Making a Good Impression As Professor of Psychology Alexander Todorov has demonstrated in the context of the human face, we are wired to form snap judgments, making durable inferences in a fraction of a second. Although we are cautioned not to judge a book by its cover, we routinely do so, which is why dust jackets are as much a marketing tool as a protective covering. In the words of one Goodreads discussant, "It is the very first thing you notice about a book and in 5 sec you decide whether to pick it up or move on to the next [...]