Why I can’t resist a hardback book

And why it’s all Lizzie’s fault

Do you remember the time, a couple of decades ago, when we thought books had had it and we were all going to be reading ebooks? Probably about the same time as we convinced ourselves that planes would fall out of the sky as we ushered in the new millennium.

Granted, the picture isn’t particularly rosy. Publishers don’t make money out of a lot of the books they publish according to this rather depressing post from Elle Griffin of The Elysian but there seem to be more bookshops than ever and it’s one of them in particular I blame for my newfound habit of accumulating hardbacks.

I made the fatal mistake of signing up to the weekly newsletter from Heron Books, an entrancing pocket sized bookshop in the Clifton neighbourhood of Bristol. The proprietor Lizzie (above) writes so enticingly about the books that arrive on her shelves that I invariably pop in, unable to resist adding to my teetering pile of unread books for which the Japanese have the wonderful word tsundoku, 

“Look at the end papers” coos Lizzie, opening up a copy of The Garden Against Time and I’m lost.

It is, of course, partly about instant gratification. Being able to get your hands on a new release straightaway rather than wait for the paperback to come out but it’s more than that.

There’s an tactile quality to a hardback you simply don’t get from a paperback.  Would I have bought Salman Rushdie’s Knife if the cover had not been quite so sensuously satiny or sailed through Andrew O’Hagan’s Caledonian Road so effortlessly if the 656 heavy ivory-coloured pages hadn’t been so pleasurable to turn? A hardback sits as comfortably as a cat on your lap; warm, weighty, strokable.

The copy of Cold Kitchen I mentioned in last week’s Friday 5 is also a joy with its charming illustration of author Caroline Eden’s much loved dog, Darwin.

There is even an explanation of the type used, Fournier, at the back of the book.

“Fournier is derived from the romain du roi which was created towards the end of the seventeenth century from designs made by a committee of the Académie of Sciences for the exclusive use of the Imprimerie Royale. It is a light, clear face whose distinctive features are capital letters that are quite tall and bold in relation to the lower case letters and decorative italics.” 

Who doesn’t want capital letters like that?

Oh and a further argument which might sway you: hardback fiction and unillustrated non-fiction is generally printed in the UK compared to cookery and many other illustrated books which are typically printed in China. (OK, so are paperbacks but don’t spoil my fun ..)

Of course there are downsides. Hardbacks are harder to fit into your handbag or hand luggage though a paperback can be pretty chunky too. (I’m only driven to a Kindle out of desperation, How about you?)

And even if you can [squeeze it in] you might want to remove the dust jacket so it doesn’t get torn or crumpled which rather detracts from the joy although Cold Kitchen, even with the cover removed, is a particularly pleasing green. 

Then there’s the cost, although given the time you spend with a book and the pleasure you get out of it it’s hard to quibble at £20 which seems to be the going rate for most novels.

A main course in a decent restaurant these days costs more than that and takes a fraction of the time to consume. A ticket to the theatre? £40-50 at the very least. More at the weekend.

Want to go and see Springsteen? You could buy five or six hardbacks for the price though obviously you might not want to . . .

The point I’m making is that the cost of hardbacks is not excessive in comparison with some of the other things on which we spend our money.

So if you crave the latest release from an author you love, don’t hesitate. Just buy it in hardback. If you always buy paperbacks give a hardback a try and see how it enhances your reading experience.

Pass the book on if you feel you need to justify the outlay though accept you might well never see it again as I warned in this recent post.

Particularly if the cover is smooth and shiny …

Do you buy hardbacks? Could you be tempted?

I’ve kept this post free to encourage as many of you as possible to go out and buy more books but if you feel moved to subscribe to my Substack for more wine, food and book-related tips you can do so for less than the cost of a paperback.

And if you like this post give it a ❤️ if you would …

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