Will the Classics Soon Go Out of Print?

[Terrence]

Some years ago I lost my copy of Anthony Trollope’s “The Last Chronicle of Barset” and I went to a bookstore to get a fresh copy. There were none on the shelves, but they eventually found me a copy. It cost about $ 15. A few months later I bought a Kindle and discovered that I could download the eBook version of this book for free.

There are voluntary, non-profit organisations that have uploaded 19th century and some early 20th century books into the internet that can be downloaded free. They are books in the public domain. You can even download free, audio versions of many of these books.

Though many might like to read off physical books, can they afford this luxury when eBooks are available for free? Hence, the demand for physical books that are in the public domain will diminish and it may become economically unfeasible for publishers to print these books.

Hence, the big question: will the classics soon go out of print?

[Ericka]

Cost can definitely be a significant feature. I'm sure being able to get these books free on an e-reader is especially great for students. I think sometimes, though, people like to have some classics on their shelves, especially hardbound editions, as a sign of culture or education or whatever. I remember seeing a DIY tutorial video of this woman gutting books and using the spines to cover a plastic drawer, basically telling people how you could have all this storage on your book shelf but with the visible book spines, you also look like you've read smart things! lol =)

[Jessika]

Oh my gosh, I cringe at that story, Ericka!

I definitely understand what you're saying about the economic feasibility factor, Terrence, but I kinda agree with what Ericka says. I know for me, classics are one of my favorite genres, and I love to own a good, solid hard copy of them for my shelves. (Not necessarily to look smart or anything, but just because I love 'em!) And it seems like a lot of publishers now are creating these super beautiful, collectible editions. I know I own multiple copies of many classics just because I get suckered into buying a new cover, etc.

[T. K. Elliott (Tiffany)]

Personally, I think the 'reading' editions of books (e.g. mass market paperback) will disappear in paper format as more and more people move towards ebooks, making paperback print runs uneconomical. - although you may still be able to a get a print-on-demand copy for quite a while.

The market for 'display' editions of books will carry on for the foreseeable future, as people want to books they can show off. I expect more and more books will be published as increasingly beautiful decorative editions will be published: book as objet d'art rather than reading material.