Judging a book by it's cover

“Don’t judge a book by its cover.” We’ve all heard it before – in reference to books, people, music, most anything. It’s a simple philosophy, really: sometimes things look better than they are, and sometimes things are better than they look. The thing is, though, do you know how many books are in just the one bookstore in which I work? Me neither, but I can tell you it’s a lot. With so many options to choose from, I feel the cover can make a significant impact.

I read book blogs and talk to a lot of people who read books, so I actually have a little notebook where I write down recommended books I’d like to read. However, thanks to my impulsive nature and bookstore addiction, I often finding myself wandering through the aisles without my book of books. So, in that situation, I have to admit I very often judge a book by its cover. Obviously I take the genre, plot, author, etc. into consideration, but, when there’s a tie, it honestly just comes down to the cover.

Working in a bookstore, there’s no way I can read the write-up on every book I see. For the most part, I just look at the genre and the author’s last name so I know where to shelve the book, but every now and then, I take a moment to open it up and read the blurb on the book jacket. And, as I’m sure you’ve guessed, the one thing that causes me to do that is an interesting cover.

So, I have two questions. First, is it really all that wrong to judge a book by its cover? Second, since most of us do at least have an initial reaction to a book based on its cover, what covers do you find most interesting? For myself, I like classic-looking covers. Covers that replicate antique books always jump off the shelf at me. I like unique, but not over-the-top weird. I don’t like bright colors; I don’t like photos of people (as opposed to drawings or paintings). I won’t even consider a book that has a raunchy or disgusting cover.

To sum up, I just think there are too many books out there to not judge a book by its cover, so authors beware... choose a good cover.

Random Thoughts on Drink and Food (a weird one)

Part 1 - Drink:
I was at a restaurant today, standing in front of the soda dispenser, trying to decide what to drink when I noticed that it had orange soda. I haven't seen orange soda as an option lately, and it made me a bit nostalgic. I remember a time when orange soda was the only soda I ever drank - I was very young and not allowed to drink soda very often, but whenever I could, orange soda is what I wanted - I thought it was the best stuff. What's odd is I don't like orange soda anymore, not even just a glass for "old times' sake." As I got older, root beer was my soda of choice. I remember lamenting the fact that restaurants rarely had root beer, and I was forced to have Dr. Pepper instead. Now, I prefer Dr. Pepper; on the rare occasion I do have root beer, it's too sweet for me.

All this brought me to one conclusion: I drink too much soda.

Part 2 - Food:
Have you noticed lately that candy bars are changing, trying to be the next new thing? Kit Kats come in white chocolate or dark chocolate. Crunch bars come in a cylinder wafer form. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups come in crunch, caramel, or reverse. I once read somewhere that people have smaller attention spans now and constantly need new and exciting things. Could that be what the new candy is all about? Is the sugar high really not enough? As far back as I can remember, if you wanted caramel, you got a Twix or a Milky Way; if you wanted peanut butter, you got Reese's; if you wanted wafers, you got Kit Kat. It was always the same... and it was always good.

Going for nostalgia again - I remember when I was a kid there was a 7-11 about a block away from school. Before basketball games, my friends and I would beg some change off our parents (most of us were teachers' kids so a parent was there), head off to the 7-11, and come back with our favorite candy bar or Slurpee. On lucky, rare excursions, one or two of us would come back with candy AND a Slurpee. How cool we felt then! Anyway, I remember being so excited by a plain, regular bar of Hershey’s chocolate. I never needed mini M&Ms mixed in it. (Unrelated note – it’s been a really long time since I’ve had a Slurpee, but I guess that’s another blog.)

I think I'm turning into an old fogey. "Back in my day, chocolate was just chocolate; we didn't have this newfangled candy you whippersnappers have these days," she said in the unmistakable lisp of a women whose dentures were slipping...

A Good Friend

I haven't blogged much - obviously - but to be honest I haven't wanted to. Normally I love to write - about anything - but lately, everthing I write comes out sounding somber and depressed. Though I write it out sometimes, I haven't posted - I just didn't feel that the world would care to read about my woes.

My troubles haven't changed any, but today I'm in a wonderful mood. I drove a couple of hours to meet up with a dear friend today, and it's amazing what a truly caring person can do for one's spirits. Right now, I have few friends interested enough to talk with me (see, there's that depressing stuff I mentioned), but this particular friend always lets me open up and babble about everything. It's good for the soul, I think, to get things out and discuss them. I left her today not having any of my problems resolved, but I felt encouraged, uplifted, cared for - things I haven't experienced in a long time. I knew I had a real friend, and I hadn't felt like that in a long time.

Here's the point of my blog - do you have a friend you haven't talked to in a while? A friend going through a trying time? A friend who just means a lot to you? Call them, email them, visit them - just saying a little word to let them know they're important to you can make such a difference in their outlook. Even if your friends are close and are all doing well, who doesn't want to feel a little better about themselves?