Several blogs have published their lists of the best book cover designs of 2009. Here is a round-up of the standouts: This year, The Book Design Review asked employees of three independent book stores to contribute to their Favorite Covers list. The three part post showcases the selections of staff from WORD in Brooklyn, NY, RiverRun Bookstore in Portsmouth, NH, and The Book Table in Oak Park, IL. The design styles, like the books’ subject matter, vary greatly. But there are some stellar examples of good design, particularly The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa and Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. Readers can vote for their own favorite design in the on-line polls. The Book Cover Archive takes the list one step further with their Top Ten of Covers of the ’00s post. Two covers were chosen to represent each year in the decade, among them, memorable designs for A Shortcut Through Time by George Johnson and The Murder by John Steinbeck.

In the vein of book covers as art, Paris Las Vegas is currently running an art exhibit dedicated to Harlequin Romance covers. The Heart of a Woman: Harlequin Cover Art 1949-2009 chronicles the depiction of literary desire through the last 60 years. The corny paintings capturing hospital romances are a sharp contrast to the stylized photography used on more recent books. Also notable is the shift in focus to the men on the covers. For a humorous look at romance covers gone bad, check out Cover Cafe’s Worst Covers list. Some of the artwork is truly bizarre, but the user reviews offer a little comic relief.