gusamo

I am considering buying a couple different books and I am not sure if I should get them in hardcover or paperback. What do you skilled readers buy?

Also would you buy a collectors edition book? For example: I have the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings (omnibus) from science fiction book club. I noticed there is a leather collectors edition version of both books and they are 25 and 50 dollars respectively.

Alyoshka

I typically like to get paperback books because they are lighter, easier to hold, bend a bit more, and I'm not worried about messing them up.

If you love one particular book then go ahead and buy the collectors edition. It'll probably be on acid-free paper and whatnot so that it won't yellow. Treat it with care.

benedict

My choices stem primarily from either economic or logistical reasons:-

when buying books to read in the near future I tend to get paperbacks as they are more transportable;

if I am getting something with the idea of reading it some time later I may well choose a larger format paperback if the price is right;

the only time I buy hardbacks is when they are massively reduced in price and/or from my book club.

I have toyed with buying some of those smart leather bound or uniform editions to "show off" on my bookshelves but, so far, I have found it easy to resist the temptation. I will admit to picking up a nice single-volume illustrated, hardback edition of LOTR from the book club - together with a spare for a friend

gusamo

Hardback books are easier to read, but so much more expensive. For example: I have three of the four Harry Potter Books in paperback form. Total they cost around 15 dollars. If I buy the same hardcover books it would cost closer to 50 or 60 dollars.

Kevin M. Dean

Yes, but paperbacks only fill half my lap. I'd rather have the hardback full lap edition even if it wasn't the author's original intention to fill my lap. The paperback half lap editions just seems like they're cropping off the top and bottom of the page and I just know that there's story information that I missing.

kevin75

while lots of times that tends to be true, often you can find hardbacks cheap if you know when and where to look. using the harry potter example that you mentioned, at the sam's here in waco, they have all of the HP books in hardback for 50% off. i bought the first one for around $11. also, if it is a major release, you can usually get it for around 50% off on the first day. i know that amazon still has tom clancy's new one for that price and the local hasting's had the remnant for half off on release day.

me, i prefer hardback just because they tend to last longer and i think they look classier.

Beaver

I prefer reading paperbacks, because of size and ease in transportability. However, I prefer to own Hardcover books because of their durability. Also with hardcover books looking nicer, my wife will let me keep those in bookcases upstairs as opposed to the basement.

Holly E. Ordway

Paperbacks win out almost every time for me. I prefer the smaller size and smaller type, as being easier to handle and nicer-looking. I like to read in bed, for instance, and a hardcover is a real nuisance. Also, very importantly in our house, you can fit many more paperbacks on a bookcase than hardcovers!

tor_greg

I go out of my way to track down hardcovers.

Pointyskull

If you're just looking to read the book, and not concerned about building a "library", I'd go with paperback. Better yet, go check out the book from the public library.

If you want something that will look nice on a shelf (if that's your thing), then hardcover is the only way to go. The deluxe leather editions are even nicer if you have the $$$, but it really depends on how important the content of the book is to you.

Xytraguptorh

I prefer the look of a hardback but usually end up getting paperbacks for economic reasons. I still "collect" paperbacks even though they don't look quite as nice or last as long as hardbacks. Still, I have plenty of old paperbacks printed in the sixties and seventies that still look fine. I tend to buy hardbacks when I can't wait for the paperback release or when I find a hardback on the discount shelf (or used from half.com).

wakwak007

To me I'm kinda wierd and say, depends on the author... For me thiers certain authors that just seem right to read in hardback or at least get when they first come out. Anne Rice for example, her vampire books just seem fitting to be in hardback. Vonnegut or someone like Michael Criten ( I can't spell) I just get in paperback. It just seems that they way they writes just seems fitting; or maybe its just they have enough books out that you get many of their books at a used bookstore. However, I'm looking to find/buy Mother's Night in hardback and signed by him.

littlefuzzy

I buy both, usually for very cheap prices (library book sales, clearance tables, used book stores, thrift stores, etc.) If I have the hardback, I usually don't buy the paperback, but if I have the paperback, I will get the hardback if I see it cheap. The omnibus sets from book clubs are kind of nice, especially if the series hasn't been in hardback before.

JawsAddict

I buy both, depending on the type of book. First of all, if I can find it in hardcover for 40-50 percent off, which I usually can somewhere on the internet, and now can generally find free shipping somewhere as well, then I'll definitely buy hardcover.

Particularly since now more books seem to be coming out next as trade paperbacks, which cost around $12-$14. It doesn't make sense for me to wait a year or more for a paperback version, only to find that it's $1 cheaper than the hardcover.

If I'm looking for a beach book or something to read during travel I'll buy paperback, but usually I head to used bookstores such as Half Price Books to pick up anything I want in paperback.

PopcornTreeCt

I was having this conversation with a friend. I think its the DVD collector in me that tells me to try and get the best version available. And I always try to get the hardcover version of a book. Unless its a textbook for school obviously. Does it matter to you?

PalmerJoss

A lot of times I either cannot afford the $20-30 for a hardcover, or I just don't want to spend that much on a hardcover. It actually is rare when I buy hardcovers; I probably only buy a handful each year.

xmiyux

Most hardbacks i check out from the library. However, if i'm really into a series (like the 2 Laurell K. Hamilton series) and i'm caught up when a new book comes out in hardcover then i will buy it. I try to not buy many fiction books anymore though since i find myself not re-reading them. So the only ones i really buy anymore are the Hamiltons, Terry Pratchett, and anything having to do with the fae folk (like War for the Oaks and some of deLint's books).

Geofferson

I only buy hardcover books when I am a true fan of the author (Stephen King, Michael Connelly, John Sandford, etc...) or collect it as a first edition.

Crocker Jarmen

I cannot stand hard backs. I read a lot in restaurants or while traveling and it sucks to have to carry around a big heavy book. Also you can't lay back on the couch or in bed with a hardcover book. It's awkward to prop up, your hands get worn out. It's a nightmare.

I did buy Dress Your Family... by Sedaris in hardcover though. Because I don't want to wait a year for sof cover and that it's not too long a book.

The King of awkward, unliftable hardcovers in my collection would have to be The Complete Far Side.

resinrats

Soft cover 99% of the time. I only get hardcover when I find it on sale for much lower than the softcover price is or if it is a book I want to get then and not wait for the softcover (Harry Potter 5).

While I like hardcover, I just don't have room for tons of them. I can fit well ever 50 softcover books on my shelves (stacked) that would only hold 10 hardcovers (if that). I also don't like when a series had a few hardcovers and the others are softcovers (recent Star Wars NJO series). If I got the hardcovers, I could never put the series together since they would be mixed. I just wait until the softcover is released.

kevin75

i try to pick up hardcovers of most things, just because i think they last longer and look better. very seldom does cost enter the situation becuase thanks to the internet and used book stores, i can usually find pretty good deals.

benedict

See also: Poll: Hardcover or paperback?

NEUMANN

I agree,hardcovers are more expensive,but nothing looks as tacky as bookshelves filled with paperbacks.Hardcover is the only way to go if you are going to have them on bookshelves

Josh H

Usually paperback. Cheaper, easier to hold, easier to carry around, don't care how they look in my book case.

GreenMonkey

Hardcover when I can, now. Paperbacks are more susceptible to wear & tear. Harcovers are easier to read (they stay open) and the bindings don't wear out. Harcovers stand up better to multiple readings.

That said, I own a lot of frickin' paperbacks. I used to buy paperbacks, but discovered over the years they are more likely to have problem with falling apart, pages falling out, etc. Some of my series have been re-read many many times I am trying to actively upgrade to HC (Raymond Feist, Feist & Wurt's Empire trilogy, Salvatore's Dark Elf, Weis & Hickman's DL novels, Brook's Shannara, Asimov stuff, Orson Scott Card's Ender books, etc).

The stuff I buy because it is something I will re-read several times, goes hardcover now. And blind buys, or less likely to be re-read stuff, goes paperback. Or if I can get a book for a quarter, from a book sale, rummage sale, etc, I'll buy anything

I try to keep an eye out and pick up hardcover lots on Ebay, in the bargain bin, etc. But I buy all my new books by my favorite authors in hardcover if I can afford it.