What a generous post, Kelly, thank you so much for sharing it! As someone who is often intimidated by the 'forest' of different editions at the bookstore, this feels like a map. I especially loved the advice on annotated editions—sometimes a little extra context is exactly what’s needed to make an 'intimidating' classic feel like a friend. Wishing you luck with senior papers!
Thank you so much for going over these terms. I love writing in the margins, so I guess I'd be a trade paperback girl. When books are too beautiful, I don't engage with them in the same way. I like it when my books look a little loved.
So much good information here. I am on the edge of completing a year-long reading project, and I have so many opinions about physical books now! I try to buy hardbound now, if they feel good in my hand, but I have so much respect for those paperback Penguin classics. My Dante has survived and thrived through a couple of transatlantic trips. My one thought about annotated editions: I find them distracting the first time through, when I’m just figuring out the lay of the land. But for a repeat read, they offer another layer of insight.
“the art of typesetting is unappreciated until you try to read a book without it.” This is so true. Someone bought me a physical copy of The Thin Man, and the typesetting is such poor quality that there are mid-line breaks for no reason, dialogues attributions are on the wrong lines, and it’s genuinely difficult to read the story. I dnf’d after a few chapters.
What a generous post, Kelly, thank you so much for sharing it! As someone who is often intimidated by the 'forest' of different editions at the bookstore, this feels like a map. I especially loved the advice on annotated editions—sometimes a little extra context is exactly what’s needed to make an 'intimidating' classic feel like a friend. Wishing you luck with senior papers!
I’m so glad you found it helpful!
Never even knew there were things to know about buying a classic.
Marginalia... Nothing beats ebooks! I can make an endless number of even very long marginal notes on my Kindle!
So interesting! I didn't realize that there are self-published versions of the classics, and how to avoid them.
Very helpful post. In addition to guidance on choosing a book, I learned a lot about publishing terms too!
So helpful, thanks!
Love this. I have a collection of hundreds of classics by women authors. It's all over my house and I'm literally out of shelf space.
Thank you so much for going over these terms. I love writing in the margins, so I guess I'd be a trade paperback girl. When books are too beautiful, I don't engage with them in the same way. I like it when my books look a little loved.
It’s a great point about translations. I used this site to read the first page of each available translation for Brothers Karamazov and it was super helpful. https://welovetranslations.com/2022/01/10/whats-the-best-translation-of-the-brothers-karamazov/
So much good information here. I am on the edge of completing a year-long reading project, and I have so many opinions about physical books now! I try to buy hardbound now, if they feel good in my hand, but I have so much respect for those paperback Penguin classics. My Dante has survived and thrived through a couple of transatlantic trips. My one thought about annotated editions: I find them distracting the first time through, when I’m just figuring out the lay of the land. But for a repeat read, they offer another layer of insight.
I have 4 copies of Pride and Prejudice and definitely prefer the Penguin Classic edition.
It makes such a difference.
“the art of typesetting is unappreciated until you try to read a book without it.” This is so true. Someone bought me a physical copy of The Thin Man, and the typesetting is such poor quality that there are mid-line breaks for no reason, dialogues attributions are on the wrong lines, and it’s genuinely difficult to read the story. I dnf’d after a few chapters.