#4 P2S Link-Up: Don't Judge a Book By Its Cover

We're linking up with Nicole this week from Three31 for our fourth link-up.  It's just about time to get your book packages in the mail and I am so excited to share with all of you!

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The old adage, don't judge a book by its cover, has often been applied to our predetermined judgements of others but what about when it comes to books?  How impactful is a book's cover in our decision in actually purchasing it?  We're a culture that determines a lot of aspects on the cosmetic side of things.  What piece of fruit are you going to eat- the bruised apple or the perfectly ripened mango? 

I'll be the first to admit that I judge a book by its cover- even more so its spine.  There are so many factors that can bring me into actually picking up a book, whether it's a review I saw on Huffbooks, a magazine, an author's typical writing style, or just the fact that the cover looks gorgeous. 

I recently read a post that HuffBooks wrote about gendered covers, and I shared it with a few of the participants that I've been corresponding with.  A female author became incredibly frustrated at the number of male readers who would e-mail or tweet her about the the "girliness" of her book covers.  It inhibited them from reading them in public or sometimes even reading them at all.  This spurred a challenge to readers all over to create a reverse gendered cover.  The results were pretty cool and incredibly artistic.  There were many covers that I thought looked significantly more beautiful or even more captivating than the original covers. It also got me to thinking about a publisher's decision to go with a certain cover artwork.  What if they sold two different covers?  Apart from movie poster covers, has this been done before?  Not as an anniversary edition of a book, but the same book at the same time but two different covers.  It also raises the question of why a book cover exudes gender separation. 

You can walk through a Barnes and Noble and automatically identify the aisles of teen fiction and chick lit.  I don't know about you, but I've noticed this trend in teen fiction/romance where the covers tend to be black with neon blues and remind me of like Sci-Fi art.  For chick lit, I usually see illustrations featuring a woman and the use of softer colors and a title is a curly-q font.  The industry has so heavily branded books, you can just tell.  Like if you see a deep navy cover with handcuffs or a grey tie, it's a series that's trying to bank on the success of 50 Shades.  They even put a chicken on a similar cover to make a spoof on it for a cookbook. 

For me what makes a book cover intriguing is if it can stand on its own two feet...or spine (ha, my attempt at a book joke).  If I was an author, I would hope that my book would be successful but would I want it to emulate the style of another book cover, just because it's popular?  I really don't think I would like that and would be really disappointed.   I get annoyed when I see that because it's grouping books together to make sales.

On the flip side, sometimes a cover is not my taste at all but the reviews win me over.  I love The Great Gatsby but I really don't like the cover art.  It's a classic and it's an easily recognizable cover and because of my love for the book- I like the cover art. Hopefully that made an ounce of sense.

I'm thinking of putting together a few "flipped covers" and hopefully I can share those this week.

Be sure to link-up with Nicole and have a great Sunday!

    

2nd Preview to Summer Link-up: 5 Books Every Woman Should Read

This week's book link-up challenge was really difficult for me (I feel like this will be a trend) :P.  Serena's challenge of choosing 5 books that every woman should read had me brainstorming a few days ago on some of the most influential books that have had some type of impact on me as a woman.  It wasn't until this morning did I come up with these five, one of which I own but haven't read yet (I know, that probably shouldn't count but it's been recommended to me time and again!).

I thought back to my Gender & Women's studies courses at UW-Madison.  I loved them so much that I wish I had made it into a double major instead of just a certificate (the equivalent of a minor).  I learned so much in those courses and it's translated into my life and what I value as a feminist.

I've chosen these five books for different reasons, but I also feel like they will apply to a wide range of audiences and women who may not also identify as a feminist but would like to learn more about female struggle throughout the world, history, and today's society.

1. The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler:
I picked up this book the summer before I went to college.  I was even reading it up to Madison, on my way to a program called Base Camp.  I was about to go canoeing down the Wisconsin River for three to four days straight.  I had it in my hand when I met our "tour guides" who were also Madison students.  They had already read it, loved it, and I saw it as a good sign for the book.  This book is a collection of different monologues or stories of women that is meant to be performed.  I've seen it twice as well as another version called Yoni Ki Baat.  Each story revolves around the female identity, anatomy, and of course, vaginas.  Some stories are more serious than others, some are downright hilarious.  One story even involves an orgasm, making the live performance either incredibly amusing for some and uncomfortable for others.  It was one of my first experiences reading about the female perspective and it was a beautiful opportunity since I was about to leave for college.  This book gave me this window where I decided to check out other courses involving women's history and women's rights.  Looking back, this book was a gently push into me becoming more of a feminist.  I think it's a great book for women to read in general because vaginas usually aren't discussed openly, yet as women we have them, it's the part of the female anatomy that is most often used to describe women, and it has developed a culture around it.

2. Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales:
I took a course in college where we got to analyze fairy tales and I loved it.  I would recommend that women read the original fairy tales as told by Anderson, the Grimms, and Arabian Nights because these have been passed down for generations.  They're also significantly more different than the Disney versions that many of us have grown up with.  Many of them are very dark and teach brutal lessons.  A lot of these stories also paint the history of women in many different cultures, whether they were valued or oppressed and it's a good reminder that each of these stories has a good dose of reality.  For example in Cinderella, her "wicked" step-sisters are forced to dance in burning hot shoes, so they essentially burned themselves to death.  Check out copies from the library and see what life lessons are taught from these original tales.  It's more than prince charming, they often involve realizing your true potential.

3. The Girls Who Went Away by Ann Fessler:
This book helped change my perspective on what young women went through during the eras of the 50s and 60s.  I often think that are portrayal of that time period is very much a depiction of Leave it to Beaver, where you have the perfect household but families didn't upkeep that lifestyle without several flaws.  Fessler, the author, was adopted and she knew that her mother was essentially forced to give up her daughter for adoption so Fessler went on this journey interviewing other women from this time period who were also pressured into giving up their children for adoption.  These women were teenagers or college-aged women who were unwed and became pregnant.  Many were sent away to facilities in other states where they carried out their pregnancies, delivered their babies, and then never saw them again.  These were difficult stories to take in for many reasons, but mainly because these women felt so isolated and they were shamed by their families.  Some of these women were raped and then humiliated.  One story that left an impression on me took place in Wisconsin and a young woman was on a date, who then was threatened to walk home in a snow storm unless she had sex with her date.  It was a dark time and all because these women were expected to have these children and then give them up.  Societal expectations were ridiculous (women took tranquilizers back then to keep calm).  These young women also weren't provided any type of counseling afterwards, so many of them had a lot of emotional and psychological trauma after being isolated and then forced to give up their baby.  Some of the women, who everyone in their town knew what had happened, had been deemed as "sluts" and boys would try to convince them to have sex with them because during that time pregnancy = you knew how to have sex.  These were definitely difficult stories to get through but so necessary to teach future generations.  Today we see Teen Mom on MTV and many of these teenagers have the support of their families and the state.  This was not the case back then.  These stories and many articles that I've read through reproductive rights courses further cements my beliefs in understanding the big picture of what all women go through.

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
This book has been recommended to me by so many people!  Diamant takes a biblical character and dives into the story of Dinah.  In the Bible she's mentioned briefly through different sections, however, she is the protagonist in a story that covers the traditions of women during biblical times.  In a time where men would have multiple wives (and still do), women would gather in a separate tent during the time they had their periods, were birthing, or even when they were sick.  The book also covers the stories of the wives of Jacob and how they care for Dinah.  In this tent, they grow in their relationships with each other, share stories, and cultivate a life together.  I'm working through the book right now, but the biggest complaints that I've read from others are usually biblical scholars.  I would approach it with an open mind and focus on the relationship between the women versus the relation of passages from the Bible.

The Awakening by Kate Chopin:
I haven't read this yet, so I feel a little silly putting it on this list, but there are several books that people I admire have recommended and this is one of them.  I have an ever-growing list of books that I would like to read and specifically books that every woman should read.  Being in my early 20s, I think now, more than ever, is a great time to tackle these types of lists.  Although a completely time period, Chopin's novel deals with a lot of the societal issues that are brought up in Fessler's book (mentioned above).  Her protagonist deals with the societal pressures of going into a marriage that she didn't want to be and then subsequently dreaming about what it would be like to have the equalities of men.  What was really awesome about this book was that it was written in a time period where the fantasies of these fictional characters were very taboo.  It's considered a feminist classic.

Preview to Summer participants- make sure to link-up with Serena over at Spillerena!
Link-up with your name and blog title and if you have to schedule your post for a future time, please just leave a comment under her post.

Be sure to check out the other ladies' choice books and if you're looking for some other fun resources check out More and Flavor Wire.

 Thanks for reading!

Preview to Summer 1st Link-Up: Top Three Favorite Books

Registration is now closed for this session of the Blogger Book Swap and I am so thrilled to have 38 participants and 6 total co-hosts.  It's going to be a great swap!  It was so exciting to read through the responses and see what inspires you to not just read, but why you love books.  I especially enjoyed reading what you wrote about yourselves.  You are all rockstars!  I wish y'all could see my face right now, because I'm just giddy.

I'm not just giddy because you all sound fantastic, but also because everyone is in this swap for the right reasons.  The biggest complaint of those who have participated in blogger-style swaps is that their partner "forgot" to send their end of the swap.  There's nothing like an uncooperative blogger to turn a fun event onto a sour note.  This Wednesday when pairings are announced, you can also find a convenient etiquette blog post/video on the do's and don'ts of swapping.

One facet of this swap is our use of writing prompts, ice breakers, and book-themed link-up opportunities.  Today is the start of our first book-themed link-up, hosted by Maria over at I Believe in Story.  It's a great theme where we all get to discuss our top three favorite books.  I definitely struggled with this one a little bit.  I definitely have my "top favorite" which conveniently is my eBook giveaway prize, but two more...the pressure!

    Although the graphic is a little misleading with my favorite book being to the far right, we'll start with that one anyways.  My favorite is The Great Gatsby and by "favorite," I find it to be one of the most moving books that I have ever read.  I think it covers how life sometimes goes.  You have the character of Gatsby who to me represents the common man, striving to accomplish his dreams.  He falls in love with a woman who is basically out of his league and despite the fact that she loves him, she marries someone else because of societal norms.  That's not shocking because sometimes life bites you in the ass like that.  But nevertheless we're humans, so we strive to figure out ways around that and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  I always felt that book covered the human spirit with its good intentions and flaws all wrapped into one.

The next one over is The Joy Luck Club which was a book that I read my sophomore year of high school in Ms. Jacoby's class.  We had to pick a book from a list to dissect and mark-up for this high school, sophomore English lit course.  Did anyone else hate writing in books?  It greatly disturbed me going into my freshman year that teachers actually wanted us to write and "ruin" books.  I quickly had to get over that, of course. I just recently came across old copies of books from high school that are still riddled with post-it notes and seven million different shades of pen inks to represent foreshadowing, symbolism, etc.  However, I had watched the movie version of The Joy Luck Club and did not realize it was actually based on a book.  I immediately chose it off of the list and it was probably one of my favorite books to analyze.  That English class introduced me to The Great Gatsby and The Joy Luck Club.  Ms. Jacoby was one of the most influential teachers in my life and I would love to send her an e-mail or shout-out if I ever ran into her again.  The Joy Luck Club discussed the relationships between mothers and daughters as one generation grew up in China and their daughters grew in the U.S.  It dove into their childhoods and how radically different they were from one another and there were so many moments that it was difficult for them to connect because they had grown up so differently from one another.  The entire book was the relationship between me and my mom.  I was born in the Philippines but she was actually raised there with her siblings.  I was her very Americanized child and she was forced to grow up and handle life at a very young age.  I lived in a very comfortable lifestyle while her family were poor farmers.  Everything about the book somehow matched up to issues in my life.  It was very moving and touching for me to go through that and experience it and especially as a teenager in high school.  It gave me that opportunity to appreciate everything my mom had to go through in order to give me the life that I have now.  Whether you come from an Asian family or not, it's definitely a great read for mothers and daughters or just women in a family together.

Finally, I adore the Harry Potter series.  I know I've talked about how I was introduced to Harry Potter on my blog before, but it never hurts to reminisce over good memories.  I picked up my copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone at a Scholastic Book Fair following parent-teacher conferences.  For doing well academically, my parents (and sometimes grandma) would reward me with a few books at the kiosk area set up by the main lobby.  Scholastic Book Fairs were my favorite!  My friend Jake's aunt introduced him to the book and I couldn't wait to start reading.  We were on a trip to San Diego since spring break started immediately after.  I read that book all the way through within a couple of days and was begging my dad to let me buy the second one in a bookstore in Old Town.  It started my love for the series and the sheer enjoyment of sitting down with my favorite characters and diving into their adventures.  Ryan hasn't read the books, but he's seen all of the movies.  I asked him if he would read the books and his response was, "maybe to our kids."

Well at least we know they'll be well-read ;)

What are your top three favorite reads?

Make sure to link-up with Maria!