The Casual Optimist
@casualoptimist.bsky.social
www.casualoptimist.com
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
Aleksander Lindeberg (1917-2015) - Russian Folk Tales (1960s). Born in Russia, Lindeberg was a Finnish illustrator who illustrated several books for children during the 60s and on.
#wardsmorguefile
#wardsmorguefile
February 4, 2026 at 4:41 PM
Aleksander Lindeberg (1917-2015) - Russian Folk Tales (1960s). Born in Russia, Lindeberg was a Finnish illustrator who illustrated several books for children during the 60s and on.
#wardsmorguefile
#wardsmorguefile
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
The Case of the Green Covers is a risograph-printed zine that documents the history of the “Green Penguins”, “a series of hundreds of crime novels published with green covers by the UK publisher Penguin in the 1960s”. [justseeds.org]
New Zine about 1960s Penguin Crime Novels - Justseeds
After years and years of doggedly collecting what are commonly called “Green Penguins,” a series of hundreds of crime novels published with green covers by the UK publisher Penguin in... Read More »
justseeds.org
February 3, 2026 at 6:02 PM
The Case of the Green Covers is a risograph-printed zine that documents the history of the “Green Penguins”, “a series of hundreds of crime novels published with green covers by the UK publisher Penguin in the 1960s”. [justseeds.org]
'New York's Toughest" illustration by Peter de Sève for the February 2 edition of the New Yorker
February 3, 2026 at 4:39 PM
'New York's Toughest" illustration by Peter de Sève for the February 2 edition of the New Yorker
"Targeted" by Till Lauer for the cover of the latest issue of @newyorker.com
February 3, 2026 at 4:24 PM
"Targeted" by Till Lauer for the cover of the latest issue of @newyorker.com
Here are this month's book covers of note!
Book Covers of Note, January 2026
Well, it's been a month. I hope you're all keeping safe and well, especially my friends and publishing colleagues in Minnesota. Stay Strong. The Aquatics by Osvalde Lewat, translated by Maren Baudet-Lackner; design by Alban Fischer (Coffee House Press / December 2025) As If by Magic by Edgard Telles Ribeiro, translated by Kim M Hastings & Margaret A Neves; design by…
www.casualoptimist.com
January 29, 2026 at 10:01 PM
Here are this month's book covers of note!
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
Any Lee Bains fans over here?!
Art direction by me.
Cover photo by Matt White (using a sign we dug out of a barn in Arkansas)
In his debut poetry collection, Alabama poet and musician Lee Bains draws on his own experience at the intersection of work and food—the daily ritual of a workday lunch.
Art direction by me.
Cover photo by Matt White (using a sign we dug out of a barn in Arkansas)
In his debut poetry collection, Alabama poet and musician Lee Bains draws on his own experience at the intersection of work and food—the daily ritual of a workday lunch.
🥪 Cover reveal for Alabama poet and musician Lee Bains's debut collection, WORK LUNCH, out 10/13! Read this excerpt and preorder it at hubcity.org/worklunch
January 21, 2026 at 9:41 PM
Any Lee Bains fans over here?!
Art direction by me.
Cover photo by Matt White (using a sign we dug out of a barn in Arkansas)
In his debut poetry collection, Alabama poet and musician Lee Bains draws on his own experience at the intersection of work and food—the daily ritual of a workday lunch.
Art direction by me.
Cover photo by Matt White (using a sign we dug out of a barn in Arkansas)
In his debut poetry collection, Alabama poet and musician Lee Bains draws on his own experience at the intersection of work and food—the daily ritual of a workday lunch.
This is a really interesting selection. A lot of the covers you would expect, but still some surprises...
lithub.com/the-best-boo...
lithub.com/the-best-boo...
The Best Book Covers of the Last Decade
This year at Literary Hub, we published the tenth iteration of a fan favorite end of year list: the best book covers of the year, as chosen by some of our favorite book cover designers. This featur…
lithub.com
January 20, 2026 at 3:31 PM
This is a really interesting selection. A lot of the covers you would expect, but still some surprises...
lithub.com/the-best-boo...
lithub.com/the-best-boo...
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
A look at some of the most beautiful and unusual examples from the first 100 years of the "modern" book cover, since the rise of publishers' bindings circa 1820: https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/the-art-of-book-covers-1820-1914
January 14, 2026 at 8:45 PM
A look at some of the most beautiful and unusual examples from the first 100 years of the "modern" book cover, since the rise of publishers' bindings circa 1820: https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/the-art-of-book-covers-1820-1914
Notable YA Covers of 2025 - this really is a post for fans of illustrated book covers:
www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2026/01...
#books #illustration #YA
www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2026/01...
#books #illustration #YA
January 14, 2026 at 2:55 PM
Notable YA Covers of 2025 - this really is a post for fans of illustrated book covers:
www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2026/01...
#books #illustration #YA
www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2026/01...
#books #illustration #YA
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
Here's my look back at some of the YA book covers that caught my eye last year. There's a ton of great art and illustration - particularly fantasy and horror - if that's your thing...
www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2026/01...
www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2026/01...
Notable YA Covers of 2025
Happy New Year! I hope you’re keeping safe and well. I just re-read the introduction to my 2024 YA post and it says pretty much everything I was going to say about young adult covers this tim…
www.casualoptimist.com
January 13, 2026 at 3:00 PM
Here's my look back at some of the YA book covers that caught my eye last year. There's a ton of great art and illustration - particularly fantasy and horror - if that's your thing...
www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2026/01...
www.casualoptimist.com/blog/2026/01...
A little later than planned, but here's my look back at some of the young adult book covers from last year...
Notable YA Covers of 2025
Happy New Year! I hope you're keeping safe and well. I just re-read the introduction to my 2024 YA post and it says pretty much everything I was going to say about young adult covers this time around too, which is a bit annoying! There are still plenty of great covers this year, but trends sometimes move slowly, and it does make me worry that these posts are getting a little stale and predictable.
www.casualoptimist.com
January 13, 2026 at 2:14 PM
A little later than planned, but here's my look back at some of the young adult book covers from last year...
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
I loved watching this quick video recap of how Penguin designer Elisha Zepeda made the book covers for 10 books that came out in 2025. Zepeda has a much longer look at his process on YT. [instagram.com]
10 book covers I designed that were released in 2025
www.instagram.com
January 12, 2026 at 4:30 PM
I loved watching this quick video recap of how Penguin designer Elisha Zepeda made the book covers for 10 books that came out in 2025. Zepeda has a much longer look at his process on YT. [instagram.com]
"Fuck AI! Film poster art forever!"
@seekandspeak.bsky.social's Notable Film Posters of 2025
www.seekandspeak.com/notable-film...
@seekandspeak.bsky.social's Notable Film Posters of 2025
www.seekandspeak.com/notable-film...
Notable Film Posters 2025 - seekandspeak.com - Made by Brandon Schaefer
Notable Film Posters 2025 Fuck AI! Film poster art forever! Below are posters made by other people throughout the past year that I think are particularly swell. Posters are arranged alphabetically by ...
www.seekandspeak.com
January 8, 2026 at 4:16 PM
"Fuck AI! Film poster art forever!"
@seekandspeak.bsky.social's Notable Film Posters of 2025
www.seekandspeak.com/notable-film...
@seekandspeak.bsky.social's Notable Film Posters of 2025
www.seekandspeak.com/notable-film...
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
Jan Tschichold, Redrawings of the Penguin logos, 1947
Scanned from Pioneers of German Graphic Design, Callisto Publishers GmbH, 2017 #jantschichold #penguinbooks
Scanned from Pioneers of German Graphic Design, Callisto Publishers GmbH, 2017 #jantschichold #penguinbooks
January 8, 2026 at 7:12 AM
Jan Tschichold, Redrawings of the Penguin logos, 1947
Scanned from Pioneers of German Graphic Design, Callisto Publishers GmbH, 2017 #jantschichold #penguinbooks
Scanned from Pioneers of German Graphic Design, Callisto Publishers GmbH, 2017 #jantschichold #penguinbooks
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
Identity — The Story of Czech Graphic Design is a seven-part series available on YouTube that “introduces viewers to the history of Czech graphic design”. [kottke.org]
The Story of Czech Graphic Design
Identity — The Story of Czech Graphic Design is a seven-part series available on YouTube.
In seven parts, the Identita series introduces viewers to the history of Czech graphic design. We will not only explore togethe
kottke.org
January 6, 2026 at 9:52 PM
Identity — The Story of Czech Graphic Design is a seven-part series available on YouTube that “introduces viewers to the history of Czech graphic design”. [kottke.org]
A little late to this but here are PRINT's picks of the best book covers for December 2025...
www.printmag.com/book-covers/...
www.printmag.com/book-covers/...
13 of the Best Book Covers for December 2025 – PRINT Magazine
Our favorite book cover designs of the month include an arresting painting by Darwinian artist Minna Leunig for Olga Tokarczuk's 'House of Day, House of Night,' and a whimsical cover by Jaya Miceli fo...
www.printmag.com
January 5, 2026 at 3:30 PM
A little late to this but here are PRINT's picks of the best book covers for December 2025...
www.printmag.com/book-covers/...
www.printmag.com/book-covers/...
Reposted by The Casual Optimist
Another late share. A big thanks to @casualoptimist.bsky.social for including two of my designs in this year’s roundup!
Notable Book Covers of 2025
Hopscotch by Julio Cortázar; illustration by Stephen Smith; art direction by Suzanne Dean (Vintage Classics / August 2025) Bestiary: The Selected Stories of Julio Cortázar by Julio Cortázar; illust…
www.casualoptimist.com
December 31, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Another late share. A big thanks to @casualoptimist.bsky.social for including two of my designs in this year’s roundup!
Mark Sinclair weighs in on AI vs the actual real work of design, and chooses his favourite book covers of 2025 for Creative Review:
www.creativereview.co.uk/the-best-boo...
www.creativereview.co.uk/the-best-boo...
The best book covers of the year 2025
Mark Sinclair picks his ten favourite book covers of the year, chosen for their “strong, characterful, challenging and exciting” design
www.creativereview.co.uk
December 15, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Mark Sinclair weighs in on AI vs the actual real work of design, and chooses his favourite book covers of 2025 for Creative Review:
www.creativereview.co.uk/the-best-boo...
www.creativereview.co.uk/the-best-boo...
For the folks waiting for Matt Dorfman’s list for the NYT, here it is (gift link):
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/14/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/14/b...
The Best Book Covers of 2025
www.nytimes.com
December 14, 2025 at 5:07 PM
For the folks waiting for Matt Dorfman’s list for the NYT, here it is (gift link):
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/14/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/14/b...
