I don't have the book with me right now, but I think The Children of Hurin has one of the best covers ever.

Thanks, W4J! That does help. I knew there were two other books, but as of right now my church's bookstore only has the first one and the third one. Looks like I'm going to have to order the second from Amazon or something.

I've read some dark stuff and I did notice through the first couple chapters that it was pretty dark, but reading the synopsis told me that so it wasn't really a surprise. I'm looking forward to finishing it and the rest of the trilogy. Thanks!

And I do think the covers are pretty awesome . . .

I really have tooooooo many books that I love the covers of, so I'm not sure if I should post them all here.

EDIT: On second thought I've got a few for ya:

P.S."Brooklyn!"

Sequel to "Voyage to Venus"? I didn't know it was ever called that! I've only heard it called Perelandra.

As for covers, I can't think of any specific ones that I've loved. Not straight off the bat, anyhow. I'll think of it and get back to you. I just know that it's important to me that it's pretty.

Sweeetlilgurlie, yes, I think Voyage to Venus was the the United Kingdom's publishing title for Perelandra. I'm not sure why it was changed but all the older copies I've seen in Australia (from the 60's and 70's) have the Voyage to Venus title. I think it makes the book sound like pulp sci-fi, rather than the complex philosophical book it really is.

Adeona, I'd thought that

Booky, about Lord Sunday:
Val, I don't think I've ever heard of "Fitcher's Bird" before. What are the differences between it and "Bluebeard"?

I'm glad you liked Leepike Ridge, Kate. I think you'll enjoy the 100 Cupboards series as well---I can't wait to hear your thoughts on it.

Silver the Wanderer, though The Hunger Games is rather violent, I didn't find it graphic. I really can't remember any long descriptions of gruesome things.

My favorite was the story of how Svein the hero picked his wife. He asks three sisters what he should bring them from the horde of the trow-king. The oldest wants gold and silver jewellery, the second wanted cooking implements, the youngest wanted a flower for to look at and remember him by. Upon his return, this is his comment to the sister: "You, the eldest, are clearly a vain sort of trollop, while you, the youngest, are appallingly fey. I'll pick you, the middle one, for your common sense request."

That's hilarious! Of course, alternatively, I suppose he could've picked the middle sister because the request for cooking implements implied that she could use them and he was very hungry went he got back from raiding.

sweeet, an intriguing cover can make me pick up a book, but since I often just see the spines, an intriguing title/spine will often influence me more to pick up a book. Usually, too, I'll read the synopsis/back cover/inside flap of the dust jacket before I make a decision about whether to check it out or not. So, a pretty cover is nice, but it's not usually going to make or break a book for me.

Lady Haleth, I hope you get to read Beauty sometime soon. It's my favourite McKinley.

*enjoys all the lovely book covers* I don't think I have any to share with you all right now---I know I've seen some lovely ones, but I can't remember any of them right now.

Aly, I'll definitely agree with you on the two JS&MN covers (though I have a fond spot for the red & white cover), and the second TMWWT (I read that copy of it---I know have this absurd one with a strange bird/man on it ).

I checked a couple of books by Shaun Tan the other day, as someone had recommended one of his books to me. I couldn't find the recommended one (which was disappointing, but not surprising: I always view the childrens' picture book section as a whirlpool of chaos), but I found the other two the library had. They were rather strange, but kind of quirky and fun.
I also checked out Fool's Run, partially because Mel's recent read had piqued my interest. I was less confused than usual (I think I'm finally getting used to McKillip's writing !) and was mostly able to skim over/get the drift of the more confusing parts. There was a bit of language and one slightly risque scene, but I mostly enjoyed the book. And I knew there was a lot more I was going to say originally, but I forgot it.

I've also been reading The Forests of Serre. I was ready for some confusion, but I wasn't prepared for how hilarious it was going to be! Obviously it's not all humour, but some of the bits are just incredibly humourous. It's also feels a lot more like a traditional fairy tale. Not completely, but it has a number of the components of it. Also, some of the lines are absolutely gorgeous.

I also (finally!) got Mockingjay from the library today. I, eh, also read it all this afternoon. There's far more I'd like to say, but I need to get off now.

Edit: Please forgive any incomplete or incoherent sentences, misplaced or missing words, or any confusing thoughts or phrases, as I am rather tired and didn't do a read-through to check everything.

As you're on the topic of children's picture books, here are a few of my favourites:

Math Curse - an interesting, humorous riddle book with great illustrations. I was never particularly good at Maths, so I related well with the protagonist (I discovered this book during a Maths uni workshop).

The Discovery of Dragons - a great beastiary with illustrations of dragons from the four corners of the world.

The Sign of the Seahorse - again, beautifully illustrated and cleverly-written. Some riddles and many opportunities for finding hidden items/characters/creatures etc.

Where the Wild Things Are - paved the way for more intense, less preachy children's picture books.

Wolves in the Walls - creepy fun.

The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish - um. yeah.

The Quinkins - a great Aboriginal Dreaming story

Ooooh! Graeme Base! My favorite of his is without a doubt:

I could look through that book for hours (And have).

Thanks for weighing in on the Attolia ages, ValiantArcher!

Awesome, another Graeme Base fan! I love that book. The Eleventh Hour isn't my favourite of his in terms of illustrations but it still has many great riddles and things to discover. The final coded message at the back of the book is great too but involves quite a bit of time and effort. My first book by Base was Animalia, followed by The Eleventh Hour. After those two, I pretty much read the books as they were released. Yay for Aussie author/illustrators!

Regarding The Eleventh Hour, do you think it is truly possible to discover the name of the Swan, or was that just a trick question?

I believe the Swan's name was a trick question but maybe people with Mensa-like abilities can make something of it.

I finished The Hound of the Baskervilles, and am now reading it over again because it's a book analysis book for school and I didn't read the guidelines for the analyses before I started the book. So now I'm reading it and looking for Sherlock Holmes's character traits and the "rising action" in the conflict between Holmes and

What a good read! I enjoyed it very much. It was not my first Sherlock Holmes mystery (I've read many short stories of the famous detective), but I haven't read any Conan Doyle for awhile and I'd forgotten how interesting a read his mysteries can be.

I think in the shorter stories, you're not as inclined to like Holmes as much. He's very stiff and it's often annoying how he just steps up after he solves a case and explains calmly how he was brilliant and how you were an idiot. But in a longer story like The Hound of the Baskervilles, I got to know him a wee bit more. I think he's a good guy and he's got heart-- he just hides it behind his awesome deducing skills.

The description was masterful. Wow. Just wow. I SAW the moor. I HEARD the hound howling. It positively gave me the shivers, and the villain was so cold and creepy! I never guessed that

Also, the way that Conan Doyle carefully spaced out the clues he gave to the reader was masterful. You never guessed the villain until Conan Doyle wanted you to be able to. It was not UN-expected, but it was like you were slowly learning with Watson.

I'm now on to re-reading The Last of the Jedi series by Jude Watson. I don't care if they're written for ten year olds. I like them. She's a good author.

I keep reading about The Hunger Games and Mockingjay on here! I think I need to get them out of the library....

Don't forget the middle book Catching Fire, Sweeet! It comes between The Hunger Games and Mockingjay. (Obviously . . . I just said it was the middle book . . . gah, I'm tired. )

Valia, on Mockingjay:

I hope that made sense!

On the subject of 'judging a book by its cover': I prefer a pretty book cover, but if I know I like the author and/or it's part of a series I like and/or I've read and liked the synopsis, then I'll check it out. But I'll admit that it's the pretty covers that catch my eye first and cause me to pick it up. Or if I recognize the author.

P.S."Brooklyn!"

I don't have the book with me right now, but I think The Children of Hurin has one of the best covers ever.

High dittos, Lady Haleth! Alan Lee's painting are so mood-oriented—very evocative. Wonderful!

Another favourite of mine is this edition of A Little Princess:

Any of Ernest Shepard's book covers are just simply ♥. Not that this cover, itself, is anything particularly special in its design, but I do so enjoy Shepard's illustrations.
~Another.
~And yet another.

~Anything Narnia by Pauline Baynes; some editions of the Space Trilogy, which I don't have time to find now ...

And this cover

one of Ted Nasmith's well-known drawings depicting Gwaihir's rescue of Gandalf from Isengard (Nasmith fan that I am).

I do have more, oooh yes, precioussss, but will stop for now.

Whoa! Graeme Base's illustrations are awesome!

Yes, W4J, many of Dekker's covers are intriguingly fantastic.

Shantih, I remember reading through Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee—such a heart-wrenching and hard book in so many ways—so very well-written. Seeing it again brings back those memories.

*is unable to resist joining the cover conversation*

I have fallen in love both with the book and this cover. I think this is my favourite as it was drawn by Christian Birmingham who also worked on a version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

This book I don't like so much, but I think the bright, stylised cover is wonderful!

You can't really see it here, but the texture in the drawing is gorgeous! I love the soft colours and beautiful detail. What I particularly like about this one is that it wraps right round the book.

And again with the design ... I just really like nicely illustrated covers. Photographs just don't excite me as much, I guess!

And on reading books ... it's really interesting to see the old That Hideous Strength cover as I have finally bought myself a set of Lewis' Cosmic Trilogy! Yesterday I read the whole of Out of the Silent Planet. It was wonderful. One of the best things about it was hearing Lewis' voice again - I still adore the Narnia Chronicles, but reading this book was much more of a challenge than re-reading those. It was like experiencing Narnia for the first time, rediscovering the wonder I had when I was younger. Wow! I don't think I've ever read a book to compare to it; in fact the closest thing I could come up with was - rather oddly - Phillip Pullman's trilogy. However, while I found Pullman's books rather depressing throughout, Silent Planet uplifted me and made me joyful. I've already started Perelandra and I don't think it will last very long!

I was handed a copy of my Mom and Dad's AARP monthly magazine, which comes free to them. In the back, is a list of books that school libraries have banned from their shelves.

Included were some of the most classic works of our time:

The Scarlet Letter: Too sexual
Harry Potter: Irreligious
The Lord of the Rings: Irreligious
Uncle Tom's Cabin: Too Political
Animal Farm: Too Political
The Biography of Benjamin Franklin: Too Risque

The ones that really struck me were LOTR and The Scarlet Letter. While I've never read LOTR, and didn't exactly "fall in love" with The Scarlet Letter, I don't think that they should be banned books. Especially for the reasons of banishment that are given.

What do you guys think about banning books from a library?