OUGD603: Brief 3- Penguin Student Design Award, Chosen Brief

Children's Cover Award

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

My name is August.

I won’t describe what I look like.

Whatever you’re thinking, it’s probably worse.

Moving, uplifting and hopeful, Wonder was first published in 2012 to critical acclaim and quickly established itself as a must-read for children (and adults!)

With the nature of friendship, tenacity, fear and, most importantly, kindness at its heart Wonder explores fundamental truths about how people behave and how they should behave. 

The design for the original front cover was from designer and illustrator Tad Carpenter.

The Brief

You are invited to design a cover look for Wonder to bring this original and unforgettable book to new readers. The design should ensure that this important book remains a must-read for every child.

Your cover design needs to include all the cover copy supplied and be designed to the specified design template (B format, 198mm high x 129mm wide, spine width 19.5mm), incorporating the PUFFIN branding and all additional elements such as the barcode. Please refer to the Submissions Details page for full details of the spec and how to submit your entry.

Copyright must be cleared for all images used in your cover design and you must include a credit line on the back cover of your design for any third party images used. For example: ‘Cover photograph by Joe Bloggs’.

What the judges are looking for

We are looking for a striking cover design that is well executed, has an imaginative concept and clearly places the book for its market. The cover should encourage children to pick the book up and buy it for themselves and should also engage adults to want to buy it for them.

While all elements of the cover (front, back and spine) need to work together, remember that the front cover has to be able to work on its own, and to be eye-catching within a crowded bookshop setting as well as on screen at a reduced size for digital retailers.

The winning design will need to:

• have an imaginative concept
• be an original interpretation of the brief
• be competently executed with strong use of typography
• appeal to the broadest possible audience for the book
• show a good understanding of the marketplace
• have a point of difference from other books that it will be competing
  against in the market
• be able to sit on the shelves of a supermarket or ebook store as easily as it sits on those of more traditional bookshops