book: paper back or hard back what do your like

[Trippy]

Trade paperbacks. A pocket paperback's font is too small and even with my glasses, I'm squinting if I read them for more than an hour, then a headache arises.

I like hard covers too for collecting--I usually buy them on sale, unless it's a MUST have on a release day.

 

[Jadzia]

My father has loads of old hard back books up in his loft, dating from when he was a child and from when his parents and grandparents were young too. So going back to the early 1900s. Apparently they were all big readers. Lots of classic stories. I've never been interested in them though and neither were my siblings.

I've often wondered what will become of all those books. Will I inherit them and keep them out of sight up in my loft forever more? I imagine it would be hard for me to get rid of them considering their sentimental value of being family heirlooms, even though I don't have any interest in reading them. So I probably would end up doing that, which is kind of sad really.

 

[Kestra]

^ Wow, that makes me so sad. I would love to have been around something like that growing up! If you ever find you need a home for them ...

 

[RJDiogenes]

Same here. Maybe there's some Book Society which would accept a donation so they can be kept in a Library where people can get access to them.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

I've always been a fan of hardback books, especially reference books and textbooks. When studying in the library they stay flat better, allowing for fuss-free consulting between books without having the paperback books flying all over or splitting in half.

They also look nice on the shelf, particularly collectors' editions.

However, I prefer novels in paperback, mostly for portability and weight issues (book mass, not subject matter ).

My father has loads of old hard back books up in his loft, dating from when he was a child and from when his parents and grandparents were young too. So going back to the early 1900s. Apparently they were all big readers. Lots of classic stories. I've never been interested in them though and neither were my siblings.

I've often wondered what will become of all those books. Will I inherit them and keep them out of sight up in my loft forever more? I imagine it would be hard for me to get rid of them considering their sentimental value of being family heirlooms, even though I don't have any interest in reading them. So I probably would end up doing that, which is kind of sad really.

My parents kept a lot of English language books, and a long time ago I took some delight in reading some of them (one of them was a collection of short stories by HG Wells; the others included complete works of Jane Austen and William Shakespeare, plus a copy of the Bible). I think it's worth looking through those books, keeping the ones you feel you value the most, then donating the rest to a library or second-hand book store.

 

[alasdairsim]

I really have no preference to be honest.

Paperback as it is cheaper although if it is a big book (in terms of height etc... not page numbers) then I usually prefer a hardback.

 

[Lookingglassman]

I like hardback. I cant stand how the spine on paperback books crease and thus cause the pages to fall out.

 

[C.E. Evans]

Definitely paperbacks. I just don't have the space or money for hardbacks.

 

[kissthestar]

I have my mother's cooking encyclopaedia. The recipes still work, and the earnest Seventies homemakers pictured with their creations in the Introduction section photos make me laugh.