warren@pluto.UUCP (Warren Burstein) (11/12/85)
What do you folks out there do with dust jackets? They fall off when I open the books, and if I take out the book and leave them on the bookshelf they get crushed. So they wind up horizontally on top of all the books still on the shelf and it gets to be a mess after a while.
mlj@mtfmc.UUCP (M.JULIAR) (11/15/85)
Command: followup Newsgroups: net.books To: mtuxo!houxm!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!tektronix!hplabs!pesnta!phri!pluto!warren Subject: Re: dust jackets Distribution: References: <180@pluto.UUCP> I never throw out dust jackets. They are extremely valuable if the book is ever determined to have any sentimental, monetary, or literary worth. The dust jacket is an integral part of the book: The art work, the blurbs (sometimes from other authors), the price, the fact that it was issued by a book club, and sometimes other publishing information, are often on it and no place else in the book. When reading a book, I usually put the dj aside carefully and, when finished with the book, slip it back on and reshelf the thing. If I read a book and keep the dust jacket on it, I read the book very carefully. I collect some books and I well know the value of a dust jacket. For instance, a first edition of Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" in fine condition is worth around several hundred dollars. The same book with a fine dj is worth several thousand. This is an extreme case, but an illuminating example of what dj's can mean. Dj's began to become common only around the turn of the century. People then generally considered dj's as extraneous, unnecessary material issued by the publisher to protect the book, and, eventually, to catch the buyer's eye and to increase sales. Collector's, dealers, libraries, and other institutions now realize the artistic, historical, and monetary value of dj's. So, try to save your dust jackets if you think your book will ever have any kind (not necessarily monetary) of value to you. Treat them as you would the books themselves. Keep the two together. And try to keep you younger kids away from them. They love to tear the dj's off the books.
cipher@mmm.UUCP (Andre Guirard) (11/18/85)
In article <180@pluto.UUCP> warren@pluto.UUCP (Warren Burstein) writes: >What do you folks out there do with dust jackets? Dust jackets were not born into this world for nothing. They have a purpose in life... two purposes in fact. The number one or main purpose is, as their name implies, to protect the cover of the book from dust and other substances. The other is to help sell the book. Since I don't really care much if my books get dusty, and since I have already bought the book, I usually throw the dust jackets away. Sometimes, though, the title of the book is not writ on the binding, or is writ very small or very faint, and then I keep the dust jacket on it so that I can tell at a glance what the title of the book is. I don't put on a plastic cover or tape it in place the way libraries do... I just put it aside while I'm using the book and put it back before it goes back on the shelf. -- /''`\ Andre Guirard ([]-[]) De Tuss from de Tonn \ o / ihnp4!mmm!cipher `-'
chai@utflis.UUCP (Henry Chai) (11/19/85)
In article <180@pluto.UUCP> warren@pluto.UUCP (Warren Burstein) writes: >What do you folks out there do with dust jackets? [....] I cover books that I like/value/use a lot in a type of clear, sturdy plastic wrap. I first used this kind of wrap while I was in Hong Kong. Here in Canada, I can find them only in Chinatown -- maybe they imported the stuff. Other types of plastic wraps I've seen are either not as sturdy or they're ridiculously priced. The plastic protects paperbacks as well as dust jackets on hard covers beautifully. (and it keeps the dust jackets ON!) -- Henry Chai, just a humble student at the Faculty of Library and Information Science, U of Toronto {watmath,ihnp4,allegra}!utzoo!utflis!chai
hopp@nbs-amrf.UUCP (Ted Hopp) (11/23/85)
I think I have discovered a new use for dustjackets. I usually keep the
dustjackets on my books; it protects them not only from dust, but from
when I put the book down in a puddle of coffee, or something like that.
Well, one day I went to my bookshelf at work to get down a book that I
hadn't used in a while, and what do I find? The dust jacket neatly
filling up the slot in my bookshelf, but no book! Ripped off! The
perfect crime! If I hadn't gone to use the book, the theft might have
gone unnoticed until I retired.
So for all you good people wondering what to do with dust jackets: use
them to hide the evidence when you steal someone else's book.
--
"Rip 'em off before they rip you off."
--
Ted Hopp {seismo,umcp-cs}!nbs-amrf!hopp