I admit it; I am guilty violating of one of the principle rules of bibliophilism. I judge books by their covers. And really, who doesn’t? When perusing the shelves for a good read, whose eye is not first drawn to the attractively bound book instead of its ugly cousin in the corner?
Luckily, my baby is rather beautifully bound. Sure, she (for I have decided that my baby is a girl at heart, being a romance and all that) is a bit worn around the edges, but that is to be expected from a book of her years.
My baby is a case bound book; that is, she is a hard cover. In terms of decoration, I believe my baby is lovely, as she is both simple and ornate. When looking at her on the shelf with her companions, the bibliophile’s eye is likely to be drawn first to her, due to her rather ornate spine.
The spine of my baby has been gold-stamped, in the first binding style of the Everyman’s Library. The title and author’s name, as well as the name of the publishing company are showcased alongside a lovely floral design. Unfortunately, my baby’s spine has been hidden by the curse of library stickers–truly, I detest the practice of library stickers–so a picture of my baby’s cousins will have to suffice.
Upon being removed from the shelf, however, my baby shows her simpler side. A plain, carmine-colored cloth covers the binding board; the only adornment to be found is the publisher’s mark stamped on the front cover. My baby is ornate enough to be picked from the shelf, and simplistic enough to be unassumingly lovely. Not bad for just a shilling in price, is it?