Concentric shapes exude different feelings depending on how the designer uses the visual device. Sometimes, a different character or time period is contained within each layered, concentric circle, as in Middlemarch and The River of No Return, seen below. Other times, radiating lines create a sense of nervousness and unease.
Here are dozens of covers that all use some form of radiating shapes. Explore the tag “concentric” to see even more covers that use this engaging design element.
The Casual Optimist blog posted about this in 2014. View here. Spine Magazine also gave the circle some love. View here.
*Blog post cover image is by Jasper Johns
1. The River of No Return
Author: Bee Ridway
Designer: Nick Misani
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/NickM-661x1024.jpg)
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ElenaG.webp)
3. The Girl Before
Author: Rena Olsen
Designer: Jaya Miceli
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/JayaM-679x1024.jpg)
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/OliverMunday-Fiction-Clocks-686x1024.jpg)
5. The Man Who Could Move Clouds
Author: Ingrid Rojas Contreras
Designer: Emily Mahon
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/EmilyMahonManWhoCould-658x1024.jpg)
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/JennyCarrow3-min-690x1024.jpeg)
7. Everything The Light Touches
Author: Janice Pariat
Designer: Ellie Game
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/EverythingTheLightTouches.webp)
8. Half-Life Of A Secret
Author: Emily Strasser
![](https://kentucky-press-us.imgix.net/covers/9780813197197.jpg?auto=format&w=298&dpr=2&q=20)
9. The Believer
Author: Sarah Krasnostein
Designer: Jaya Miceli
11. Blue Self-Portrait
Author: Noemi Lefebvre
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/irene-martinez-costa-min-637x1024.jpeg)
13. Like Crazy
Author: Dan Matthews
Designer: Laywan Kwan
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/LayWanKwan-Nonfiction-BlackandWhite-Typography-Lines-706x1024.jpg)
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Luke-Bird-2022-639x1024.jpeg)
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/JackSmyth-Fiction-7-637x1024.jpg)
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Keith-Hayes-Fiction-Lines-669x1024.jpg)
20. The Blueprint
Author: Rae Giana Rashad
Designer: Robin Bilardello
![](https://ineedabookcover.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/TheBlueprint.jpeg)