Poll Results Are In!

This poll ran on a bit longer than others because I was getting ready for a week of relaxation and exploration down in Bisbee, Arizona with Denis and couldn't switch my brain from Pack Mode to Poll Mode.

I'm back now and ready to get back into the swing of things... or at least what passes for swinging here at Casa Kittling.

For this poll, I asked Which is the more important eyecatcher-- the book's title or the book's cover?

Thank you to the 53 souls who responded. I do appreciate each and every one of you who take the time to give me your opinion. Here's the breakdown in voting (along with my own humble point of view):

• 22% (12 votes) said that the book's title was the more eyecatching to them. This is the camp into which I pitched my tent. Why? Think about it. When you walk into a bookstore or a library, just how many of the books are displayed with the covers facing out? Once you get away from the new releases, not all that many, so if you grab a book that's displayed spine (title) out, what probably grabbed your eye first? Yup. The title. I'll admit that I'm trained to see the title first. I grew up in a library, shelving books and locating books for patrons. Today now that I'm a book glutton with very limited funds, I shop for books using a list. It keeps me from those impulse buys that melt the plastic on my debit card. Shopping for books using a list means that I hunt for the titles.
  
• The vast majority (77% or 41 votes) told me that the book cover is the more eyecatching. I really can't argue with that because they are designed to do precisely that. Several of the book blogs I subscribe to show book covers and discuss them. I do find those posts interesting, and they've brought trends to my attention that I would not have noticed otherwise. I just don't shop for books by looking at the covers. Besides, with the tendency of some publishers to lie with their chosen cover art, I don't wish to be led astray.

But while I'm on the topic of book covers, I will say that old books printed around the turn of the twentieth century are often beautiful with their Art Nouveau designs and use of color and gilt, so I'm not completely unaware.

Whether we find books by their titles or their covers, the most important thing is that we find the books that we want to read. (And I'd bet the farm that you agree!)