Difference between a paperback and a soft cover book. This is a question that many people will ask themselves when it comes to printing their book. The other answer i saw here explained the usual physical difference, but in fact the actual distinction between massmarket paperbacks and trade paperbacks is more technical and less obvious. Trade paperbacks are distributed through traditional trade outlets, namely, book dealers and retailers. Hardcover and paperback are words associated with only books. Massmarket paperback books vs trade paperback books. Usually the paperbacks are sold in mass and are meant for short term readsthat is, meant for people boarding airplanes, trains, etc. Tpb or trade is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually presenting either a complete miniseries, a story arc from a single title, or a series of stories with an arc or common theme a trade paperback may reproduce the stories either at the same size in which they were originally presented in. The difference between hardcover and paperback is not limited only to the cover of the book.
The quality of paper differs considerably with the paperback using better quality cover paper and inner sheets than the mass market variety. Paperback books are typically printed as a softcover edition of a previously printed hardcover edition but can also be printed as an independent release no preceding hardcover. A trade paperback book is a large paperbackabout 5 inches by 7 inches or slightly larger. Here i discuss the differences between paperback and hardcover books, and which one i like the best. Hardcover books are obviously more durable, and the last thing i would want is for those beautiful covers to be damaged. Descriptions a paperback and a massmarket paperback edition of the same title. I collect books and occasionally bind books as a hobby. They usually have a thicker cover than the massmarket books. Inexpensive books bound in paper have existed since at. This article is concerned with explaining the differences between the two types of paperbacks. In contrast, paperback books are made to a lesser degree of quality. For instance, hardcover books use acidfree paper while paperback books use cheap paper, most likely, newsprint. As a selfpublisher, these are the two formats that you will be typically dealing with most often.
These books are comparatively smaller in size, lighter in weight and even the price are quite low. The more common of the trade sizes is us trade, a slightly larger format often used for paperback fiction. Pocket books produced the first massmarket, pocketsized paperback books in america in early 1939 and revolutionized the publishing industry. Here youll find current best sellers in books, new releases in books, deals in books, kindle ebooks, audible audiobooks, and so much more. While most books that fall in this category are printed in a standard size, some vary from this. The pages of trade paperbacks are less likely to yellow with age. They mostly use acidfree papers which address the problem of preserving the paper from damaging. The books homepage helps you explore earths biggest bookstore without ever leaving the comfort of your couch. Whats the difference between a trade paperback and a mass market. As all readers on a budget know, paperback is the cheapest option out there. Paperback editions of books are issued when a publisher decides to release a book in a lowcost format.
A paperback also known as softback or softcover is a type of book characterized by a thick paper or paperboard cover. In contrast, hardcover or hardback books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, plastic or leather. Inexpensive books bound in paper have existed since at least the 19th century in such forms as pamphlets, yellowbacks, dime novels and airport novels. Viceversa, if your book is short, a smaller trim size can make it physically seem more substantial. What is the difference between paperback and perfect. Difference between hardcover and paperback difference.
Ive listed the title of the book along with its ebook and paperback prices followed by the difference in price between formats in both dollars and as a percentage. What is the difference between trade paperback and mass. The tattooist of auschwitz 09042018 by heather morris. An alternative to the perfectbound paperback for short books 4 to 48 pages is the saddle stitch paperback, also called a booklet or chapbook. When you are in a bookstore, you see two editions of the same book, one of which is a hardcover edition, while the other is a soft cover or paperback edition. And for when you forget, well, theres still your phone. Dividing paperback into mass market or trade ignores the many oversize paperbacks usually nonfiction or childrens books. In general, all massproduced books printed these days are of low quality. Sometimes your book appears in its second life as a trade paperback, meaning a quality. Also, my bookclub likes choosing picks in trade paperback, again for the price factor. Trade paperbacks are the less expensive version of the hardcover edition. Then there is the odd size trade paperback which has a wide variety of sizes but are normally taller and. Even though the two books share similar binding methods a hardcover book will always outlast a paperback. In todays market, this is the goto paperback size range for many novels, memoirs, and nonfiction books.
Their pages are often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. The term trade paperback is also used generically to indicate any paperback book that is larger than a massmarket paperback. These are what you find in thrift stores as paperbacks, normally. Whereas my agent feels strongly that it would have been more successful if it had been published as trade paper to begin with. The term paperback refers to trade paperback or trade paper edition. Gerard way writer shelved 7 times as tradepaperback avg rating 3. Mass market vs trade paperback books infographic 1.
The covers are, sometimes, better in design compared to the hardcovers, but mostly not. The paperback is much easier on the eye, having no constraint on paper usage or number of ages, the spacing between the lines is more. What is the difference between a board book and a paperback. Ernest hemingways the sun also rises, for instance, is 67,707 words, and its penguin classics paperback edition is a relatively slight 5. Popular trade paperback books showing 150 of 4,733 the umbrella academy, vol. Difference between kindle and paperback kindle vs paperback. Most books are first released as hardbacks, then rereleased in a paperback form a few months later as a marketing boost. Hardcover books are made with highgrade materials like paper, ink, and other materials. A kindle can hold many ebooks in it, unlike a paperback. The mass paperback is priced much lower than the paperback. For example, a trade paperback may be about the same size in width and length as the hardcover of the same work, whereas a massmarket paperback averages several inches less in width and length.
What is the difference between a mass market paperback and. These are known as softcover books that have thick paper or paperboard for a cover, unlike hardcover books that use thicker boards to protect the pages. Recently, trade paperbacks have become an important part of this market. Publishers issue advance copies of new hardbacks in a trade paper edition. Difference between hardcover and paperback compare the. They are whats stocked in most common brickandmortar retail bookstores, the bestsellers on online booksellers, and the volumes found in public lending libraries. The lowest quality book one can buy is the mass market paperback, which is printed on lowquality paper and is not really meant to last for an extended period of time or through multiple readings. Trade paperbacks in the us definitions are the larger formats, often seen in standard sizes such as 5. Also, the spines are less likely to crack and separate.
As nouns the difference between paperback and pocketbook is that paperback is a book with flexible binding while pocketbook is us a womans purse. Sometimes a publisher will release a trade paperback version of a book not released in hardcover, or in advance of the smaller paperback version since it is priced higher than the paper back and less than the. Whats the difference between paperback and mass market. I read quite a bit about 4 books a month and having to buy hardbacks can get very expensive. However, hardcover books costs more than paperbacks. Furthermore, their pages are thicker and have a premium look. Trade books are the ones most people think of when they think of books and publishing. If it is a softcover edition of a previous hardcover edition. These are released after the hardcover edition is published. The paperback books are smaller in size and have small font size.
Mass market paperbacks, the smaller 4x7 inch 16mo if youre using the old book sizing books that are usually printed on cheap paper, usually acid paper that degrades in about 50 years. Though, they both give the same newsprint effect, but the kindle is a gadget and paperback is a normal book. Hardcover vs paperback books the pros and cons, whats the. The trade paperback is about the size of a hard cover book, except that it has a soft cover, making these your oversized paperbacks. Im pretty sure those are the us editions, so officially they are. Here is an explanation of the differences between the two main types of paperback books. Better, a lot of the time, to shove a paperback in your pocket. Book critics are sent this kind of copy prior to general publication, and advance copy.
In the us we have three basic formats for printed books. A paperback, also known as a softcover or softback, is a type of book characterized by a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. Paper vs digital reading is an exhausted debate books. Generally speaking those which are referred to as trade paperbacks are fiction, but not always. My most successful books have been my simon pulse romantic comedies, also paper, and certainly my most prominent release to date has been bradford, which isyupa. Softcover and paperback are the same, but different. Both paperback and hardcover books can look amazing and both can.
The reason of paperback being cheaper is to lower production costs and being readily made available for masses. This is a failsafe size to pick for fiction, and is the most common standard size offered by printondemand services for both selfpublished authors and publishing houses. The difference between paperback and mass paperback. Trade books, then, are books intended for this market, typically hardcover and jacketed, and fairly expensive. Hardcover books have a comparatively high quality of paper. A soft back book is any book without a rigid hardback cover. Old comics are often collected and reprinted in a trade paper edition, and graphic novels are issued in a larger sized. Im back to add that i have decided to purchase some buffered, nonacidic paper to wrap some of the books in small groups, and to place just inside the covers of at least certain paperbacks. Im seeing that some paperback covers yellow on the inside much faster than the actual pages, even at the edges of the pages. So when it comes down to it the real difference between the two books would be longevity and appearance. A trade paperback book is one of the larger paper back books that is. These follow the same binding procedure as perfectbound books, except that the pages are bound to the cover with staples rather than glue.