The Mother Code by Carole Stivers has a fantastic cover. It is a great example of how to do book design right and why a minimalistic design beats a complex one.
First, let’s ask ourselves, what is the premise of The Mother Code?
And you might be thinking, “Gee, I don’t know, Julia, I haven’t read it.” Or maybe, “I came here to admire pretty pictures, not talk shop.” Which is fair. I have a point though. Like Flood Child, the design for The Mother Code perfectly sums up its premise.
The Mother Code is about robots designed to raise human children. In this 2021 paperback edition, the cover depicts a robotic hand and a human hand reaching towards each other. The design works with the book and lets us readers know what to expect from the story within. It ties in with the theme of the book, the relationship between mothers and their children.
The cover is sleek, simple, and effective, which is exactly what you want in a book cover. The bold title jumps off the black background, drawing the eye in and making it easy to read and remember.
My only complaint, if I can have one, is that half of the tag line is at the top of the book and the rest is at the bottom. The full tagline is “Will They Save Us…or Destroy Us?” though with how the text is laid out on the cover it reads as “Will They Save Us… The Mother Code, Carole Stivers. …or Destroy Us?” The second half of the tagline is easy to miss. I would have had the full tagline at the top.
I couldn’t find a name for the designer/artist, however the images used are credited to shuttershock.
Want To See More Book Art?
Great book covers are hard to come by. Folks say we shouldn’t judge books by their covers, but let’s be honest we all do it. Readers appreciate an eye-catching cover and cover artists rarely get a shout out. That ends now; I’m shouting out book cover artists and the fantastic work they do, and telling you exactly what makes these book covers the best.
So far, the books I’ve reviewed are:
- Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty
- Flood Child by Emily Diamand
- The Last Policeman and its sequels by Ben H Winters
- The Mother Code by Carole Stivers
Whenever I can, I will link to the artist’s website or social media so be sure to click their name and check out their other work!
