A Clockwork Orange, an Anthony Burgess’s novel, was first published in 1962. Since then, the number of his publications has continued to grow. One of the reasons of this success is the release in 1971 of its film adaptation by the renowned Stanley Kubrick. The covers of these various editions are always more surprising and remarkable one than the other. The most recent is a cover by Jonathan Barnbrook, for a 2014 publication from Penguin Book.

Jonathan Barnbrook’s cover design is very simple: the author’s name, the publisher’s logo, the indication that it is a restored edition, the words “A Clockwork” and a very large orange circle, all on a completely white background. Said like that, you don’t expect anything special, I understand. For some people, the term design may seem inappropriate considering how minimal the cover is. The title A Clockwork Orange doesn’t even appear entirely, and this is a real risk taken by Penguin, venturing to publish one of the most famous covers of all time without the full title. Even if some people have mixed feelings, this cover is probably the most emblematic of all, at least the most minimal, abstract and elegant. It is completely independent of the image that Kubrick has created for the novel, and allows the reader’s imagination to take over. The cover can refer to the heady “milk-plus” drinks regularly enjoyed in the novel’s Korova Milk Bar. It could also be a piece of 60s abstract art in one of the interiors of the houses that Alex breaks into; or the sun, energy and life which Alex represents; or the all-seeing eye of the government, the eye of Alex, unblinking, forced to watch atrocities when being treated. In the end, everyone is free to choose the way they want to see it. The title A Clockwork Orange means something strange and unusual and the cover seems to express this feeling very well.

The clarity of that cover comes from the fact that the novel is a classic. It doesn’t need much more. It needs to be presented as: A Clockwork Orange and that is enough.

“There is this thing about design. Something you should just leave stuff alone”, Jonathan Barnbrook

A Clockwork Orange just needed that

2164 characters — 01/16/2022

Anthony Burgess, A Clockwork Orange, Restored Edition, Penguin, cover by Jonathan Barnbrook, 2014