In the corner of every book store are shelves of books the size of your back pocket with some ambiguous or slightly racy cover, and thin yellowing pages. If you’ve ever wondered what that format of books is called, I’ve got you: mass market paperbacks. And soon, all that will remain of them will be the ones circulating second-hand stores.
Mass market paperbacks make books cheaper, more readily available to the public, and were vital for launching numerous careers like that of Stephen King. Now, E-books have taken the demand of the beloved format — so much so that the biggest book distributor ReaderLink has decided to stop distributing the format.
With the current want for physical media, I propose we bring back the demand for mass market paperbacks. Especially in a time where the typical paperback book is usually upwards of $25 at Indigo (when not on sale), mass market books could be our answer to making physical books more available for the public again. So please don’t stop reading those awkwardly long books that fit just right in your back pocket.
