Which Cover Do You Like Best?

We are in the final stages with our latest book, The Half-Acre Homestead: 46 Years of Building and Gardening. It’s 8½″ square, 168 pages, with about 540 photos of these things:

House/Kitchen/Cooking/Preserving/Foraging/Fishing/Gardening/Chickens/Crafts

It’s a book I’ve been meaning to put together for years, and it feels good to be in the final stages.

Above are two choices for the cover. Click either image for larger view. Whichever image we choose for the front cover, the other one will go on the back cover.

What do you think?

About Lloyd Kahn

Lloyd Kahn started building his own home in the early '60s and went on to publish books showing homeowners how they could build their own homes with their own hands. He got his start in publishing by working as the shelter editor of the Whole Earth Catalog with Stewart Brand in the late '60s. He has since authored six highly-graphic books on homemade building, all of which are interrelated. The books, "The Shelter Library Of Building Books," include Shelter, Shelter II (1978), Home Work (2004), Builders of the Pacific Coast (2008), Tiny Homes (2012), and Tiny Homes on the Move (2014). Lloyd operates from Northern California studio built of recycled lumber, set in the midst of a vegetable garden, and hooked into the world via five Mac computers. You can check out videos (one with over 450,000 views) on Lloyd by doing a search on YouTube:

46 Responses to Which Cover Do You Like Best?

  1. I`m with Frances on this one Lloyd. They are both great images but the garden picture just draws your attention more.

  2. Hey Lloyd, looking forward to this new book of yours…
    I’m a carpenter so the first one would be my choice. The one with the garden is not bad either but wood always calls me a lot more.

  3. Lloyd, why not split the cover? Each image is very appealing and the point is that they are both the same place, but from two completely different viewpoints. Lovely, both.

  4. Front cover – Garden. Back cover – Dining Table. However, I like the idea another person had of splitting the front cover. My husband and I are very excited about this book. Keep the books coming. Love them. Thanks!

  5. I’m the production editor, and to me, the table works better in the context of the existing cover elements. If I were to go with the garden, to my eye, it would entail one or more changes, such as:

    • lightening the image more, which seems to be a dusk shot, which I already did some of, but not enough for this context, in my opinion
    • changing the other elements (background color and text) to harmonize more; to me, it doesn’t.
  6. Tough choice Lloyd! IMHO I’d use the “lighter” interior picture for the front cover, and the “darker” garden picture for the back. Good to see that opinions are divided though, shows there’s nothing between them! Good luck with the (book) run – I’ll definitely get a copy to add to the collection.

  7. I think the garden picture is a fine shot and perhaps more appropriate to homesteading, the interior shot is superb. Very warm, inviting and carefully composed but perhaps more suited to a home/building book. I am sure whichever you choose you will be on to a winner.

  8. Both gorgeous and I am super-excited for this book, which I’d buy either way. But if it was the first Shelter book I’d ever seen, I’d be more likely to reach for the interior cover – it’s brighter, warmer, and more inviting to me. I’m more excited about seeing your house from the inside than I am about looking at garden pictures.

  9. one on right. maybe it reflects the title better.

    also, though, I think the color on right one is better.

    so…being a long time lover of your photos I apologize in advance, but the color on the kitchen one seems “off”.
    also, I believe I have seen (here) better photos of your kitchen/table/inside of your home.

  10. The picture on the right is more comprehensive, visually interesting and balanced. The structure, viewed the the garden piques your curiosity and draws you in. The dining room shot is more one dimensional. I agree with Anon that the color seems off – probably because of the warmth of the wood.
    Looking forward to it’s publication.

  11. The table feels warm and light and exemplifies simple ( = rich ) living. Looking forward to both Lesley’s and your creative solutions and experience. You both are inspirational for this Dutchie in the northern part of the Netherlands!

  12. In your opinion, Lloyd, is the book more about “houses” or “yards”? With the table picture, I expect houses/building/cooking/kitchen content. With the garden picture, I expect foraging/gardening/chicken content.

  13. The table picture. It has more vibrant colours and I suspect your eye is more drawn to it. I agree with others, that the table pic gives the suggestion of a more building orientated book, while the garden cover might appeal people more interested in the growing crops idea… tough choice though. Why not both pics….

  14. I’m waiting anxiously for this book, Lloyd! I love both the pictures, but I think you should go with the interior shot on the cover. I think it would draw in more people at a bookstore who may not be familiar with your books (gasp!).

  15. Most wonderful ideas start first in the Kitchen. I vote for the Kitchen. So many wonderful other photos of what you see out in your garden came from this kitchen. looking sooooooooooooo forward to this book. aloha, irene

  16. I like the bright, cheery and inviting dining room photo for the front cover and the garden shot for the back cover.
    Looking forward to the book!

  17. The graphic artist in me screams table picture. The colors go perfectly with the border and font color. If you are going for looks, the table picture wins. However, the garden picture reinforces the title “Half-Acre Homestead” but it just doesn’t draw my eye like the table picture!

Leave a Reply