19 February 2014

Discussion: Paperbacks vs. Hardcovers with Ebony from The Book Bee


AmandaEmma: So which do you prefer, hardcover or paperback?

Ebony: While I think there are pros and cons about both, overall I prefer hardback. What about you?

AmandaEmma: paperbacks

Ebony: Is there any particular reason why you prefer paperbacks?

AmandaEmma: I prefer hardcovers for my absolute favorites like Austen and Rowling.. and classics... but only because they last longer. 

Well, they are cheaper and I just like that they open more easily, I feel like hardcovers are hard to read in for some reason. Also I have small hands so sometime hardcovers are just too big for me

Ebony: Yes, hardbacks for favourites are a must in my opinion! And good point about paperbacks being cheaper! 
Although I prefer hardbacks, I own few in comparison to paperbacks. I don't usually consider my hands small, though I have encountered some books in both hardback and paperback format that are too big to be comfortable in my hands.

AmandaEmma: Same here, but I actually have a bunch of hardcovers for no particular reason.. Another great point is broken spines - I cannot deal with broken spines -.-'

Some paperbacks break their spine to easily, which is why hardcovers are a better choice for favorites. 

But also, when people loan books, I feel like they are more careful with hardcovers opposed to paperbacks. My hardcovers get back to me in perfect condition while paperbacks have broken spines, dog ears and tearing 

Ebony: Broken spines are the worst! I actually have cried over them before! That's one con I find about paperbacks - I'm always so careful when reading them so I don't break the spine or bend a corner, and sometimes I just get so uncomfortable I stop reading, which annoys me.

Yes! I don't understand that at all! Paperbacks are so much more fragile as opposed to hardbacks! I'm so, so careful with who I lend my books too. With my hardback copies, not so much as I know they're harder to ruin...except for their dust jacket, though I usually take the dust jacket off a book if I'm loaning it to someone.

AmandaEmma: Yes! But that is what floppy paperbacks are made for, I seriously LOVE those. So bendable and the spine is intact once you are done reading it for the 5th time ^^ 

Same here, people can loan 1 book and then we can see if they can loan more, because my books are my babies. 

Ebony: Floppy paperbacks are the best kind of paperbacks! Apart from the fear of bending a corner, they're the perfect compromise between hardback and paperback.

AmandaEmma: yes! I love how we almost agree on everything! So cons about hardcovers?

Ebony: Hmm, now that I've said I prefer hardbacks, lets see how many cons I can actually think of!
1. They are longer lasting. Generally.
2. Harder to damage, which is sort of a repeat of the first con
3. No broken spines! (Except for extreme circumstances.)
4. It's like they have *two* covers.
5. In many cases the hardback cover is nicer than the paperback cover. 
I think that's all... 

Gosh. I can't read. I read cons and wrote cons but actually wrote about pros! 
Okay, now for some cons:
1. They are HEAVY. Not the best for travelling with

AmandaEmma: I was just thinking about that!

Ebony: 2. Although you can read your hardback copy without worrying about ruining it, you still have to worry about ruining the goddamn dust jacket

AmandaEmma: the dust jackets are easily damaged! it is annoying

Ebony: Which is sad and annoying and makes me upset! Oooh, one more con - they are more expensive! What about some pros about paperbacks??

AmandaEmma: 1. They are cheaper, 2. Easier to travel with, 3. Easier to read in

Ebony: I agree with all of those!

AmandaEmma: cons: 1. Broken spines, 2. Easy to ruin, 3. varying sizes

Ebony: Oooh, yes! Varying sizes, I forgot about that! That really annoys me!
Another thing I don't like about paperbacks is that they seem to release multiple covers for paperback books whereas they only seem to release the one on hardback. I really don't like my covers not matching, and sometimes it's really hard to find the matching covers!!

AmandaEmma: which is what box sets are for.. but hardcovers also vary a bit

Ebony: Yes, that's true, though I find their variation is not as obvious as with paperbacks.



 So if we sum up this discussion it would look something like this:



What do you prefer? 

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