From time to time we're so inspired by the cover artistry of the day that we feel compelled to relaunch our hunt for the worst book jacket ever. In our last survey, Alison Flood asked if anyone could top this cover for Elizabeth Gaskell's Cranford. She also drew attention to the website Good Show Sir, which continues to feature some eye-popping bad-taste from the world of science fiction.
But none of the recent Good Show Sir jackets can hold a candle to this recent design for the cover of The Shining, which was drawn to our attention by Gabe Habash in Publishers Weekly, who launched his own little detective trail into how it could possibly have come to be.
Commenter Regiano tracked down part of the answer: King was not uniquely put-upon in this Brazilian "Best of the Best" series. Check out what they did to Frederick Forsyth's The Fourth Protocol.
But lest anyone should think we're lusophobic, we take another commenter's point that the French have done their bit to restyle The Shining. The verdict of our own resident King expert, James Smythe? "Amazing. More horrifying than the book, almost …"
If anyone can find any better bad book designs, please let us know.
