While searching for book covers for my previous post about Anne of Avonlea, I was impressed at how many different images appeared. (Of course it's in the public domain so anyone can reprint it.) There are a lot of really nice covers, but nearly as many terrible ones. Time for another edition of Awful Book Covers! Most of them are digital editions -- I guess people just Google "Old-Fashioned Girl," and see what comes up. Bonus points if the image actually has red hair.
Let the snark begin!
Anne of Avonlea: Under the Sea edition!
Apparently someone has confused Anne with Ariel. At least the hair is the correct color.
Anne of Avonlea: Bobblehead edition!
Seriously, her head is far too big for her body.
I get that it's a children's edition (and retold from the original),
but how is that going to attract any readers?
Anne of Avonlea: Crappy Photoshop edition!
Possibly the lamest cover ever. Note how the inset illustration doesn't even blend in with the
background. And the title isn't even centered.
Anne of Avonlea: Claudette Colbert edition!
This is actually a fairly nice image, but apparently Anne has been time-traveling to the 1920s to go to the moving pictures.
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| Actual photo of Claudette Colbert, about 1929. |
Anne of Green Gables: Clara Bow Edition!
To be fair, it's Anne of Green Gables, not Anne of Avonlea, but it's so egregiously wrong I had to include it. Seriously, she looks like a red-haired flapper in a nightgown.
SO WRONG.
Anne of Avonlea: High Society Edition!
It looks like Anne is attending opening night at the opera (which she would probably really enjoy).
Either that, or she's suddenly appeared in an Edith Wharton novel. I'd read that.
Anne of Avonlea: Ugly schoolroom edition!
This is actually the print copy I checked out from the library on base.
It is so ugly I could hardly bear to open it, I mostly read the digital download.
Anne of Avonlea: Hogwarts Edition!
It looks like Anne is using her supernatural powers to set fire to the room. Just awful.
Anne of Avonlea: Outdoor Pajama Party edition!
To be fair, I think this is a German edition. But what the heck is she wearing?
Anne never wears pink; also, it looks like a baggy velour Snuggie.
Anne of Avonlea: Regency Edition!
Did Anne join the Jane Austen Society of North America?
It looks like Anne is definitely cosplaying as Elizabeth Bennet.
I must have missed her at the last Annual General Meeting. It must be the black wig.
Anne of Avonlea: Deep Mourning Edition!
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Who died? And her head is blending in with that enormous smudge on the wall.
Clearly not at Marilla's house, she would never allow such a thing.
And finally, the absolute worst. . . .
Anne of Avonlea: Mid-Century Edition!
Seriously. She looks like a distressed teenager from the 1950s WITH BROWN HAIR.
Clearly, somebody didn't even read a description of the book.
Well, that was really fun. Which other books deserve Awful Book Cover posts?
Ahahaha, those are terrible. Funny, but the 'prim and proper' one where she looks aghast is actually a photo of Megan Follows from the TV movie! It's a terrible photo, and the color is off, and it shows a scene where Anne really is aghast -- I believe a box of fireworks has been put into the schoolroom stove. I think in the books, it happens in Anne of Windy Poplars, but I'm not sure.
ReplyDeleteI will have to go look for a photo of the awfullest Anne cover I ever saw, from when I was a kid. It was in the library, and very out-of-date even then.
Did not realize that was from the TV series -- obviously, I've never seen it. I should have realized that was a TV tie-in cover, it does say that in small print. I do remember the fireworks bit from the book, it was Anne of Avonlea. I've heard that's a good adaptation.
DeleteIt's a great adaptation! That said, that really was a terrible cover anyway. :)
DeleteI can't find the hideous cover I remember, but here's a photo of some of the set in an old post of mine: http://howlingfrog.blogspot.com/2017/07/im-back.html
What you call the "pearl-clutching" cover is actually a still shot from the beloved TV adaptation starring Megan Follows, which was absolutely wonderful.
ReplyDeleteAs to the hair color, by that time Anne's fiery red hair had grown into a deeper auburn.
DeleteMy apologies. I've never seen the adaptation, I didn't notice that it was a TV tie-in cover. It makes much more sense now. I've removed that image from my post. I'm sorry if I've offended any fans of the TV series. I've heard wonderful things about it and I really should watch it after I've read more of the series.
DeleteKaren, these are so hilariously awful, I couldn't help laughing. The last five in particular! I know Marilla dressed Anne very plainly, but NOT in a shapeless beige garment. And just thinking of Anne as a JASNA member is cracking me up again! Thanks for tracking these down and sharing them.
ReplyDeleteThe last one is the WORST. It looks very late 1940s/early 1950s. And I'm giggling at the thought of Anne at a Jane Austen society meeting, though I can totally imagine her having a reading group with her Avonlea Beautification Society.
DeleteOh my lord, these are truly horrendous. I'm always amazed that people with SOME kind of art or graphic design background seemingly come up with such covers. Your commentary was hilarious - thanks for the laugh.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I had a lot of fun writing this post, I should do it more often.
DeleteGrin. In these instances a book is certainly NOT known by it's cover. If you have a search for an edition that was published by CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform you'll be shaking your head at the blonde vamp in a checked shirt.
ReplyDeleteTHE HORROR. It looks like a country & western YA romance. What. The. Heck. The fact that it's a photo actually makes it worse.
DeleteIsn't it awful. The outcry over it, back then, was pretty significant. I did notice that amazon no longer shows the cover for that edition :-D
DeleteHa, ha! Those are hilarious. The last one could be a Nancy Drew mystery except she, too, ought to be red-haired...
ReplyDeleteThanks for those!
YES -- it's absolutely the right era for Nancy Drew. Now I'm imagining Anne solving mysteries with her two best buddies. Another mashup I would absolutely read. Or watch.
DeleteMy favorite of these bad covers is the one with Anne by the stove. I like it because it has a pulp cover look to it. Those pulp novels from the 1950's and the incredible artwork were really collectors items. We have nothing like that now.
ReplyDeleteI thought 1970s/early 1980s teen fiction -- definitely mass-market paperback. Which I suppose is another version of pulp. There were a lot of terrible covers back then.
DeleteHilariously I modelled for that book cover in high school, in the 90s. I never saw the finished product until I saw this post.😂😂
DeleteThat's hilarious! Did none of those illustrators ever read this book?
ReplyDeleteI doubt it. Probably stock artwork and someone at the publishing company just did an image search for either "old fashioned girl" or "red haired girl."
DeleteThose are hilarious. I once came across one where she wasn't even a redhead, but brunette! The illustrator obviously had no idea, but I wonder how it could have got past the publishers.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure some of these are e-book editions. I'm sure at that point readers are searching for the novel, the artwork is just an afterthought.
DeleteOh my, that was good. Sometimes it's a lot of effort producing all of the snark on one's own. The edition of the Anne books that I own are very 1970s singer-songwriter, but they were the ones I read and reread over many years, so I love them. A bit relieved not to find its Avonlea here!
ReplyDeleteI honestly laughed out loud throughout this marvelous post. Clearly some of the best worst covers ever! Thanks for a great laugh.
ReplyDeleteThese are hilarious. I enjoyed your comments on them.
ReplyDeleteYes its the German Version.
ReplyDeletePoor Anne in pink.
Cu
Andrea
P.S. I mean the cover, "Anne in Avonlea" (German)
ReplyDelete