Books: Paperback? Hardcover? Leather-bound?

[Johnny L.A.]

How do you like your books?

I have a small collection of Easton Press books; leather-bound, gilt-edged, acid-free paper. They look nice on a shelf (or shelves). They're also enjoyable to read. There's just something enjoyable about reading a 'fine book' that adds to the experience.

But I could buy a dozen or even scores of the same books if I buy paperbacks at a used-book store. The words are the same. The story is just as enjoyable. Most of my books are softcover.

Hardcovers are in between. Not as handy or as cheap as paperbacks, and not as tacitly pleasing as leather-bound. I prefer them for non-fiction books, but not for stories.

[Nzinga, Seated]

A lot of my reading is done in the tub, so paperbacks work for me.

I do think that leather bound fancy books are cool though.

[MerryGreenleaf]

It's nice to see someone who just loves books for themselves!
I read all the time and would never purchase a Kindle or any other electronic device.
I don't even listen to books on audio. I want to HOLD the book I'm reading, and I want to let my imagination create the sound of a character's voice, not have it read to me in a pair of headphones.

I've got a couple of old books and I love to just hold them sometimes, LoL. I like the way the texture of the cover feels!

Going to a bookstore, even one of the chains is nearly a religous experience for me.

I feel sorry for this next, this "text generation" coming along who are going to lose the art of turning a page to get to the next part of the story. They're already letting technology create what their own imaginations should be doing.

Read on! mgL

[Erdosain]

I prefer trade paperbacks. Hardbacks have the annoying dust jacket, and mass market paperbacks are too small and the paper is gray and cheap.

I really don't have a preference for deckle edge/smooth edge. It's marginally easier to find your page with the smooth edge.

[Johnny L.A.]

I don't much care for deckie edges. As you say, it's easier to turn pages if the pages are trimmed.

[Malleus, Incus, Stapes!]

Any format, as long as the pages are clean.

Paperbacks are good for toting around, hardcovers with dustjackets are good for keeping your place.

The only leather-bound books I've come across are religious in nature- bibles and prayerbooks. Not something you'd take to read on the plane.

[Snowboarder Bo]

I don't buy paperbacks unless it's an older book that that has never been published in hardback. I'll buy leather if the price is nice.

[pancakes3]

paperback, mainly because you can hold it with one hand.

[Johnny L.A.]

paperback, mainly because you can hold it with one hand.

What kind of books are you reading, that you need a free hand? :p

[Chronos]

I have a few books in fancy bindings, if it's something really special like The Hobbit (http://www.amazon.com/Hobbit-Illustrated-Collector-There-Again/dp/B002T5O7C6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1267932335&sr=1-2) (though looking at that link, it's just "leatherette", not real leather). But for most books, I buy the cheapest edition, because that means that I can afford to buy many times more books.

Oh, and of course the Necronomicon has to be bound in genuine human skin, accept no substitutes. But that's a special case.

[Erdosain]

I've never seen anything in leather that I'd actually want to read; it's either religious (as Malleus said) or a way out of date version of a classic. I'd rather read a more modern version, something that has a newer translation or better textual integrity.

[Taomist]

I prefer paperbacks, the smaller kind; I read a lot, and having to wrestle with larger books gets really annoying.

[Monstre]

The only leather-bound books I've come across are religious in nature- bibles and prayerbooks. Not something you'd take to read on the plane.
Well, unless you had a really bad pilot...

---

Mostly paperbacks for me, at least for fiction -- easier to carry around with me anywhere.

[Johnny L.A.]

I have a few books in fancy bindings, if it's something really special like The Hobbit (http://www.amazon.com/Hobbit-Illustrated-Collector-There-Again/dp/B002T5O7C6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1267932335&sr=1-2) (though looking at that link, it's just "leatherette", not real leather).

I have The Easton Press ones (http://www.eastonpressbooks.com/images/products/0193_z.jpg).

The book I'm currently reading, Tales Of The South Pacific, is a Franklin Library edition. From a distance it resembles the Easton Press leather-bound books; but it's not bound in leather. Not all of my 'nice' books are EP. Some, like Michener's book, have the raised spines and 'gold' markings; but have 'hardcover' covers. Others have fake leather. Book stores like Barnes & Noble have these, which are usually pretty cheap; but they look right at home with the EP books.

Incidentally, I really like the Easton Press products. I like the leather, and I like the 22 kt. gold, and I like the sewn-in bookmarks. However I have an aversion to having all of the 'nice' books by the same publisher. I like to mix them up.

[Chronos]

Come to think of it, is there a way to easily and non-destructively tell the difference between real leather and the fake stuff? My copy of the complete works of Shakespeare, for instance, looks leathery, but I got it from a garage sale, so I have no clue of its pedigree.


And why is it that whenever anyone puts out a fancy edition of The Hobbit, it's always green? You'd think you'd be able to find a red one.

[friedo]

I love Easton Press books, too, but man are they expensive. I've collected a couple dozen over the years, mostly from eBay. For the rest, I'm about evenly split between paperbacks and hardcovers. I always throw dustjackets out for my hardcovers. I hate dustjackets.

Barnes & Noble also has a small line of nice looking leatherbound books. I got myself a leatherbound anthology of Edgar Allen Poe from B&N last Christmas.

[Johnny L.A.]

Barnes & Noble also has a small line of nice looking leatherbound books. I got myself a leatherbound anthology of Edgar Allen Poe from B&N last Christmas.

I have that one, thought I don't think it's leather. Also a green leather-like edition from Octopus Books I got in the early-'80s. I'm pretty sure my Shakespeare came from B&N as well, plus some others.

I have four three-foot shelves with my 'fine books' on them. Paperbacks, softcovers, and hardcovers take up considerably more space. (Actually, most of them are in boxes, awaiting a room remodel and more shelves.)

[Exapno Mapcase]

What kind of books are you reading, that you need a free hand? :p

Cute. But seriously, don't you always hold books with one hand so you can turn pages with the other?

That's why the best books for me are ones that fit easily into one hand and don't try to shut themselves every moment, forcing me to apply continue pressure. A moderately-sized hardback is best for that purpose.

Other than that, books are for content. I read every possible size and style. I even have a Kindle 2. I'd much rather read from a real book but not having to deal with 600+ page books while traveling or in a hospital bed has significant advantages. Though I wish the large-sized Kindle had been cheaper, because that sure looks like a better platform, closer to book size.

[Johnny L.A.]

Cute.
The is The Straight Dope. Somebody was going to say it!
But seriously, don't you always hold books with one hand so you can turn pages with the other?
I tend to read while reclining on the couch. In such a position, even a heavy book can be held comfortably in one hand.

Trade paperbacks (in addition to being cheaply available at the used-book store) are better for taking along places, as they can often be slipped into a back- or jacket pocket.

[AuntiePam]

Any format, as long as the pages are clean.


Yes. And not too wrinkled, especially if the wrinkle is from dampness.

Lately I've been paying more attention to the font and the amount of white space on a page. I love Amazon's "Look Inside" feature.

Any format is fine, but I like series books to match.

[Morgyn]

And why is it that whenever anyone puts out a fancy edition of The Hobbit, it's always green? You'd think you'd be able to find a red one.I don't know about red, but I have an anniversary edition in gold.

[AppallingGael]

I like to read old paperbacks, where the pages fall out as you turn them. This is partly because of the consequent feeling of urgency to finish, and partly due to the pleasant feeling of consuming the book that it brings.

[DarkLord]

I use to buy only Hardcover books! They look beautiful and are more easy to read on a table and can "live" more years than papperback books! long time ago i was thinking on buying leather bond books from Easton Press! I still sometimes wonder if it would be right to buy one of their books?

the problem is that if i buy a leather bound book, i feel i am not doing well for the planet, you see leather is not good for the environment:

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-clothing/leather-industry.aspx

and i feel is not right for the animals also!

Please any comments to my feelings? it would be great to talk about it!

[link removed]

Regards

[Johnny L.A.]

and i feel is not right for the animals also!

So... you just throw the skin away? :p

[Voyager]

I like all types. I have a nice leatherbound set of Jules Verne for display, and lots of hardcovers. But paperbacks have the advantage of being easy to stick in ones pocket when going out, being lighter when traveling, and taking up less space, which is fairly important when you have 2600 books (and an additional 3,000 sf mags.)

Paperbacks look just as good on the shelf, especially when you arrange them by publisher and publication date, as someone I know did.

[Der Trihs]

I typically prefer paperbacks. Smaller, easier to handle, and easier to store. I just wish modern paperbacks weren't made so shoddily; I have plenty of old paperbacks I inherited from my mother that are in better condition than modern ones only a few years old.

[Maggie the Ocelot]

I like mass-market paperbacks.

1) Cheaper - more books for your buck
2) More portable - I do a lot of my reading on public transit, while walking, riding in cars, etc.
3) Takes up less shelf space - this is crucial. I don't have enough shelf space for the books I have, if I'm gonna buy another one I'd prefer it be smaller so I don't have to worry about making room for it.

[twickster]

You're still new here, DarkLord, so you're probably getting used to how we do things here. If you'd like to discuss whether the use of leather, for books or whatever, is moral or not, please start a thread in Great Debates. Also, please don't use links to blogs or other discussions elsewhere: we are not here to feed traffic to those sources.

Thanks,

twickster, Cafe Society moderator

[Exapno Mapcase]

I use to buy only Hardcover books! They look beautiful and are more easy to read on a table and can "live" more years than papperback books! long time ago i was thinking on buying leather bond books from Easton Press! I still sometimes wonder if it would be right to buy one of their books?

the problem is that if i buy a leather bound book, i feel i am not doing well for the planet, you see leather is not good for the environment:

http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-clothing/leather-industry.aspx

and i feel is not right for the animals also!

Please any comments to my feelings? it would be great to talk about it!

[link removed]

Regards

How many trees are you killing for the book paper? Aren't trees living things? When's the last time a cow has said anything smarter than a tree? Trees breathe in carbon dioxide and give off oxygen so they're far more critical to our existence than cows.

You're mooing up the wrong tree, my friend. If you really wanted to be friends with the environment you'd have a leather-covered e-reader.

[Skald the Rhymer]

Books I buy I intend to keep. Thus it's leatherbound if possible an dnot too expensive; heardback otherwise (and more frequently), inspecting the binding beforehand.

If I don't intend to keep the book indefinitely, I usually check it out from the library. The exception would be hte occasional airport bookshop purchase, but those are rare as I try to sleep one board planes.

E-readers are not my friend.

[Khadaji]

Depends on what format it is in when I want it, and how desperately I want it. If it is an author I really like and the newest book came out in hardback, I but it. But usually I just get the paperback version