Ever wonder how to describe your book, or what each part is called? Here is a little primer on book anatomy.

Boards- the hard front and back of a hard cover book.

Case- another word for a hard cover, usually covered with cloth or paper. A case is made separately from the text, then attached to the text block.

Endsheet- the decorative or plain paper visible right inside the cover when you open a book. The part glued onto the board is the pastedown, the part that turns with the pages is the flyleaf.

Foredge- the edge of the book that opens. Parallel to the spine, it runs between the head and tail.

Gutter- the area of the text block where the pages meet each other. Often the sewing can be seen if you look carefully into the gutter.

Head and Tail- the top and bottom edges of the book.

Headcaps or endcaps- the part of the cover material that curves around the spine at the head and tail. These are subject to damage when used foolishly as a place to hook one’s finger when pulling a book off a shelf.

Headbands or endbands- the narrow strip of decorative material along the head and tail of the text block at the spine. Usually woven, they are not a structural part of a case binding.

Hinge or joint- the area where the boards meet and move at the spine (just like a door.) Some people use hinge to refer to the inside and joint to refer to the outside and some people use them interchangeably, relying on “inner joint” and “outer joint” (or hinge) to clarify.

Hollow- the space between the spine of the cover and the spine of the text block, a tunnel that allows the pages to move away from the cover cloth (called “throwing up”) and drape properly when the book is open. A hollow is a necessity for a case-bound book; paperbacks do not have them.

Mull- the mesh strip that supports the connection of text block to case in a case-bound book. It can usually be seen under the pastedown right inside the cover. It is also sometimes called super or crash.

Pastedown- see endsheet.

Spine- this is the area of the book that is visible when the book is on the shelf, usually where the book is titled.

Text Block- the pages, either sewn or glued together.

People ask me all the time about acidic materials vs. acid free materials. Lots of materials used in bookbinding, art, archives, paper conservation and photography should be acid free to help ensure longevity; these include papers, adhesives, and photo sleeves. Acidity matters in paper because it contributes to yellowing, brittleness and overall deterioration of the paper over time. We’ve all had the experience of seeing old newspaper or book pages that simply fall apart in our hands; that weakness and lack of flexibility is due to the effects of acidity on the internal structure of the paper fibers. Acidity is measured on the pH scale (1-14).

While most art papers and fine writing papers have long been acid free, now even plain old printer paper from chain stores can be acid free. If you want to check on the relative acidity of your paper, you can use one of my favorite gadgets- the pH pen. They are available at good arts stores and online, they look like a regular felt tip pen and they’re super easy to use: just draw a tiny line on your paper and check the resulting color. If the line is lavender or purple the paper is acid free; if the line is yellow or colorless the paper is acidic. Easy!

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I’ve been repairing a number of heavily used books lately - not rare or beautiful, but heavily used - most of which have tape on them. It may seem like a good idea at the time to use any handy tape to reattach loose parts, but it never works out in the end so please- restrain yourself! Eventually pressure sensitive tapes will turn yellow or brittle, flake off and separate, or shrink and turn into a sticky dirt-attracting mess. The tape also usually fails to fix the original problem. Get your book to a trained bookbinder or conservator for repair before it is a basket case and you’ll be able to use it for the long haul.

What else can you do to keep your books intact and in good condition?

• Keep them vertical or horizontal, not slumping or sliding on the shelf. Heavy books like photo albums or really big books should be housed flat to prevent gravity from pulling the text out of the covers. Smaller books should be kept snug on the shelf with other books or bookends, and not allowed to tilt.
• Use a book cradle or prop up the covers while you’re reading so that the book isn’t completely wide open- that can be a stressful position. Close your book when you’re not reading, even if you don’t shelve it.
• Keep your books out of temperature extremes (hot cars in summer, unheated attics in winter) and moist or wet environments (basements, and bath or beach reading unless of course you’re talking about paperbacks.) These extremes can be tough on paper, board and adhesives and hasten degradation even if they don’t cause instant book death.
• Keep your books clean, free of crumbs and greasy handprints. I was once asked if I could remove oily stains caused by a hunk of ginger snap accidently crushed in a text book; the answer was no. Enough books are chewed on by vermin and pets without encouragement.

These practices help prevent the need for book repair later on. Obviously some books live tougher lives than others (cookbooks, camping/birding/outdoor guides, childrens’ book and school books, library books etc.) but the more precious the book, the more care you should give it.

The following are pictures of some of the books that I have recently repaired, before the repair process started.  Note the use of tape, and how that tape has deteriorated over time.

Tape deteriorates over time

Tape does not adequately solve the problem

An improperly repaired book

All kinds, really, but these are some of the most common categories:

• childhood books, or books inherited from or once-owned by relatives
• books with monetary or antiquarian value
• scripture books and Bibles
• hardworking textbooks, reference books and cookbooks that are too expensive to replace, out of print or edition specific

These books range from heavily-used books still in service to antiques that have a sheltered existence, The repair process for each book depends on the books value, projected use, sentimental importance and one’s budget; it ranges from minimally invasive to complete overhaul. I’ve repaired book for individuals, book dealers, book collectors, schools, libraries, municipal record offices; I’ve even repaired a Norwegian yacht engine manual for the yacht’s crew.

In this blog, I will be commenting from time to time on some of my favorite projects.  I’ll show (with the owner’s permission) some interesting examples of book repair, beautiful old books that are sent to me, and the techniques used to bring them back.  I will also comment from time to time on bookbinding tools and equipment, and how this equipment is used within the hand bookbinding profession.  Finally, if there are interesting bookbinding news articles or other items that I come across on the internet, I will comment about them here.  It should be a fun exploration, and I hope that you find it interesting.