Cover of the Week (22)

Cover of the Week is a weekly feature at The Hiding Spot, in which I share a cover that gives me that swoony feeling.

You Against Me by Jenny Downham
David Fickling Books/12.2.2010
Description (from Amazon):
If someone hurts your sister and you're any kind of man, you seek revenge, right? If your brother's been accused of a terrible crime and you're the main witness, then you banish all doubt and defend him. Isn't that what families do? When Mikey's sister claims a boy assaulted her at a party, his world of work and girls begins to fall apart. When Ellie's brother is charged with the crime, but says he didn't do it, her world of revision, exams and fitting in at a new school begins to unravel. When Mikey and Ellie meet, two worlds collide. Brave and unflinching, this is a novel of extraordinary skillfulness and almost unbearable tension. It's a book about loyalty and the choices that come with it. But above all it's a book about love - for one's family and for another.

I'm really liking the image on the cover of YOU AGAINST ME, but my favorite aspect is the lines of text across the bottom. I haven't seen that done many times before and there is something beautiful about it... that small snapshot into the novel. The one aspect that I don't like is the little bubble mentioning BEFORE I DIE. I understand why it's there, but I feel like it takes from overall effect of the cover.


And can I just say that I am unable to express how much I'm longing for this novel. BEFORE I DIE caused me to sob uncontrollably and I feel like I've been waiting forever for Downham's next novel. Now that I have a description and cover, I feel like I can finally allow myself to imagine walking into the bookstore and taking it home with me where it will live happily on my bookshelf. There is "unbearable tension" in this book. UNBEARABLE. I think you all know how I feel about tension. Especially when it's unbearable.