Blogger Hop: Are Book Covers Important to You?

If you'd like to join this weekend's Blogger Hop, please visit Crazy for Books and sign up. I especially enjoy participating when there's a question I'm dying to answer.

Book covers are extremely important to me. I gaze at the dustjacket or cover art repeatedly; indeed, every single time I pick up the book to read it, when I finish a chapter, when I put it down, when I walk by it, or have to move it from one spot to the next. When I have a leisure moment, I actually scrutinize the book cover, studying small details and always looking for something I haven't noticed before. And I can't stand scratches, tears, or dings in the covers of my books. I am extremely careful with them.

At one time, I was terribly disturbed when the cover art had no relationship to the book or when the art indicated the artist had no clue about what the book was about. But I don't find this issue coming up for me as much anymore, with one glaring exception. Is it the types of books I'm reading now, or are publishers making more of an effort to have relevant cover art?

The cover of the new Dr. Zhivago translation is a HUGE disappointment. First of all, who is the primary character of this book? What was his life all about? What's the main theme and premise of this masterpiece? Yes, Lara is a central character, but she was not the sole center of Yuri's life. Is the cover artist trying to make the point that in the book Lara is a brunette and not blonde like Julie Christie in the film? (Just kidding.)

Do you have a favorite book cover or two that you'd like to share? Or covers that nearly ruined a book for you? Leave the title(s), or better yet, give us the URLs in your comment.