Above: Cover of Rabbit is Rich, designed by the author, John Updike.

There’s a certain kind of book cover that appeals to me, and I’ve found it hard to put into words, but it’s a book with some history, the kind of old paperbacks and tattered hardcovers that I always am drawn to pick up in used bookstores regardless of the subject matter. During my recent trips to Minneapolis, Chicago, and Maine, I tried to photograph or make note of as many of these book covers as I could, which I’ve now gathered in a Flickr set.

Looking through the set now, I see a lot of ITC typefaces from the 60s and 70s. There’s something very special about these typefaces—they are based on cut type but have a handlettered, calligraphic quality that makes them great for writerly books, especially fiction. There’s also the largeness, almost the awkwardness of the type, giving it a graphic quality that’s distinct from the more image-driven covers of today. And big type back then meant big ideas, like the definitive history of the CIA, for example.

I’ve posted some representative images and a little more commentary after the jump.

Ask Me For Tomorrow uses the wonderful, summery ITC Grouch, designed by Tom Carnase.

James Michener’s uses a lesser-known Tom Carnase font, the quirky-but-memorable ITC Tom’s Roman.

There’s plenty of Ed Benguiat’s work in the bunch. His ITC Tiffany, Korinna, and Benguiat fonts are all represented.

There’s lots of Herb Lubalin’s ITC Serif Gothic too.

And last but not least, some Pistilli Roman.

There’s still serveral covers up there whose fonts I couldn’t identify—if you see something unlabelled or labelled incorrectly, please let me know in that photo’s comments on Flickr. Enjoy!