from Inside Hook

Why Do All Books Suddenly Look the Same?

The ubiquitous “blob” cover is a combination of content, design and, yes, clickability

BY TRISH ROONEY

covers of the vanishing half, detransition baby, untamed

Why are all books so abstract? / Getty, Riverhead Books, One World, Flatiron Books: An Oprah Book

You probably already know what the hottest new fiction book of the day looks like — without even seeing it. Picture electric blues, earthy greens, maybe pops of pinks and splashes of red blended together. While a plain white font announces the title, perhaps the swirling cursive of the author’s name is mixed into the pattern itself. 

This is the modernist book cover of 2022 — or “the blobs.” There are a few very prominent titles that share this aesthetic: The Vanishing Half, a story about the lives of two Black sisters by Brit Bennett, with a cover design by Lauren Peters-Collaer; and Detransition, Baby, a novel about queer parenthood by Torrey Peters, with a cover design by Rachel Ake Kuech. But there are many titles. Many more “blobs.” It’s become a joke online; where people notice that even packages of beef jerky are starting to look like New York Times Bestsellers.

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