Be kind to your books -- and here's how

Be kind to your books -- and here's how
FAVORITE books are like old friends. Each time you pull one off a shelf for another visit, it rekindles important memories or feelings.

So to suddenly discover the book has been damaged can be, at best, annoying, at worst, heartbreaking.

The littlest things can break a spine, brown or tear pages or make them stick together. And using the wrong materials to repair the damage can make matters worse.

A couple of book experts offer some tips about how to take better care of your books and increase their lifespan.

"My favorite peeve is people who use tape," says Liz Weatherup, sales rep and supervisor for Theodon Bindery (510-783-9990), a commercial bookbinding company in Hayward.

"Never ever use Scotch tape, Magic mending tape, any kind of (store-bought) tape on your books. It's a major no-no. ... Papers are treated for long-term (wear). Years later, the tape falls off and it's all yellow and dirty looking (underneath). That's not good for books."

Some companies manufacture mending tapes and repair tapes specifically designed for books, she says. For information, Weatherup recommends doing a Web search or asking at a library.

She also says to turn pages "the proper way" to foster healthy books.

"Little kids put their finger at the bottom (of the book), near the spine, and lift up," Weatherup explains. "That tears them. That's a wrong way to open a book."

The right way, she says, is to reach up to the top corner. Then lift the

page, slide your hand underneath and turn it.

Improper filing and excessive photocopying can also do damage.

For instance, if the book you want is surrounded by others on a shelf, the natural response is to put your index finger in the top of the book and pull it out. "That tears the back of the spine," she says.


To pull out a book the "proper way" there should be room at the back of the bookshelf. Push back the books on either side of the one you want "just a little, so you can get your fingers on the book itself and extract it," Weatherup says.


When photocopying, people typically press down on the spine. Do this repeatedly and the back of the book eventually breaks.

"These are not things you think about," Weatherup says. "These are things that just kind of happen. And when they happen repeatedly, it creates damage."

Storage is a major factor, says Andrew Hoyem, publisher of Arion Press ( www.arion-

press.com) in San Francisco.

"The first principle is, keep them out of direct sunlight," says Hoyem, whose company specializes in deluxe, limited-edition books. "It's best if they're protected from ultra-violet light." He says UV coating on windows is a good deterrent.

If you don't protect books from direct sunlight, the covers bleach, the pages can turn brown and the materials -- "whether dust jackets or the cloth" -- deteriorate, he says.

If a book comes with a slip case, put it on a shelf with the back of the slip case, not the spine, facing outward.

Books last longer if properly shelved -- if they're standing upright and being supported by other books or by bookends so they're not tumbling all over the

place, Hoyem explains. Placing them on a shelf at an angle puts stress on the binding.

The publisher acknowledges that larger books may have to lie flat, but that should not damage the spines as long as the stack is even.

To remove dust, use a clean cloth, Hoyem says. Make sure no furniture polish or additives are on the cloth. See that it is not damp.

Some people use a brush to dust. But Hoyem says a soft cotton cloth is safer. A brush just scatters the dust elsewhere. A soft cloth picks up dust and will not harm the paper surface or the binding.

For a leather-bound book, apply a leather preservative once every two to three years to avoid its drying out over time, Hoyem says.

Oil and grease are hard to get out of books, he says. Sometimes, depending on the material, you can clean up stains with a spray-on dry-cleaning substance or a spot remover. But if it's a valuable book, he says, take it to a bookbinder.

"We see everything," Theodon Bindery's Weatherup says. "We got a call from a librarian one day. She was very upset. She said, 'Your people were sloppy.' She said they left a hardened drop of glue in a beautiful art book and it left an impression between two pages. I thought, 'Our glue doesn't harden.'

"We discovered one of her patrons had eaten lunch while reading the book and it was a piece of rice that hardened. ... We get dog-chewed books, books that come in all sizes and shapes and levels of disrepair."

In most cases books can be rebound, she says. If an outer corner was chewed, they can trim it down.

They can't undo sun damage, though. "Usually, the sun just affects the edges, and edges get dry and brittle," Weatherup says. "Sometimes in the rebinding process, pages can be trimmed. If the book is really old and has had a lot of damage, it needs to go to a conservation and restoration facility."

Repairing damaged covers is no problem because they get replaced during the rebinding process, she says.

Agreeing with Hoyem, Weatherup emphasizes the importance of keeping books out of direct sunlight and in a moisture-controlled atmosphere. She says, "That's critical to the longevity of your book."

Hoyem adds a cautionary note: "Books benefit by use," he says, "so preserving books doesn't mean not reading them."

You can e-mail Barry Caine at bcaine@angnewspapers.com or call (925) 416-4806.