Rebuilding Rob

Traffic has come back down to reality here on Your Favorite Blog over the last few days. It more than the traffic increase, I’ve been feeling more is inspired to write ever since I switched to some writing prompts from this particular website. With that in mind, I grabbed an interesting prompt from earlier this month.

Do you prefer paperback or hardback books?

The hoity-toity, hipster English teacher in me wants to say that I prefer hardback books. Most novels are released original form as hardbacks. Something about the sturdiness of the book seems to make it more conducive for archival purposes. Simply stated, hardback are supposed to last longer than paperback.

Paperbacks, on the other hand are mass-produced. They are less expensive. Many novels and best-sellers are originally printed as hardback, and then later released as mass market paperback. Furthermore, your “lower brow“ books are often printed as paperbacks, and only as paperbacks.

Having said all of this, I prefer paperbacks over hardback. When I read a book, I’d like to highlight important lines, famous quotes or things that really affect me. I’ll also annotate the books in the margins. I have no qualms about getting pages faded or getting the spine completely bent in 18 places on a paperback book. To me the abuse that a paperback takes at the hands of an active readers just how much they like the book.

A great example of this is my first copy of The Autobiography of Malcolm X. It very well be my favorite novel of all time. I have marked that book up. There’s highlighting on virtually every page. Other pages have annotations that I made in the margins as well. There are small corners of the covers missing, and it is worn. Simply stated, I have beat the holy hell out of my copy of The Autobiography… and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Thanks for stopping by Rebuilding Rob. Be sure to like, 👍 comment and subscribe to my blog below. It’s greatly appreciated! Also, feel free to follow me on social media as well! Check out my most recent posts as well as some earlier, related posts:

• Acknowledge Me: The Simple Art of Being Seen
• Rob’s Retro Movie Review: This is Spinal Tap (1984) – The Movie That Scaled to Eleven
• A Death in the Family (And My Disposable Income): My Life in Comics
• The Supporting Cast: Navigating the Eras of Male Friendship
• Life is What Happens: A Look Back at My Non-Existent 2025 Vision

The article “hardbacks or paperbacks?” First appeared on Rebuilding Rob