If you want to find a shitty binding, get a print-on-demand book. God, some of those are terrible, but that is no surprise given how they are produced.
Tell me about it--bindings and print quality. Unfortunately, no one will pay for the quality re-issue of many worthwhile out-of-print books, due to the existence of these "meh, good enough" copies.
My only concern is that the book holds up well when I read it.
That is one of my main concerns as well, though mine have to hold up through multiple readings by a variety of users, where, on the average, hardcovers don't last as well. As you say, there ARE well-bound hardcovers, but I'm constantly frustrated at the shoddy construction (I almost wrote "craftsmanship," but stopped myself in time) of hardcover popular books in particular, which, of course, is my main trade, if I want to keep my patrons happy.
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My entirely cynical instinct is that certain publishers want their hardcovers to fall apart by the time a paperback edition is released, on the idea that the fans would buy a replacement copy that would last longer, and the others wouldn't have bought it anyway...
My entirely cynical instinct is that certain publishers want their hardcovers to fall apart by the time a paperback edition is released, on the idea that the fans would buy a replacement copy that would last longer, and the others wouldn't have bought it anyway...
I agree with you here, more or less, although I suspect it may be more to prevent the book from being sold in the used book trade. When I'm looking for a book, I always first look for a used copy before buying a new one. Paperbacks don't last long. Look at the paperbacks in public libraries. Geez! They're often quite worn out, but then there is nothing that warms the cockles of my heart more than seeing a well-loved (meaning read) book. Fortunately, most of the books I guy are produced by publishers that put better bindings on their books.
-- It's really quite a simple choice: Life, Death, or Los Angeles.
Not if you loan them out, because people seldom return them. But I have paperbacks that are probably older than you are that are in fine shape, only two or three are falling apart out of many dozen.
Paperbacks tend to be printed on rotten acid paper that "burns" over time. The bindings may be good but the paper is not. I have some of those. And BTW I'm not exactly young anymore.
-- It's really quite a simple choice: Life, Death, or Los Angeles.
Yes, I've read about that a lot and they talked about it back when I was in college. But like I said, I have paperbacks over forty years old that look like the paper is newsprint, but they're all readable. Maybe I just got lucky.
I buy duplicates of my favourite loaners--I enjoy getting people to read books I love (or any book, for that matter). Probably why I am a satisfied book-pusher, errr, librarian...
(Score: 2) by darnkitten on Monday September 19 2016, @02:18AM
Tell me about it--bindings and print quality. Unfortunately, no one will pay for the quality re-issue of many worthwhile out-of-print books, due to the existence of these "meh, good enough" copies.
That is one of my main concerns as well, though mine have to hold up through multiple readings by a variety of users, where, on the average, hardcovers don't last as well. As you say, there ARE well-bound hardcovers, but I'm constantly frustrated at the shoddy construction (I almost wrote "craftsmanship," but stopped myself in time) of hardcover popular books in particular, which, of course, is my main trade, if I want to keep my patrons happy.
-
My entirely cynical instinct is that certain publishers want their hardcovers to fall apart by the time a paperback edition is released, on the idea that the fans would buy a replacement copy that would last longer, and the others wouldn't have bought it anyway...
(Score: 2) by mendax on Monday September 19 2016, @07:31AM
I agree with you here, more or less, although I suspect it may be more to prevent the book from being sold in the used book trade. When I'm looking for a book, I always first look for a used copy before buying a new one. Paperbacks don't last long. Look at the paperbacks in public libraries. Geez! They're often quite worn out, but then there is nothing that warms the cockles of my heart more than seeing a well-loved (meaning read) book. Fortunately, most of the books I guy are produced by publishers that put better bindings on their books.
It's really quite a simple choice: Life, Death, or Los Angeles.
(Score: 2) by mcgrew on Tuesday September 27 2016, @04:05PM
Paperbacks don't last long.
Not if you loan them out, because people seldom return them. But I have paperbacks that are probably older than you are that are in fine shape, only two or three are falling apart out of many dozen.
mcgrewbooks.com mcgrew.info nooze.org
(Score: 2) by mendax on Tuesday September 27 2016, @06:36PM
Paperbacks tend to be printed on rotten acid paper that "burns" over time. The bindings may be good but the paper is not. I have some of those. And BTW I'm not exactly young anymore.
It's really quite a simple choice: Life, Death, or Los Angeles.
(Score: 2) by mcgrew on Wednesday September 28 2016, @03:45PM
Yes, I've read about that a lot and they talked about it back when I was in college. But like I said, I have paperbacks over forty years old that look like the paper is newsprint, but they're all readable. Maybe I just got lucky.
mcgrewbooks.com mcgrew.info nooze.org
(Score: 2) by darnkitten on Thursday October 06 2016, @03:27AM
I buy duplicates of my favourite loaners--I enjoy getting people to read books I love (or any book, for that matter). Probably why I am a satisfied book-pusher, errr, librarian...