I judge books by their covers.

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I'm not afraid to admit it.  I judge books by their covers.  Titles are highly instrumental in forcing my hand to reach out for the binding, but the cover can make me think twice.  Or not at all, I suppose.  Like a man with beautiful eyes and lips but teeth that are nasty.  Or jeans that make you look and feel like you work out a lot when you don't, but are distressed in places that are completely unnatural spots to be worn out unless you are the Tin Man.  I have cuddled in bed with a few titles in my day, and I couldn't help but notice that the choice of cover art on a book is often indicative of what's between it's sheets (pun intended).  I read a wide variety of literature, but as of late I read a little more young adult literature, being that it's the middle of the school year and all.  Therefore, I have an unofficial list of rules that I have created to help me weed through the plethora of teen-oriented titles.  This list qualifies a book for a few seconds longer of consideration of my time.  There are always exceptions to the rules - books that have the right cover but the wrong content.  Of course, there are also those books that I've pigeon-holed though I haven't read them yet.  But the thing is, because of my rules, I probably never will.  I've had to read some of "those" books - you know, the ones that have made you realize you will never get the time spent reading it back - to come up with my conclusions of course, and as a result have judged books of similar coverage as a result.  Forgive me, dear reader, if you disagree with my verdicts.  These are my rules, after all.  Here they are - my guidelines for choosing whether or not I will consider reading a YA novel:

1.  I try to avoid books with black backgrounds and

a) lone blossoms or pieces of fruit.  These images tend to appear in the YA section of your local Barnes & Nobel and symbolize sex/sexual tension.  Sex equals romance.  Romance equals love triangles, and consequently hours spent reading painful verbal exchanges between people who don't yet buy their own underwear but think that they know enough about life to be unable to go on living it without John Doe vampire. Think Twilight and it's sequels.   The Truth About Forever has a white background, but a flower that is being plucked.  Just as guilty as the black background, and just as unreadable.

b) a mouth, often with blood dripping from the cosmetically altered lips. Oh, or a craned neck, often with blood dripping from it (the neck may have a husky male face-planted in it).  Again, this cover is found in the YA section, but should not be confused with the corset-busters adult women read.  Those steamy little morsels don't have black backgrounds.  In the black background version, the mouth may be open or closed, shot head on or from any variety of angles;  regardless, those lips and exposed necks are also symbolic of sex (which equals romance which equals...).  Or death after sex...no, not BECAUSE of the sex, just somewhere in there.  Most likely after the love triangle which will most definitely be present, where any number of John Doe vampires may or may not be present.  Think Envy or The Vampire Diaries and most other paranormal romances (yes, there is now a section in B & N devoted just to them).  And I guess most
teen romances in general.

2.  I try to pick up books with black covers and objects you wouldn't expect to be floating on a black background.  Like a playing card.  Or a plastic cowboy and indian.  Or words.  Or Walter Dean Meyers' name on it.  Or just a black silhouette.  These usually are coming of age stories with male protagonists that somewhat replicate the problems real teenagers have.  Think I Am the Cheese,  The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, Underdogs, The Outsiders, Playground, or Twisted.

3.  I try to avoid books with full-body pictures of teenage girls on the cover.  I especially stay away if they are lying on their backs, arms stretched above their head in a "Take me, I'm yours" pose, staring behind them at the camera.  Often they are wearing prom-dressy, corsety, sun-dress sort of things.  Their faces may be out of view or chopped off above the nose.  These books will most definitly contain a love triangle and pretty cheesy writing.  But rarely a prom, interestingly enough. Think Fallen in Love, Abandon, Dreaming Awake, or Everneath (which I am currently trying out but skeptical).  This also applies to full-body pictures of guys wearing jeans but no shirt, like Hush, Hush, or full-body make-out's on the cover, like he Rules of Attraction series.

4.  I proceed with caution around books with a close-up half-face shot of a teenage girl on the cover.  I've had some luck here, but I am nevertheless wary.  This is when the title and the dust-jacket summary act as deal-breakers, as they should.  There will still be a love triangle and a most likely a female protagonist who must get beyond her weak ankles to challenge her society, but the story may be more developed and thought provoking.  Think Delirium and The Uglies series, but beweare of others like The Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars series, or If I Stay.

5.  I try to pick up and read books with what looks like rusted metal on the cover and/or the colors of rusted metal.  Or fire.  Or the colors of fire.  They haven't let me down yet. They tend to have male protagonists, moral dilemmas, and a girl who is slightly less annoying.  Maybe because she doesn't talk as much.  Think Ship Breaker, The Hunger Games, The Knife of Never Letting go, Divergent, or The Book Thief.

6.  I try to pick up books with maps, city street scenes, or cars on the cover.  Not like the red race car type; more like the NYC taxi cab.  Think It's Kind of a Funny Story, I Am the Messenger, or Maze Runner.

7.  Books with all sorts of strangeness on the cover usually get my second glance, and often my read.  Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, and The Replacement come to mind.   So far, these novels have not been amazing, but I've read them solely for the weirdness factor.

8.  Last but not least, there are the books with little to no picture on the cover.  Just the title and maybe the hint of a picture - Milkweed, Stargirl, The Catcher In the Rye, The Boy In the Striped Pajamas.  I find them intriguing, these paperbacks with minimalistic tendencies.  Is the book hiding something?  Teasing me?  Testing me to see if I am one of the noble of heart that deserves the treasures within, hidden underneath its humble facade?  I will most definitely pick up this book for further exploration.  I may still choose not to read it, but it will stew in my hand for a moment or two, calling to me.  I only have to decide if I'm up for the challenge.