For seventy-five years The New Yorker has been entertaining and enlightening its loyal readers (two thirds of whom live outside the city). Its peerless covers -- created by a large stable of extraordinarily talented artists and cartoonists -- have mirrored the magazine's feisty spirit from the beginning, becoming even more pungently topical in recent years. No noteworthy subject has escaped their scrutiny, from Broadway flappers, victorious Yankees, and the eternal Eustace Tilley to dishonest pols and the latest scandal. Inexhaustibly varied in mood and style, the covers are united by their visual sophistication, their imaginative wit, and their high pleasure-giving quotient. This irresistible compendium presents not only the best of The New Yorker's covers -- selected by art director Francoise Mouly and organized into such classic themes as The Big City, Arts and Music, and The Buzz -- but also a behind-the-scenes peek at the sketches that lead up to them as well as a look at the controversy that sometimes follows in their wake. Three "Conversations" between Ms. Mouly and Lawrence Weschler illuminate the history of the magazine's cov