I publish research, and that is blind reviewed prior to publication. Again so that author, institution and previous ouvre are ignored and the piece speaks for itself (as research worthy or not). I suppose the difference is that some of the readership have already judged that they want to read X journal and all it contains so they come trusting the finished piece as endorsed by journal X. Others will be doing an engine search and discover it. Both types of reader (if they’re being intellectually honest) should still weigh it up as good/bad research before accepting it. That’s critical reading.

As a book author you might want them to just judge the words but you’ve got to persuade them to pick up the book (versus the grillions of others) in the first place. The cover, endorsements etc is the culture that the book fits into in the same way maybe that the bible is culturally interpreted. Maybe as an author you have to trust the readership: there will of course be some (probably myself) who stick to the safe pastures of trusted authors, publishers, endorsers, subject areas, but hopefully many of us who will engage with something not normally to our taste because we want to challenge ourselves, stretch our minds. It might be the cover that stimulates that engagement but like the scientists we’ve still got to read critically not just lap it up unthinkingly.

Do you apply such thinking to this blog? It does after all have a skin too.

In addition, even if your book was nameless and coverless it might still be placed on an eyelevel shelf in the store or recommended by Amazon, or in a sale. Like you say, we never read because of the text alone.
Irrelevant prattling over!

I do like the mock-up, looking forward to the content.