine · 08/09/2026 16:19

Yes, yes to the Ladybird books! I always longed for a beautiful dress in satin like Cinderellas (and shoes like the Shoemaker made in The Elves and the Shoemaker).
I would like to find a vintage copy of Anne of Green Gables that I must have taken out of the library 10 times at least to read. It had no jacket cover, the background was white, with a painted portrait of a plaintive looking young girl with dark red hair in a plait, looking wistfully up at an angle. That was my favourite cover as a child, along with the Ladybird ones already mentioned.

Silverbirchleaf · 06/09/2026 16:25

I wouldn’t say it’s a favourite book cover, but I think the ‘Yellowface’ book cover is very striking and original.

Original poster

FeliciaFancybottom · 06/09/2026 15:26

I didn't realise my cover would freak people out so much, sorry about that, I've asked for it to be removed.

OP posts:

midwalker · 05/09/2026 18:22

The OP’s cover 🤢 sorry OP! Look up trypophobia.

@MadamWhippyThe Dutch House was the first cover that came to my mind too. A perfect cover for a perfect book. It’s one of the only books I know of that has the same cover image across all editions.

I also love The Essex Serpent.

24Dogcuddler · 05/09/2026 18:18

Sorry to lower the tone ( and poor pic) but this book used to go down so well with lots of children. Love the expression on Mole’s face!

Matildatoldsuchdreadfullies · 05/09/2026 18:11

The Pauline Baynes cover for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

I’ve never seen the cover for Enid Blyton’s The Land of Far Beyond, but if it’s anything like the original illustrations (Horace Knowles) it would have been beautiful and eerie.

I also loved a number of the covers of Rosemary Sutcliff books.

whatareyoudoinginhereMax · 05/09/2026 18:06

Grinny by Nicholas Fisk scared the bejesus out of me as a child, and the front cover was the only reason I borrowed it from the school library. Still gives me chills to look at it!

HavingABlether · 05/09/2026 17:54

petitpasta · 30/08/2026 22:03

The covers of this series. Ink in particular, it's a sort of dark navy background with this gorgeous metallic copper overlay. Just beautiful! The series is pretty good too.

Absolutely agree! This is why I bought the series too 🥰

mamaduckbone · 05/09/2026 17:44

My favourite book as a child, and this edition was in the school library - I read the whole series beginning to end then started again.

Kerri126 · 05/09/2026 17:33

Love both versions of the hardback version of Lessons in Chemistry - loved the book too.

MadamWhippy · 05/09/2026 17:28

Portrait of the main character - love it and the book

VictraBarca · 02/09/2026 01:19

The folio society edition of the godfather is brilliant. I love the black cover too with the famous puppet motif but this is one of my most prized possessions

MsAmerica · 02/09/2026 01:13

I don't have one, although I remember being very struck by the original Handmaid's Tale cover.

You might like this

https://lithub.com/the-best-book-covers-of-the-last-decade/

The Best Book Covers of the Last Decade

This year at Literary Hub, we published the tenth iteration of a fan favorite end of year list: the best book covers of the year, as chosen by some of our favorite book cover designers. This featur…

https://lithub.com/the-best-book-covers-of-the-last-decade/

petitpasta · 30/08/2026 22:03

The covers of this series. Ink in particular, it's a sort of dark navy background with this gorgeous metallic copper overlay. Just beautiful! The series is pretty good too.

mumisfull · 30/08/2026 19:56

I adore this cover by Angela Harding. What a shame the book is a load of bollocks.

goingdownhopefully · 30/08/2026 19:43

Yes another here with trypophobia ( it was five minutes ago saw op’s post, and instantly tried to avoid and my skin is still crawling).

mumisfull · 30/08/2026 19:39

I love this cover, I could almost smell the air!

Silverbirchleaf · 30/08/2026 19:38

Also line this Teddy Robinson cover (and still gave my version).

Silverbirchleaf · 30/08/2026 19:37

Don’t know if I have a favourite book cover, but ‘Charlotte’s Web’ was my first thought.

Silverbirchleaf · 30/08/2026 19:32

Jungfraujoch · 06/08/2026 08:12

I can still see it in my old desk at high school.

That brings back unhappy memories for me. We read it in class at school. It went on for ages.

SaraCrewe06 · 26/08/2026 22:06

@hastenotwaste
I love this cover too, reminds me of a Vermeer painting. The book is fabulous too.

hastenotwaste · 26/08/2026 19:50

A more recent one where the cover actually persuaded me to buy the book instead of the kindle version. Shame about the green blob, though.

ElizabethVonArnim · 23/08/2026 09:33

DeanElderberry · 03/08/2026 09:20

I love the Tom Adams covers for Agatha Christie novels from the 1960s and 70s.

One eg for Cat Among the pigeons, but there were so many classics. The painting, the font, the balance - no wonder people collect them.

https://www.collectingchristie.com/post/tom-adams-archives-uncovered-part-1

These covers enrage me - so many plot spoilers! The ones for Sad Cypress, Toward Zero and Elephants Can Remember are the worst for giving away the murder methods.

tobee · 08/08/2026 04:25

Jungfraujoch · 06/08/2026 08:12

I can still see it in my old desk at high school.

That book conjures up memories of going to the children’s department of the local library; the books were usually covered in a slightly blurry plastic wrapping. You got given coloured card disc tokens (3 I think?) and that was your passport to exchange for new titles to read; yours for 3 weeks.

I occasionally try to find old library books - especially ones i remember getting out from the library myself. Love to smell their smell, see the date stamps on the sheet on the frontispeice, the slightly foxed edges.

They would often have great illustrations as well.

Original poster

FeliciaFancybottom · 07/08/2026 17:01

clary · 07/08/2026 16:45

Great thread!

I have a secret passion for the Tom Adams 1970s Fontana covers of Agatha Christie novels (it sounds niche but I am not alone) and this is a favourite – rather disturbing but iconic.

ETA I should read properly I see a PP has aready mentioned him haha

Edited

Oooo, that's creepy, I love it.

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