The 10 Best Book Covers
of September

Well, it’s officially fall. The days are getting darker, and so are the book covers—or maybe it’s just that the book covers I’m gravitating to most this month are those that reflect the general blackening mood of anyone who cares about human dignity, the planet, and the future of democracy. Either way, here are ten of the best.

Maxim Loskutoff, Ruthie Fear; cover design by Steve Attardo, art by Christina Mrozik (W.W. Norton, September 1)

The art is the showstopper here: tender and frightening at the same time. The text treatment and simple, slightly textured backdrop just enhance it and bring it to the fore.

Evie Wyld, The Bass Rock; cover design by Joan Wong (Pantheon, September 1)

I’m always a sucker for a fragmented design, and this one, which looks like a collection of disordered scraps from a single painting (their rounded corners take it to the next level of surreality), is a particularly beautiful one.

Marie Ndiaye, tr. Jordan Stump, That Time of Year (Two Lines Press, September 8)

Covers that rely on a photograph, especially one that exists in space, like this one, can be hit or miss—but this odd beauty is definitely a hit.

Onno Blom, Young Rembrandt; cover design by Sarahmay Wilkinson (W.W. Norton, September 8)

This is another combination that almost always works for me: an old painting + experimentation with scale + a striking text treatment. Can’t go wrong.

Claudia Rankine, Just Us; cover design by John Lucas, cover art by Nona Faustine (Graywolf, September 8)

The National Mall without the Washington Monument, the horizon instead obscured by a sort of black haze, sets the perfect tone for Rankine’s frank examination of American whiteness.

Vigdis Hjorth, Long Live the Post Horn!; cover design by Rumors (Verso, September 15)

Eat your heart out, Wes Anderson.

Fariha Róisín, Like a Bird; cover art by Gill Button (Unnamed Press, September 15)

These big painted faces have been all the rage on book covers lately, but this is one of my favorites because of how instantly it conveys an emotion.

Richard Seymour, The Twittering Machine; cover design by Noah Baker (Verso, September 22)

I love this elegant evocation of the ubiquitous phone—turned away from the viewer, so it lights up the background. Amazing what you can do with a familiar shape and a bit of light.

Brian Dillon, Suppose a Sentence; cover design by Katy Homans, cover art by John Stezaker (NYRB, September 22)

One of the best collage covers I’ve ever seen (and I have seen quite a few).

David Hajdu, Adrianne Geffel; cover design by Jaya Miceli, art direction by Ingsu Liu (W.W. Norton, September 22)

An absolutely gorgeous use of negative space.