399. Buy it in hardback.
I know he’s selling his book specifically (which I’m sure will be lovely in hardback), but I’m going to beg to differ from the general rule; I dislike 85% of hardback books. I love paperback, with all its lightness, flexibility, and wear-out-ability. You can tell which of my books are best-read because the spines won’t straighten and the titles are ridged with creases.*
Paperbacks don’t have the obnoxious dust jackets, either. (And that covers the exception to my hardback-dislike: beautifully well-designed hardbacks without dust jackets.) Paperbacks are quieter. It feels a little boastful to be reading a TC book on the bus, like I’m flaunting the extra $15. I like my books cheap and a little behind the times.
And finally, paperbacks are much safer for throwing across the room.**
*Except Penguins. Those guys know how to do a paperback spine right, so it doesn’t break but you can still weigh the book open. Way to be, Penguin.
**Let the record reflect that I have done this only once. Henry James may have been involved.
