How to Keep Books in Good Condition

Co-authored by Kim Gillingham, MA

Last Updated: March 19, 2024 Approved

Books are truly intriguing objects. They link our physical selves to the reality stored within the book's pages. They serve as memories, as lessons, and so much more. They can contain stories meant for children to complicated methods of hacking. There are many ways to treat and care for your books, whether you have a collection of rare books or simply want to keep your existing books in a good condition. Learning how to properly handle, care, and store your books will help them remain in an ideal condition and preserve their memory, importance, and quality.

Best Ways to Preserve Books

Shelve your books upright to avoid warping and damage.
Store your books in a cool and dry room, out of direct sunlight.
Dust your books regularly to prevent natural wear and tear.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Handling and Caring for Books

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1
Handle books hygienically. Handling your books hygienically will help ensure minimal wear and tear, accidental spills, or permanent stains. Wash your hands before handling any book and avoid having any liquids or foods nearby during handling or reading to help keep your book in an ideal condition.
- Avoid using saliva to turn pages. Use a sponge instead.^{[1]
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- Use cotton gloves if you are handling a rare, old, or fragile book.
- Don't eat or drink anything while you're reading.
2
Remove large or bulky bookmarks. Large bookmarks can stress both the binding or glue in the spine of the book as well as make impressions and indentations in the page. Remove bulky bookmarks to reduce the chance of pages being accidentally ripped, torn, or damaged while reading.
- Try using a piece of thread or silk ribbon as a bookmark to avoid any unwanted damage.
- If you wish to keep the bookmark with the book, place the bookmark in an acid-free envelope next to the book or inside an insert.^{[2]
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- Avoid folding, or “dog-earing,” the corners of pages as they can cause lasting damage.^{[3]
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Avoid damage to the binding. Both paperback and hardback books are either bound with an adhesive, stitching, or a combination of the two. The wider you open a book, the more stress you are putting the spine and binding under.
- Use caution when opening new hardbacks as they often have a stiff spine and are prone to cracking.
Pages experience natural deterioration over time and can often become quite fragile or brittle. Use caution when turning pages in order to avoid unwanted tears, wrinkles, dimples, and rips to pages or fragile bindings.
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Try to use two hands while reading. Using two hands while reading will ensure that the book's binding and pages are not being unnecessarily stressed. If holding a book with two hands is uncomfortable due to fragility, size, or weight, lay the book on a table or cradle it in your lap.
- Don't bend paperback covers while reading. It can be difficult to get them to resume their original shape and it often causes spine damage.^{[4]
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- Invest in reading copies if you have a book you can't put down and want to preserve.
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Send rare and fragile books to a specialist in book conservation. Whether you have a rare first edition or a paperback with sentimental value, sending a damaged book to a specialist is your best chance at repair.
- Book conservationists can have many specializations, from historic preservation to binding and material repair. Consult national book conservation organizations, like the Regional Alliance for Preservation (RAP) or the American Institute for Conservation (AIC), to find out which local conservationists can provide you with a consultation.

Part 2

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Storing Books

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1
Shelve books upright. Avoid shelving books too tightly or leaning against one another as this can cause lasting warping, structural damage, and cracking. When shelving, place books of similar height and length next to one another to avoid stressing the spine.
- Placing a book flat is an alternative to upright shelving. However, when shelving a book horizontally be sure to put as little weight on top of it as possible.
- Grab the middle of the spine when removing a book from a shelf to avoid damaging the head (top) and foot (bottom) of the spine.
2
Keep books out of direct sunlight and in a cool area. Place your books in a controlled climate to help prolong the book's quality. Sunlight, heat, and humidity can all have negative effects on the book's binding, structure, and page quality.
- Humidity can cause mildew to grow on your books. If you live in a particularly humid environment, and mildew begins to grow, simply wipe the mildew with a very dry cloth and leave the book in sunlight for 30-45 minutes. Be careful not to leave it longer as sunlight can cause the cover to fade.
- If a rare or fragile book grows mildew bring it to a specialist in book conservation.
3
Keep your books clean. Clean your books regularly in order to prevent natural wear and tear and increase the quality of their storage. Dusting your books will help reduce permanent page and cover aging.
- Make sure to dust your books from the spine outward so dust does not settle behind the spine.
- Avoid storing books in plastic bags. Books need to breathe and plastic can cause molding or warping. Instead, try wrapping the book in acid-free cloth or purchases a book storage box.

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How do I take care of the spine of a book? What can I do to keep it intact if it is bent?

Community Answer

You should hold the book carefully to prevent a bent spine. If it is already bent, then there is nothing you can do. Bending it in different ways to make the spine retain its normal condition may make it worse.

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Will putting a plastic cover on the book help to protect it?

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Yes, it will help protect the cover from minor marks and very small spills, but it won't protect the pages.

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Can I put books in a trolley or duffle bag for long time?

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You can keep them there temporarily, as long as the conditions of the bag aren't damp, but if you want to keep them in good condition, I wouldn't recommend storing them like this for an extended period of time.

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Tips

Always place your books in a safe place, free of hazardous materials to maintain optimum quality.

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Handle precious and fragile books with extreme care.

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Keep your books out of reach from small children and pets so they stay in great condition.

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