Chip Kidd’s secrets to cover success
Chip Kidd, probably the only designer of book covers that most people have even heard of, is interviewed in Esquire magazine about some of the tricks of his trade. The books that Kidd works on very often become massive bestsellers, though he admits that’s only partly thanks to him. “I cannot make you buy a book, but I can try to help make you pick it up,” he tells the interviewer.
Kidd gives some background on three recent titles he has covered – House of Meetings by Martin Amis, The Road by Cormac McCarthy, and The Terrorist by John Updike.
Maybe it’s just us, but the Updike and Amis covers look kind of bland and even ugly, which is odd, given Kidd’s reputation for pizzazz. The Road’s all-black cover is pretty cool, though. It’s like, how much more black could this cover be? And the answer is none … none more black.
