As we end the year, I think it’s about time we all have a good laugh. What better way to do that than by looking at some hilarious book covers from 2022? Picking a book cover is one of the most important aspects of releasing a book, and these authors decided to use the humorous route to gain attention.
The saying goes, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” but for these 10 books, that’s all we can do. One way to gain a reader’s interest is by making them laugh. Keep reading to see Bookstr’s hilarious book cover picks for 2022.
1. There Are Moms Way Worse Than You by Glen Boozan
When I first saw this book cover, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. If you didn’t know that mother giraffes kick their young to make them walk, now you do! Not only is the cover of this book hilarious, but inside, there are many more humorous accounts of animals trying to take care of their children, just not in the way that National Geographic depicts. Is your mom is going through a hard time? Then pick up this book, it’s almost certain to make her laugh.
2. What If? 2 by Randall Munroe
Now this book cover is straight out of a fever dream. I, for one, like to think in hypotheticals, but I’ve never thought about what if a dinosaur was attacking a plane. But I guess some people have! In the second edition of his What If? Series, Randall Munroe brings out some of our most bizarre and absurd inner questions and turns them into serious scientific answers with some humor thrown in. In case you have odd questions you’ve never dared ask, crack open this book. You might even get some answers.
3. Vacuuming in the Nude: And Other Ways to Get Attention by Peggy Rowe
The hilarity of this book cover is pretty self-explanatory. It’s the woman wearing a barrel that really gets me, though. Drawn like it’s from an old cartoon, the illustrations will probably earn you a few confused stares. Just like the title suggests, this book cover is sure to get anyone’s attention, especially when you read this novel in public. If vacuuming in the nude is only one of the ways to get people to notice you, I can only wonder what other ideas Peggy Rowe came up with.
4. Butts: A Backstory by Heather Radke
If the play on words from the title wasn’t enough to make you chuckle, I bet the book cover will. Butt jokes will never go out of style, and seeing an emoji that has similar features to our own posteriors is sure to make us laugh. We’ve been using this emoji for years to reference if somebody has cake or not, so it only makes sense that it would eventually end up as a book cover. If anything, the peach looks a little too defined.
5. Vagina Obscura: An Anatomical Voyage by Rachel E. Gross
It seems like describing body parts on book covers is one way to gain notoriety. Talk about maximalism, the cover of Vagina Obscura by Rachel E. Gross has so much going on, we don’t even know where to look first. For me, it’s the hidden images and subtle nods to vaginas that really make me giggle. From the flower petals dripping with unknown liquids to suspiciously opened fruits, this book cover is one big blatant innuendo.
6. Eating Salad Drunk by Gabe Henry
I’ve never related more to a book cover than I do with this one. As a 23-year-old trying to find my purpose in life, I have spent plenty of time in bed, drinking a bottle of wine, and wondering what the f*ck I’m doing. I just hope I’m not alone in this regard. While the cover of this book makes you chuckle, it’s the haikus that you’ll want to take a closer look at. With comedy greats of all ages and backgrounds, these insightful poems will have you feeling a little better about your current situation.
7. On This Day in History Sh!t Went Down: Number 2 by James Fell
Honestly, this book cover has so much meme potential. The cover for On This Day in History Sh!t Went Down: Number 2 will have you cracking a smile just like the Soviet soldier holding the decapitated bust of Hitler. Seriously, the more you look at this image, the funnier it gets. This isn’t the first time that James Fell has used hilarious happenings in history to grab the audience’s attention. In his second edition of Sh!t Went Down, Fell compiles important events from every day of the year. From the explosion and rubble in the background to the glee on the soldier’s face, this is a one-of-a-kind book cover.
8. Cats Being Dicks by Julie Kitzes
Coloring book covers can be just as comical as regular books, sometimes, even more amusing. That can certainly be said for Cats Being Dicks by Julie Kitzes. As a cat owner myself, this cover speaks volumes. I know many other cat owners will giggle when they see the familiar image of a cat destroying their pillows with vomit. When you live with a cat, these are the things you just have to accept, and this coloring book cover makes it known to all that cats can be assholes.
9. Muppets in Moscow by Natasha Lance Rogoff
Muppets and Moscow. Two things I would have never suspected would come together, especially on the cover of a book. When I found this stunning yet troubling novel, I couldn’t believe my eyes, or Elmo’s looking back at me. The communist emblem really is the cherry on top of this book. Elmo’s disturbing gaze gets to follow you wherever you go now! I, for one, won’t be able to rid myself of those dead eyes looking into my soul.
10. Next Door Midlife Bear: Fated Over Forty by Meg Ripley
Leave it to romance novels for having some of the most outrageous book covers in the world. If you’re ever in need of a good laugh, just go to the romance section of any bookstore. You’re bound to find book covers that will make you laugh out loud. That’s exactly what I did when I saw the cover for Next Door Midlife Bear by Meg Ripley. With a knockoff version of Jensen Ackles and a gloomy-looking bear in the background, this book cover is the pinnacle of humor. Story aside, I’d pick up this book just to display the cover on my bookshelf.
I hope you got just as many laughs out of these book covers as I did! Finding the perfect images for the front of a book can be difficult. But these authors turned all of our heads by sticking to the path of humor, and it certainly worked in their favor.
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Interested in more of Bookstr’s 2022 roundups? Click here!