When you really love a book, or have just scored a new one that you’re dying to read, it can be exciting to pick up a smooth, shiny hardcover copy that creaks a little bit when you open it. But those hardcover books can be heavy, and new ones aren’t cheap, either. Sometimes, you’d just rather have a portable paperback—but if it’s a new book you’re after, you might have to wait a full year or so to get it in paperback form. Why are books released as hardcovers first?
Not so long ago, hardcover books were the only type of books. Before the appearance of mass production, print runs were limited, and books were hard-bound and expensive. Around the 1930s, that changed with the production of mass-produced paperback books, which consisted with a huge surge in reading as a leisure activity around World War II. Paperback books were more affordable and cheaper to produce, which still holds true today.
Despite the seeming advantages of paperbacks, there are several reasons why the hardcover has persisted. Because of its history, it conveys a bit more legitimacy (正统性) in the book world than the paperback does.” The hardback is a mark of quality…it shows booksellers and reviewers that this is a book worth paying attention to,” Philip Jones, editor at the Bookseller, explains to The Guardian.
But the major reason why books come out as hardeovers is that people buy them, despite their higher cost. The Economist compares it to movies being released in theaters several months before they arrive on DVD. “Just as film fans like to see films on the big screen, collectors enjoy the hardback’s superior quality,” according to The Economist. And because they’re profitable, publishers can gain more from hardcovers, which “will often sell at twice the price of their paperback equivalent but do not cost twice as much to produce,” Jones explains.
8. What can we learn about hardcover books from paragraph1?
A.They appeal to real book-lovers. | B.They are heavy but not expensive. |
C.They take a long time to come out. | D.They are not preferred by book-lovers. |
9. What does the underlined word “surge” in paragraph 2 mean?
A.Drop. | B.Success. | C.Blow. | D.Increase. |
10. Why are hardback books still printed today?
A.They are brilliantly edited. | B.They are worth collecting. |
C.They convey correct information. | D.They sell better than paperbacks. |
11. What is the main purpose of the passage?
A.To introduce hardcover books. | B.To present a new social finding. |
C.To explain a confusing problem. | D.To encourage people to read books. |