Week 1: The Stag Ascends

Hey Bracketeer,

We Have a Winner

The first round of the Book Jacket Bracket is complete, and we have our inaugural winner: A Brief History of the Midwest by Andrew Grace (Black Lawrence Press, 5/13/25).

This golden field of mid-American melancholy has been deemed Most Aesthetically Resonant by you, the people. Or at least by the people who clicked first. Revel in the glory. Beware of the poem about the machine shed.

Thanks to the other excellent contenders. While sharing exact numbers feels tacky, let's just say that Coming Out Like a Porn Star by Jiz Lee (Feminist Press, 10/8/24) was nipping (hard) at the stag's taxidermied ankles.

Bracket Update

The Week 1 winning cover has earned a spot in the annual championship, which will run August through September. Between now and then, expect 15 more royal rumbles.

Week 2 Begins

Here's the next head-to-head-to-head-to-head beauty contest, featuring vivid backgrounds, too many tiny people, electric-glue hairdos, and a solitary stiletto that asks, "If all you have is a nail, then what is the world?"

Send Us Your Covers

If you’ve spotted a new or forthcoming book cover that deserves to be bracketized, use the contact form in the footer to let me know. Small press submissions are warmly encouraged.

Thanks for Playing

Thanks so much for giving this nerdy tourney a chance. I hope we can have fun while spotlighting some beautiful books that might otherwise fall under the radar.

More website refinements incoming.

Building wings on the way down,

Will Pass
Steward of the Semi-Serious Spectacle