I have a confession.

Are you ready?

OK. One moment. Let me take a deep breath …

Here goes: I judge a book by its cover.

I know, I know. That “don’t judge a book by its cover” adage is a time-honored favorite. We’re supposed to judge a book by its contents, not by its design.

But I’m going to buck the trend and say it’s OK to judge a book by its cover.

Part of my saying so is the designer in me speaking. Each day in the newsroom, I handle newspaper and magazine design. I believe design is important. How a newspaper article, magazine story or novel is packaged and laid out matters.

As a consumer, when I go book shopping, undoubtedly there are dozens — in fact, probably hundreds — of books worthy of my reading. However, when I go on a book-buying excursion, I can neither…