We judged books by their covers for this gallery of 2019’s best designs (so far), and the results are stunning. From Jor Ros’ striking illustration for Patron Saints of Nothing to Grace Han’s creative take on Bangkok Wakes to Rain, these 19 designs deliver our favorite book covers of the year. Click through the images to browse our picks celebrating the designers and illustrators we love.
If you want to view even more book covers, you can check out our galleries of the best book covers of 2018 and the best book covers of June 2019. We also recommend visiting both Spine Magazine’s and The Casual Optimist’s websites, as they introduced us to many of our favorite designs.
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Bangkok Wakes to Rain by Pitchaya Sudbanthad
Design by Grace Han
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Wilder Girls by Rory Power
Design by Regina Flath; illustration by Aykut Aydogdu
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On a Scale of One to Ten by Ceylan Scott
Design by Baily Crawford
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The Current by Tim Johnston
Design by Pete Garceau
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The Meaning of Birds by Jaye Robin Brown
Design by Jessie Gang; illustration by Elliana Esquivel
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Middlegame by Seanan McGuire
Design by Will Staehle
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Tap Out by Edgar Kunz
Design by Mark R. Robinson; photograph by Paul Anthony
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Internment by Samira Ahmed
Design by Karina Granda; illustration by Dana Ledl
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The River by Peter Heller
Design by Kelly Blair
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My So-Called Bollywood Life by Nisha Sharma
Design by Paul Coomey; illustration by hatecopy