Leo and Diane Dillon

This edition published in 1995 (via)

This edition published in 2001 (via)

These are two of the most impressionable book covers from my youth. The artwork of husband and wife team Leo and Diane Dillon is really fantastic. I love how certain aspects of these designs echo Japanese paintings illuminated like ancient European manuscripts. Through Leo and Diane's powers of illustration, you are preemptively thrilled by Lirael and Sabriel's strange and ambiguous danger. I was so eager to explore these worlds as a little girl. Maybe someday I'll pick these books up again. The clothing design here is pretty awesome! I can imagine the textures and weights of these fantastic clothes. In the book, Lirael's red tunic is a sign of her status as a librarian.